Norwich to Heathrow

[Wuffle]

My son and his partner are flying from Heathrow and are looking at the options of going by rail as against car, any advice and costs would be appreciated

 

[bcarmicle]

Roughly what time do they need to be at Heathrow, and do they hold any railcards?

 

[30907]

Do they

Roughly what time do they need to be at Heathrow, and do they hold any railcards?

Plus: are they happy to be restricted to a specific train from Norwich? And is it a return trip? Do they have specific dates?

 

[Crithylum]

Easiest way would be Greater Anglia to Stratford/Liverpool Street, then Elizabeth line to Heathrow.

 

[yorkie]

My son and his partner are flying from Heathrow and are looking at the options of going by rail as against car, any advice and costs would be appreciated

What are your requirements?

Without context, it's impossible to provide suitable advice.

If you are after the most simple journey, it could be a single change at Stratford (in the other direction I'd consider alternatively changing at Liverpool Street); it'll cost a bit more than taking the Piccadilly Line, but could be worth it, if you have a lot of luggage.

The forum's site can come up with suitable itineraries to match any requirements you have.

 

[blueberry11]

I do think it may be a struggle to use the train especially if you have more than one suitcase. Not sure if Greater Anglia to Elizabeth line is cross platform but regardless, since changing at Stratford isn't step free (train to platform), it can be difficult so changing at Liverpool Street may be better since lifts are available and the low level (Elizabeth line) Liverpool Street platform is step free all the way to the train, along with Heathrow. Plus the fact that they are travelling together makes it a little more challenging.

The new Greater Anglia trains are (almost) step free as the trains are at 915mm, the British standards for platform height with small variations

Also, it may be better to buy a Norwich to London ticket, then to use Contactless (or Oyster) to Heathrow.

 

[Haywain]

since changing at Stratford isn't step free (train to platform)

Train to platform will be step-free if travelling from Norwich, as all trains are formed of class 745 or 755 unites.

 

[FenMan]

For (possible) future reference. If flying long-distance, through air tickets that include flights between Norwich and Schipol can be very competitively priced compared with Heathrow flights and the cost of travelling from and to Norwich.

 

[redreni]

I do think it may be a struggle to use the train especially if you have more than one suitcase. Not sure if Greater Anglia to Elizabeth line is cross platform but regardless, since changing at Stratford isn't step free (train to platform), it can be difficult so changing at Liverpool Street may be better since lifts are available and the low level (Elizabeth line) Liverpool Street platform is step free all the way to the train, along with Heathrow. Plus the fact that they are travelling together makes it a little more challenging.

The new Greater Anglia trains are (almost) step free as the trains are at 915mm, the British standards for platform height with small variations

Also, it may be better to buy a Norwich to London ticket, then to use Contactless (or Oyster) to Heathrow.

Train to platform will be step-free if travelling from Norwich, as all trains are formed of class 745 or 755 units.

Indeed, and the walking distance at Liverpool Street is really long.

 

[PeterC]

I do think it may be a struggle to use the train especially if you have more than one suitcase. Not sure if Greater Anglia to Elizabeth line is cross platform but regardless, since changing at Stratford isn't step free (train to platform), it can be difficult so changing at Liverpool Street may be better since lifts are available and the low level (Elizabeth line) Liverpool Street platform is step free all the way to the train, along with Heathrow. Plus the fact that they are travelling together makes it a little more challenging.

The new Greater Anglia trains are (almost) step free as the trains are at 915mm, the British standards for platform height with small variations

Also, it may be better to buy a Norwich to London ticket, then to use Contactless (or Oyster) to Heathrow.

All platforms at Stratford have lift access. The Elizabeth Line platforms are busy and fairly narrow. I would be inclined to take the first Paddington train as it is a more comfortable place to wait.

 

[Wuffle]

Thank you for your answers, still waiting for an update from the son about travel times - however I think I need to reframe the question

Which is the cheapest route
Piccadilly line
Elizabeth line
Or Heathrow Express

The responses do raise one question - why does Stratford as a change for the Elizabeth line appear more often than Liverpool St ?

I've used the Elizabeth line a few times to Paddington and always found it to be quick and easy, never been keen on Stratford even when I lived in London

 

[yorkie]

Thank you for your answers, still waiting for an update from the son about travel times - however I think I need to reframe the question

Which is the cheapest route
Piccadilly line
Elizabeth line
Or Heathrow Express

Piccadilly line will be cheaper.

The responses do raise one question - why does Stratford as a change for the Elizabeth line appear more often than Liverpool St ?

It will be a shorter interchange in the data

I've used the Elizabeth line a few times to Paddington and always found it to be quick and easy, never been keen on Stratford even when I lived in London

In that case specify change at Liverpool Street (or, alternatively you can specify don't change at Stratford)

If you can avoid 'peak' times between Norwich and London, the best fare is probably :

Norwich to London Undergrnd Zones 1-6
Off-Peak Return
£80.20

I suggest you turn splits off for this search and choose 'flexible' , not 'fixed'.

 

[Crithylum]

Thank you for your answers, still waiting for an update from the son about travel times - however I think I need to reframe the question

Which is the cheapest route
Piccadilly line
Elizabeth line
Or Heathrow Express

The responses do raise one question - why does Stratford as a change for the Elizabeth line appear more often than Liverpool St ?

I've used the Elizabeth line a few times to Paddington and always found it to be quick and easy, never been keen on Stratford even when I lived in London

TFL single fare finder will have the exact price of journeys within London
Heathrow Express is far more expensive and not worth it imo given the time saving is mostly lost at Paddington
Elizabeth line premium over Piccadilly may be worth it as it is a much better experience, as well as much faster and convenient when connecting to Greater Anglia

 

[redreni]

Piccadilly line will be cheaper.

Anyone have a view on the validity of the route:

Norwich to Straford (or Liverpool Street)
Elizabeth Line to Ealing Broadway
District Line to Acton Town
Piccadilly Line to Heathrow

on a Norwich to London Underground Zones 1-6 ticket?

It will be a shorter interchange in the data.

As well as in reality, due to the Liverpool Street Elizabeth Line platforms being (more or less) at Moorgate, whereas the change at Stratford will be between parallel platforms.

 

[Watershed]

Using the Piccadilly line or Heathrow Express also entails an extra change compared to the Elizabeth line. That being said the Elizabeth line option isn't exactly cheap, and you have to buy split tickets to avoid paying for a much more expensive ticket valid on the Heathrow Express.

The frequency of the Elizabeth line to T5 is also poor at just 2tph, vs 6tph on the Piccadilly line and 4tph on the Heathrow Express.

A partial workaround if heading to T5 is that you can board a T4-bound Elizabeth line train and change (at the same platform) onto the Heathrow Express at T2&3; the inter-terminal transfer is free regardless of operator so there's no need to buy a Heathrow Express ticket just for this section.

Similarly you can do the same in reverse when arriving at T5. This workaround doesn't save you a huge amount of time, but it's better than waiting up to half an hour for the next direct T5 Elizabeth line service if you've just missed one.

 

[Wuffle]

Thank you for the info I'll pass it on and see what they do

 

[pethadine82]

There is another option and that is to get of at Hayes and Harlington and take the SL9 from there, it limits the number of changes from ealing broadway to acton town.