London Heathrow layover

[Grifdog22]

We have a six hour layover at Heathrow on a December Thursday en route to ABD Poland. When we went on the London/Paris ABD the visits to Buckingham Palace and Windsor castle were cancelled as they were closed; ABD substitution was poor. (Buckingham had been closed for some time for renovations and the Queen was therefore in residence at Windsor - ABD acted like it was a surprise...but we hadn't known it until we were there.

I see Windsor is about 12 miles from Heathrow. While we recognize we need to allow time to get thru customs and back thru security, a couple of hours at Windsor castle would "fill the gap" of something we really wanted to do last time we were there with ABD. Has anyone done something like this, and if so we would welcome your suggestions.

 

[Bad Pink Tink 2.0]

I used to live in London and have travelled through Heathrow so many times Ive lost count. Heathrow is huge, and very spread out.

The first thing we need to know is when you say 6 hour layover, what exactly are your times.

What time and in what terminal do you land?
What time and in what terminal is your next flight?
What kind of transport do you plan to use?

 

[AgentMama]

We're risk adverse and wouldn't chance. Heathrow is a pain to navigate and by the time you get out, you'll need to be back in. For 6 hours we would just spend time wondering or in a lounge.

 

[Bad Pink Tink 2.0]

We're risk adverse and wouldn't chance. Heathrow is a pain to navigate and by the time you get out, you'll need to be back in. For 6 hours we would just spend time wondering or in a lounge.

I agree, which is why I asked for more information, so that we can give better advice. People dont realize that Terminal 5 is 20 minutes by bus from Terminals 2, 3 and 4 or that there are 3 different tube stations, at Terminal 5, at Terminal 2 and 3 and at Terminal 4.

 

[Mathmagicland]

We have a six hour layover at Heathrow on a December Thursday en route to ABD Poland. When we went on the London/Paris ABD the visits to Buckingham Palace and Windsor castle were cancelled as they were closed; ABD substitution was poor. (Buckingham had been closed for some time for renovations and the Queen was therefore in residence at Windsor - ABD acted like it was a surprise...but we hadn't known it until we were there.

I see Windsor is about 12 miles from Heathrow. While we recognize we need to allow time to get thru customs and back thru security, a couple of hours at Windsor castle would "fill the gap" of something we really wanted to do last time we were there with ABD. Has anyone done something like this, and if so we would welcome your suggestions.

I:think it is doable if your flight is not late, as the Heathrow flight patterns go right over Windsor….you see a plane fly over every 2-3 minutes or so. It is really close. There are so,e tour guides which offer four-hour layover tours of London, and Windsor is a lot closer than the city.

I would suggest light carryons and be aware Heathrow security can be a little more stringent than in the US, ie electronics out and all liquids out in a quart bag, etc if you are used to TSA pre-check where sometimes things can be left inside. So be prepared for that before you leave the airport so there are no extra delays when you come back, as if your bag gets pulled aside for extra screening it can add up to 30 minutes there (my brother’s experience). There seem to be a couple of places where you could store luggage at the airport for the layover, which would make getting through Windsor Castle security much quicker as there they will go thru every bag plus make you drink from your water bottle.

I’d also suggest not prebooking a ticket at Windsor, as the line for those with tickets was extremely long to even get to the security entrance plus they keep to the ticket times. Walkups to get a ticket got into the next security queue right away. Even doing that, it was at least 20 minutes to get thru security in early September; I don’t know how long the wait would be in mid-December. You might not get s full two hours inside, so have to decide if it would be worth it if your Windsor time was less than two hours.

 

[theMoreDisneytheBetter]

We have a six hour layover at Heathrow on a December Thursday en route to ABD Poland. When we went on the London/Paris ABD the visits to Buckingham Palace and Windsor castle were cancelled as they were closed; ABD substitution was poor. (Buckingham had been closed for some time for renovations and the Queen was therefore in residence at Windsor - ABD acted like it was a surprise...but we hadn't known it until we were there.

I see Windsor is about 12 miles from Heathrow. While we recognize we need to allow time to get thru customs and back thru security, a couple of hours at Windsor castle would "fill the gap" of something we really wanted to do last time we were there with ABD. Has anyone done something like this, and if so we would welcome your suggestions.

Could you change your return flights to have more of a layover? Or add another day to the front end of your trip? Heathrow is a zoo, London traffic/transportation can be unreliable, and security at Windsor is such that I wouldn’t want to be hauling luggage there anyway. It would be much nicer (for you) to leave stuff at a hotel and visit at a more leisurely pace.

 

[BBH]

We have a six hour layover at Heathrow on a December Thursday en route to ABD Poland. When we went on the London/Paris ABD the visits to Buckingham Palace and Windsor castle were cancelled as they were closed; ABD substitution was poor. (Buckingham had been closed for some time for renovations and the Queen was therefore in residence at Windsor - ABD acted like it was a surprise...but we hadn't known it until we were there.

I see Windsor is about 12 miles from Heathrow. While we recognize we need to allow time to get thru customs and back thru security, a couple of hours at Windsor castle would "fill the gap" of something we really wanted to do last time we were there with ABD. Has anyone done something like this, and if so we would welcome your suggestions.

I just had a 6 hour layover at Heathrow last month and I would have been really stressed out trying to go sightseeing. Just getting to terminal 5 and through security took awhile. I have also been to Windsor several years ago and I feel like we spent several hours there plus took a train back and forth. I don’t think you would have time to see much.

 

[FairyGodmother00]

Personally, I would not risk it as several have posted. Agree, London traffic is absolutely a zoo and Heathrow is Huge. I certainly would not want to miss my flight over the palace.

But, if you can change your flight I would tour Buckingham Palace. We enjoyed it and it does take some time to do this.

 

[fla4fun]

Could you change your return flights to have more of a layover? Or add another day to the front end of your trip? Heathrow is a zoo, London traffic/transportation can be unreliable, and security at Windsor is such that I wouldn’t want to be hauling luggage there anyway. It would be much nicer (for you) to leave stuff at a hotel and visit at a more leisurely pace.

This was my first thought as well. I would not be able to enjoy the sightseeing because I would be concerned about getting back to the airport in time for my flight to join ABD. I would be more relaxed on the return flight because it wouldn’t wreck my entire vacation if I missed the flight going home (not that it would be a pleasant experience to get an alternative flight home, but it would be much less stressful than trying to meet up with ABD from a later flight or missing the ABD altogether).

Since it could take an hour to exit the airport, and the recommendation for international flights is to show up three hours early, you only have two hours to travel to Windsor, go through security, tour, and return to the airport. I would not do it if it were me. I would try to extend the layover on the return to at least 8-10 hours, which would give you 4-6 hours instead of two.

 

[Mathmagicland]

We have a six hour layover at Heathrow on a December Thursday

One additional thought to factor in - just remembering a recent comment from an England car service driver, who shared that Thursday afternoons/ evenings (along with Tuesday mornings) are his and Heathrow busiest times in terms of number of people traveling to the airport. So depending on whether your layover is morning or afternoon, that could impact getting thru security for your return fight and reduce your Windsor time to ensure making your next flight.

 

[foolish_mortals]

This was my first thought as well. I would not be able to enjoy the sightseeing because I would be concerned about getting back to the airport in time for my flight to join ABD. I would be more relaxed on the return flight because it wouldn’t wreck my entire vacation if I missed the flight going home (not that it would be a pleasant experience to get an alternative flight home, but it would be much less stressful than trying to meet up with ABD from a later flight or missing the ABD altogether).

Since it could take an hour to exit the airport, and the recommendation for international flights is to show up three hours early, you only have two hours to travel to Windsor, go through security, tour, and return to the airport. I would not do it if it were me. I would try to extend the layover on the return to at least 8-10 hours, which would give you 4-6 hours instead of two.

This timeline is broken down perfectly!

I've been through Heathrow 4 times in the past year and something has always held me up. Between other passengers having medical emergencies, BA reissuing my boarding pass mid flight requiring me to go to a gate agent, and delayed takeoffs due to weather. Everything would need to go smoothly for it to even be viable.

I'm not seeing it happen without a lot of stress and a lot of luck. Traveling in December increases the chance of cascading delays, so if your flight is very delayed or canceled then you could turn a bad thing into a good thing and go to Windsor Castle.

 

[jimmymc]

You could technically do it and have about an hour at Windsor Castle, but that sounds like more money and headache than it's worth. I would either try to get a longer layover, maybe overnight, or just grab a lounge pass or nice meal in the airport.

 

[Steven G]

you can see my writeup here about my recent Rhine river cruise, where I had a stopover at heathrow.
https://www.disboards.com/threads/rhine-river-cruise-report-8-1-to-8-8.3951686/

Even though I had more of the opposite problem (only a 1.5 hour layover, which became a 30 minute layover due to delays), I would not risk what you are trying to do.

Like others, I would just relax the airport and get through security and customs as fast as possible.

 

[Skippyboo]

Buckingham Palace is only open for a short period of the year normally late July - September when the monarch goes to Scotland.

 

[Bad Pink Tink 2.0]

Isnt kinda pointless to continue giving advice when the op hasnt returned, acknowledge any of the advice or given further information????

 

[jimmymc]

Isnt kinda pointless to continue giving advice when the op hasnt returned, acknowledge any of the advice or given further information????

I like it when people keep threads going. I'm sure others will have long layovers at LHR in the future.

 

[sayhello]

Isnt kinda pointless to continue giving advice when the op hasnt returned, acknowledge any of the advice or given further information????

He's a longtime poster who just doesn't make it to the boards that often. I know him personally. He's not trolling or anything like that. He will eventually reply.

Sayhello

 

[Grifdog22]

I:think it is doable if your flight is not late, as the Heathrow flight patterns go right over Windsor….you see a plane fly over every 2-3 minutes or so. It is really close. There are so,e tour guides which offer four-hour layover tours of London, and Windsor is a lot closer than the city.

I would suggest light carryons and be aware Heathrow security can be a little more stringent than in the US, ie electronics out and all liquids out in a quart bag, etc if you are used to TSA pre-check where sometimes things can be left inside. So be prepared for that before you leave the airport so there are no extra delays when you come back, as if your bag gets pulled aside for extra screening it can add up to 30 minutes there (my brother’s experience). There seem to be a couple of places where you could store luggage at the airport for the layover, which would make getting through Windsor Castle security much quicker as there they will go thru every bag plus make you drink from your water bottle.

I’d also suggest not prebooking a ticket at Windsor, as the line for those with tickets was extremely long to even get to the security entrance plus they keep to the ticket times. Walkups to get a ticket got into the next security queue right away. Even doing that, it was at least 20 minutes to get thru security in early September; I don’t know how long the wait would be in mid-December. You might not get s full two hours inside, so have to decide if it would be worth it if your Windsor time was less than two hours.

Thanks for the comments. Work has been crushing, and my volunteer work as Programs VP with ScoutingAmerica as a four-state Council has also kept me away from doing anything personal.

We are arriving at Terminal 5. We should have Global Entry by that time. We leave Heathrow from Terminal 3. If we do this, we will hop onto the express train that leaves from terminal 5 every 15 minutes and arrives at Paddington station for a transfer (we've done the walk to the tube before). If things are delayed, we may simply play around Paddington station - I never got to visit with the bear statue before - and we remain flexible. The return will also be the express train back to Terminal 3, about a 20 minute ride. We explored the lockers, but the time requirement to return to Terminal 5 after Windsor and then get to Terminal 3 shuts this idea down.

We will not book a ticket for Windsor until the morning of, in case of delays or problems, as we can book online while in the customs Q. We usually travel with backpacks but for this would pack almost everything in the suitcase. Flexibility is our watchword with travel.

Thank you to all those who shared thoughts, ideas and concerns. We take seriously those who have had experience and appreciate your input!

 

[floribr1]

Buckingham Palace is only open for a short period of the year normally late July - September when the monarch goes to Scotland.

The OP was considering a visit to Windsor Castle, not Buckingham Palace.

 

[theMoreDisneytheBetter]

.

We are arriving at Terminal 5. We should have Global Entry by that time.

Just a word of caution - if you mean US global entry it won’t help with overseas customs.