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Dover
is around 100 miles from Heathrow Airport. Because Heathrow is on
the other side of London to Dover there are no direct public transport
links. All transfers by public transport between Heathrow and Dover
require a connection in Central London.
Travelling by National Express Bus is the simplest
as there is a simple one stop connection at Victoria Coach Station
where you change buses. The Dover rail alternative
though much faster overall than bus involves a tedious transfer
across London by taxi or Underground train between the different
stations used by the Heathrow and Dover trains
Private hire motor transport by taxi, van
or charter bus for the journey will take around two hours.
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National
Express Bus Dover - Heathrow
National Express Coaches are comfortable long distance coaches with
onboard washroom and toilets. There are frequent buses from Heathrow
Bus Station to London Victoria and broadly hourly services from Victoria
to Dover. Total journey time should be around 4 to 5 hours. |
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Victoria
is very central, and the coach station has a left luggage office.
In Dover, National Express buses terminate at the ferry terminal,
(Eastern Docks). A taxi is required for passengers
going to or from the cruise terminal in the Western Docks. |
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Luggage
allowance is two suitcases, neither of which should weigh more than
20kg. It is up to the discretion of the driver if more luggage is
carried. There is no luggage excess charge system, if everybody in
the bus turns up with their full luggage allowance there is no room
for more luggage. |
Fares
: There
are a range of fare options, including bargain advance purchase fares
and heavily discounted tickets for those over 60. Unlike the railways,
full e-tickets can be purchased from the National Express web site.
National
Express London-Dover Ticketing & Timetables
Journey Time : Around 4 - 5 hours |
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At Heathrow
departures to/from Central London via London by National Express are
from the Central Bus Station. Allow 10 minutes from here to transfer
to Terminals 1,2 or 3 by foot.
The route is covered and luggage trolley friendly along underground
corridors with moving walkways and ramps and lifts at either end.
From Terminal 4 you need to catch the Heathrow Connect train (free)
which runs from Terminal 4 to the central train station underneath
the bus station.
From Terminal 5 you need to catch the Heathrow Express train, also
free and also every 15 minutes again from the Central Station. |
| Rail
- Dover to/from Heathrow |
The
railway station at Dover is a few hundred metres to the south of Dover
Town centre, a long way from both the cruise terminal in the Western
docks and the ferry terminal in the Eastern Docks.
The port authority runs a shuttle bus between the ferry terminal and
Priory Station.
Passengers for the cruise terminal require a Dover
taxi. As you come out of the front entrance of Dover Priory Station,
turn right for the taxi rank. |
Dover Priory Station |
There
are several trains each hour between London and Dover run by South
East trains. Some trains run to London Victoria, others terminate
at Charing Cross stopping at London Bridge and Waterloo East among
others.
Journey time should be well under two hours.
Luggage is only limited by the amount you can personally carry onto
the train and stow in the passenger cabin.
Train between Heathrow and
London terminate at Paddington Station. There are direct London
Underground links between Paddington and both Charing Cross and
Victoria.
You can also take the much cheaper London Underground all the way
to Heathrow, changing trains once. However, if you have lots of luggage
you'll need to negotiate lots of escalators, long corridors and crowded
trains.
Otherwise black London taxi cabs will perform the transfer between
stations.
Journey
Time : Around 3 hours |
Fares
: Fares
are very complex,Saver return fares are walk up tickets available
on the day heavily discounted - but you cannot travel before 09:30,
Monday to Friday.
Use 'the trainline'
- for timetables and available fares.
For overseas visitors the big problem with train tickets is that there
are no true etickets at the moment, so you miss the reasonable advance
purchase fares. Tickets ordered online can only be sent to UK postal
addresses. |
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However,
there is an option where you can order online and pickup the tickets
on arrival at a special ticket machine. This scheme is called Fastticket.
The big but is that Fastticket machines are only on selected stations.
There no Fastticket machines at Dover, Charing Cross or Heathrow.
The good news is that there is a machine at London Victoria and Paddington.
Use 'the trainline'
- for timetables and ticketing with the Fastticket option. |
Taxi
from the Cruise Terminal
If you are catching a train or bus out of Dover you will need to use
a taxi.
If you are catching a National Express coach then you need to go to
the Eastern Docks, the train station is a few hundred metres from
the town centre.
Taxi cabs are metered, in 2007 the approximate price for a taxi between
Dover Cruise Terminal and Dover Station or Ferry Port for National Express
buses was 7 pounds UK Stirling. There is normally a board outside the baggage
hall with current prices posted.
The taxi cabs may take Euro and US dollars but don't count on a good
exchange rate, its best to pay in sterling.
If you want a taxi to go further afield like London or the airports then
make sure you get a firm quote before you depart.
The taxi cabs at Dover are quite varied. The standard ones are normal
European style saloon cars, able to carry 4 passengers only with little
room. If you are large you will be in discomfort trying to seat 4
people.
The boot may only take 2 large cases, smaller than North American
cars.
There are larger cabs on the rank, but its a hit and miss affair and
queues for the taxi cabs can be very long. |
Taxi
Fares Posted Outside Terminals |
Typical
Dover Taxi Cabs |
Private
Transport
Direct
transfers from Heathrow to Dover by private hire vehicle save a lot
of hassle and tedium associated with the public transport alternatives
with the awkward change of transport in Central London.
By road it takes about 2 hours non-stop between Heathrow and Dover
subject to road congestion. |
Heathrow
- Dover Private Hire Fixed Price Menu
(Prices include all taxes, parking fees etc) |
Passenger
Capacity |
Luggage
Capacity |
Price |
Bus/Car
Type |
| 5 |
4
cases |
£170 |
Saloon/Sedan/MPV
- 4 cases plus up to 5 hand luggage. Chrysler Voyager or similar. |
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Saloon
Car/ MPV transfer enquires/quotations
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8
|
16
cases |
£230 |
High
Loader Bus- 12 seat bus with seats taken out.
Room for 16 cases/outsize items + hand luggage |
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|
12
|
16
cases |
£275 |
Standard
12 seat bus - standard 12 seat minibus
Room for 16 cases/outsize items + hand luggage |
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16
|
16
cases |
£330 |
Standard
16 seat bus - standard 16 seat minibus
Room for 16 cases/outsize items + hand luggage |
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>16
|
quotation
required for larger coach with 24, 48 or 53 seats |
Order
bus transfers now on our secure shopping cart:
Heathrow
to Dover Minibus online reservation
Dover
to Heathrow Minibus online reservation
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More
details on Dover - London private transfers: |
