Southampton Bus & Rail Stations
A Cruise Passengers Guide
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| Southampton Train Station |
For cruise passengers traveling to and from their ship in Southampton by public transport they will arrive at either the city centre rail station or the coach station. Both are within a few hundred yards of each other.
A key aspect to remember at Southampton is that there are four cruise terminals strung along about two miles of the waterfront at Southampton. We have a Southampton map at the foot of this page that depicts the relative position of each cruise terminal to the bus and rail stations.
Southampton Central Station & Southampton By Train
There are several rail stations in Southampton. The station appropriate for the cruise passengers is Southampton Central, the main city centre station.
The station is fairly basic with just a ticket office and basic refreshment facilities and toilets. There is no left luggage facility. Southampton Central is fully accessible to wheelchair users.
At the moment there are no true etickets on UK railways and the cheapest fares are normally advance purchase where available. Inside the entrance to Southampton train station is a machine where you can pick up tickets ordered for and paid for in advance on-line.
Taxi cabs are freely available outside the main entrance to the station.
Southampton By Train - Full Details
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| Southampton Coach Station |
Southampton Coach Station & Southampton By Bus
The National Express coach station is very close to the rail station. Its a small, but modern coach station with limited seating areas and basic facilities.
This bus station is dedicated to National Express, other local buses do not come here.
There is a small taxi rank outside and inside the small terminal is a snack bar, toilets and ticket office.
There are three National Express routes to and from Southampton that provide direct services between London Victoria, Heathrow and Gatwick Airports
Close to the bus staion about 400m away are the Novotel, ETAP and Ibis hotels that can easly be walked to with luggage.
A regional shopping mall is also on your doorstep and the train station about 300m away.
Southampton By Bus - Full Details
Transfers Between Cruise Terminals & Bus/Train Stations
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| Typical Southampton Taxi |
No shuttle buses are provided between the cruise and bus/train stations.
You therefore need to get a taxi between the cruise terminals. The fare should be between £6 and £9.
The taxi pictured right is a typical Southampton taxi (they are white). If there are 3 or 4 of you with 2 cases each plus hand luggage you may need more than one taxi.
In the morning if there are 3 or 4 cruise ships unloading simultaneously (quite common) there may be queues for the taxi's. The taxi ranks are very well martialled though.
Walking to the cruise terminals is for most people not realistic. Every cruise a few people walk between the train/bus stations and the City Cruise Terminal. If you really want to grit your teeth for the sake of a few pounds then you could do the Mayflower Terminal, you will probably need the cruise to recover afterwards.
Southampton Hotel & Cruise Terminal Map
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