Air
London Heathrow International Airport(LHR)
Located 24km or 15 miles west of central London. Airport information:
telephone: (0870) 000 0123
Web site:www.baa.com/main/airports/heathrow
The principal national airline is British Airways
(BA) (telephone: (0870) 850 4850)
London
Gatwick (LGW) Airport
Located 46km or 28 miles south of central London. Airport information:
telephone: (0870) 000 2468; web site: www.baa.com/main/airports/gatwick.
London City Airport (LCY)
Located 10km or 6 miles east of the City of London. Airport information:
telephone: (020) 7646 0088; web site: www.londoncityairport.com.
Stansted (STN) Airport
Located 48km or 30 miles northeast of central London. Airport information:
telephone: (08700) 000 303;
Luton (LTN)
Located 51km or 32 miles northwest of London. Airport information:
telephone: (01582) 405 100; web site: www.london-luton.com.
Birmingham (BHX) Airport
Located 13km or 8 miles southeast of the city centre. Airport information:
telephone: (0870) 733 5511; web site: www.bhx.co.uk.
Manchester (MAN) Airport
Located 16km or 10 miles southwest of the city centre. Airport information:
telephone: (0161) 489 3000; web site: www.manchesterairport.co.uk.
Newcastle (NCL) Airport
Located 8km or 5 miles northwest of the city centre. Airport information:
telephone: (0191) 286 0966; web site: www.newcastleairport.com.
Sea
There are many ports offering ferry connections between the UK and
mainland Europe, Ireland, the Channel Islands, the Isle of Wight,
the Scilly Isles and the Isle of Man.
UK
ferry operators:
Brittany
Ferries (telephone: (08703) 665 333)
Caledonian
Macbrayne (telephone: (01475) 650 100)
Condor
Ferries (telephone: (0845) 345 2000)
DFDS
Seaways (telephone: (08705) 333 000)
Fjord
Line (telephone: (0191) 296 1313)
Hoverspeed
(telephone: (0870) 240 8070)
Irish
Ferries (telephone: (08705) 171 717)
Isle
of Man Steam Packet Co (telephone: (01624) 661 661)
Isles
of Scilly Travel (telephone: (08457) 105 555)
Norse
Irish Ferries (telephone: (0151) 944 1010)
P&O
European Ferries (telephone: (0870) 242 4999)
P&O
Ferries (telephone: (08705) 202 020)
P&O
North Sea Ferries (telephone: (08701) 296 002)
P&O
Scottish Ferries
Red
Funnel (telephone: (0870) 444 8898)
Stena
Line (telephone: (08705) 707 070)
Swansea–Cork Ferries (telephone: (01792) 456 116)
Wightlink
(telephone: (08705) 827 744).
Rail
Trains connecting ferries at Dover, Folkestone, Newhaven, Portsmouth
and Weymouth, sailing for Belgium, France, Germany and Spain (board
at Victoria Station in London); and at Harwich, sailing for Germany,
The Netherlands and Scandinavia (board at Liverpool Street). See
also the Channel Tunnel and Eurostar sections below.
Eurotunnel
or the Channel Tunnel
All road vehicles are carried through the tunnel in Eurotunnel shuttles
running between the two terminals, one near Folkestone in Kent,
with road access from the M20, and one just outside Calais, with
links to the A16/A26 motorway (Exit 13).
Each shuttle is made up of 12 single- and 12 double-deck carriages,
and vehicles are directed to single-deck or double-deck carriages
depending on their height. There are facilities for cars and motorcycles,
coaches, minibuses, caravans, campervans and other vehicles over
1.85m (6.07ft). The journey takes about 35 minutes from
platform to platform and about 1 hour from motorway to motorway.
Services run every day of the year, and there are between two
and five an hour, depending on the time of day. There is a reservation
system and a turn-up-and-go service. Motorists pass through customs
and immigration before they board the shuttle without more checks
on arrival. Fares vary according to length of stay, time of day
and time of year and whether you have a reservation or not. The
price applies to the car, regardless of the number of passengers
or size of the car. The fare can be paid in cash, by cheque or
by credit card. There are savings when booking online. For further
information, contact Eurotunnel
Customer Services UK (telephone: (08705) 353 535; fax: (01303)
288 786; email: callcentre@eurotunnel.com).
The Eurostar
The Eurostar train runs through the Channel Tunnel between London
and Brussels, Lille or Paris.
Eurostar is a service provided by the railways of Belgium, France
and the United Kingdom, operating direct high-speed trains from
London (Waterloo International) to Paris (Gare du Nord) and to
Brussels (Midi/Zuid). It currently takes 2 hours 35 minutes from
London to Paris and 2 hours 20 minutes from London to Brussels.
Trains depart up to 18 times a day from Waterloo to Paris, and
up to 9 times a day from Waterloo to Brussels.
The Eurostar trains have standard-class and first-class seating,
buffet and bar, and are staffed by multi-lingual, highly trained
personnel. Pricing is competitive with the airlines, and there
is a range of different tickets and prices. Children aged between
4 and 11 years benefit from a special fare in all classes. Children
under 4 years old travel free but cannot be guaranteed a seat.
Wheelchair users and blind passengers together with one companion
get a special fare.
For more information and reservations, contact Eurostar
(telephone: (0870) 6000 792 (travel agents) or (08705) 186 186
(public; within the UK) or (1233) 617 575 (public; outside the
UK only) or Rail Europe (telephone: (08705) 848 848). |
