How TO get from London to Bath + Budget Travel Tips

About 3 hours west of London, you’ll find the beautiful city of Bath. Bath is mostly known for it’s Roman Baths and Georgian architecture, but the city has so much more to offer.

If you are planning a trip to Bath from London, there’s several ways of traveling between the two cities.

In this guide, we cover how you can travel from London to Bath plus some tips on saving money.

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London to Bath by Train

One of the easiest ways to get to Bath from London is by train. The train journey takes around 1 hour and 30 minutes, and there are regular departures from London Paddington Station to Bath Spa train station.

Tickets can be booked in advanec or on the day of travel but this can be super expensive. In the UK, train ticket prices are not fixed and will vary based on a range of factors such as; the time you want to travel, day of travel and how early in advance you book.

I really recommend booking in advance to save money. Train tickets be booked up to 3 months in advance, so soon as you know the dates you’ll be in London, book your train to Bath.

You could also save money by using Split Tickets. This basically involves splitting your journey up into multiple segments, to reduce the cost. You can use the splitticketing.com website to learn more about how this works.

London to Bath by BUs

Another way to get to Bath from London is by bus. The bus is a lot cheaper than the train, but it does take longer (about 3 hours).

National Express has coaches that depart from London Victoria Coach Station, and you’ll usually pay around £20 for a one way ticket. You can also get a bus from Heathrow, but this goes to Bristol Bus Station where you’ll need to change bus. The Heathrow to Bath route takes about 4 hours, and will cost around £30 for a one way ticket.

As with trains, to get the cheapest tickets I really recommend booking in advance. Soon as you know when you need to travel, book the ticket. If you’re not quite sure of the time or day you need to travel, you can always book the Flexible ticket which lets you change to a different timeslot for free.

National Express coaches have a wheelchair lift that allows you to get on board if you’re a wheelchair user. They have 1 wheelchair spot at the front of the coach plus some priority seats for disbled people. The wheelchair spot or priority seat needs to be booked in advance, and I recommend ringing them to confirm its available before you book your ticket. You can find details on how to contact them here.

National Express has a luggage limit of 1 large bag (e.g. a suitcase), and 1 small bag per person. If you have anymore bags you’ll need to condense them into the limits or pay for extra luggage. If your bag has wheels or if it cannot fit on your lap/in your leg space, it will need to go under the bus.

Driving to Bath from London

Another way to ge to Bath is by driving a car. The car journey takes around 3 hours, depending on traffic conditions and how many stop offs you have on route.

There are several car rental companies in London, and at the airports in/around London. You can easily book a car online or in person. At Exploring Bath we recommend using Discover Cars as they offer 24/7 support and free cancelation.

To get to Bath from London by car, you can take the M4 Motorway (Motorway is the British term for a Highway), which is the most direct route. But there can sometimes be delays, due to this being a really popular commuter route. I recommend allowing extra time in case of traffic. Make sure to check an app such as Waze (free for Android and iOS) for the latest travel updates.

Also parking in Bath can be difficult at times, especially in the city center. So I really recommend taking advantage of the park and ride. This is where you park your car, and take a bus into the city. As you’ll be driving from London, I recommend using the Odd Down Park & Ride as this is the one closest to the M4. From here, you’d get either the 41 or 4 bus route.

If you do choose to drive to Bath, you’ll pass many of England’s top places to visit. If you’ll be visiting Bath overnight, or for a few days I recommend doing 1-2 stop offs on route to Bath as this allows you a 1-2 hours at each location. If you’re doing a day trip to Bath, I recommend picking 1 location to stop off so you can still have plenty of time to enjoy Bath.

• Stop 1 – Highclere Castle: If you’ve watched Downton Abbey, you may recognise Highclere Castle as it was the main filming location. The castle is a magnificant country house tht was built in 1679. The castle is about 1 hour 20 minutes from London and makes for a good half-way stop off. Tickets can be booked online. You can also choose to stay overnight on the grounds.
• Stop 2 – Stonehenge: If you’ve never seen Stonehenge, why not take the opportunity to walk around the stones? It’s slightly off the main route to Bath but it takes about 1 hour 45 minutes to get to Stonehenge from London, or about 40 minutes from Highclere Castle. Get tickets online here.

There’s also some other places that are worth visiting which are closer to Bath such as:

• Lacock and Lacock Abbey – Lacock is a charming little village in the Cotswolds. Lacock Abbey was once home to William Henry Fox Talbot, who invented the photo negative the house has a dedicated to him. The Cloisters in Lacock Abbey were used as a filming location for Hogwart’s corridors in 3 of the Harry Potter films – the Philosopher’s Stone (Sorcerer’s Stone in the US), the Chamber of Secrets and the Half Blood Prince. Lacock is 30 minutes from Bath, and entry is free to National Trust members.
• Corsham Court – A historical stately home, that has opened up to the public. You’ll be able to enjoy viewing it’s amazing collection of art works. Corsham Court is only 10 miles from Bath, so you could do this as a final stop before you reach the city.
• Fairfield Animal Centre – If you like animals or are traveling with kids, why not stop off at this animal park? You’ll get to see Alpacaca’s, Emus, Wallabies, Rabbits, Guinea pigs and other animals. Kids age 3 or under, go in for free. You can buy tickets online.

Take a tour from London to Bath

If you’d like a hassle-free, more relaxing way to get to Bath from London, a guided tour is a good option. There are several tour operators that offer day trips and multi-day trips to Bath from London. This option can also work out cheaper than taking the train or hiring a car, so it’s worth considering even if you weren’t originally thinking of doing a guided tour.

Below I’ve listed some of the best tours that go from London to Bath. These all include transportation to and from London.

• Full day trip to Bath from London: Visit Stonehenge where you’ll be able to enter the grounds and see the stones from the guided path then continue onto Bath where you’ll see The Roman Baths plus you’ll have free time after to see the sights around Bath.
• Day trip to Windsor, Stonehenge, Bath, and the Roman Baths: Take a bus tour to Bath and visit Window’s Castle where you can see the state apartments, St George’s Chapel and Queen Mary’s Dolls. Continue onto Stonehenge, where you can see the stones and learn more about Stonehenge. Then head to Bath, where you’ll visit the Roman Baths.
• Stonehenge, Stratford-Upon-Avon, and Bath Day Trip: This full day tour takes you to 3 of England’s famous locations. You’ll get to see Stonehenge, afterwards you’ll head to Bath where you’ll have time to explore the cities historical streets. Then you’ll head to Stratford-Upon-Avon which was William Shakespeare’s hometown. You’ll get a private tour of Shakespere’s schoolroom and guildhall, and get to experience a Tudor school lesson.

Hope you found this guide helpful. As I covered above there are several ways to get from London to Bath, each with its own positives and negatives.

At the end of the day whichever option you pick depends on your budget, and priorities.

• If you want to travel via the fastest route, then take the train. But this is also the most expensive option.
• If you’re on a low budget, then take the National Express bus but this is also the slowest option.
• If you’re looking to explore England you could hire a car, but this can be expensive and you might end up stuck in traffic.
• Looking for an easy, laid back option? Opt for a day trip from London with a guided tour. This can be cheaper than the train. Main downsied is, you’ll only be in Bath for a few hours

But no matter how you travel to Bath, the city is beautiful with plenty to see and do. Make sure to check out our other Bath travel guides for recommendations on things to see and do in and around Bath.