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Old May 10, 2016, 1:13 pm
  #1  
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LHR to Reading

Looking for the best way to get from a hotel near LHR to Reading Central Train station. So far I have a quote of 65 pounds. Thanks.
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Old May 10, 2016, 1:29 pm
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Depending on how much luggage you have - Heathrow Express into Paddington then ordinary train out to Reading should cost less than half of that!
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Old May 10, 2016, 2:03 pm
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Moving to the UK & Ireland forum for further discussion. Thanks. /JY1024, TravelBuzz co-moderator
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Old May 10, 2016, 2:07 pm
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National Express from LHR itself ?

http://coach.nationalexpress.com/nxb...=1462910858484
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Old May 10, 2016, 2:13 pm
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There is a dedicated bus link from Heathrow to Reading Station:

http://www.railair.com

Assuming there's no major hold-ups on the M4, this is the easiest way.
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Old May 10, 2016, 2:14 pm
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http://www.railair.com/index.php Ł17 for a single or Ł18 return. It is a great non-stop service which drops you off right at Reading station.
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Old May 10, 2016, 2:22 pm
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Unless there are 4 in the party or you have a bazillion bags do take the Railair coach link.
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Old May 10, 2016, 2:33 pm
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Railair is certainly the obvious choice, but bear in mind you also need to get back to the airport itself - T5 is the last stop before Reading. So, depending on the location of the hotel and your budget, if you're North of the airport you could make your way to Hayes station and take a local train from there. 4 trains an hour, 40 minutes, Ł12.

If you're South of the airport, head to Feltham and likewise take a local train to Reading. 2x hour, just under an hour travel, again Ł12.
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Old May 10, 2016, 2:56 pm
  #9  
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Ah, good point, hadn't spotted the hotel bit.

West Drayton is also an option for some hotels.
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Old May 10, 2016, 2:56 pm
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Originally Posted by Silver Fox
In this instance it's not actually a National Express coach ('bus' in North American English), rather National Express just sell tickets for the RailAir coach service. (And as you can see, the NX booking site is session based so alas the above quoted URL does nothing!)

RailAir is the name of the coach service that links Heathrow airport to Reading railway station (for what it's worth it's not called Reading Central train station, though historically it was called Reading General railway station... but I digress!).

A single ticket bought on the day is Ł20, but if you buy in advance on the RailAir website or use the FirstBus mTickets app (Android and iOS) the price is reduced to Ł17.

You do not need to specify the time of the particular coach you wish to catch. The coaches run frequently - every 20 minutes for much of the day, every 30 minutes in the evening - see the timetable page.

From Heathrow, the coach leaves from the Central Bus Station (near both Terminals 2 & 3) and calls to pick up passengers from Terminal 5. Heading from Reading to Heathrow, the coach drops off passengers directly outside Terminal 5, then Terminal 2, then Terminal 3.

As the RailAir name implies, the idea of the coach is to link Heathrow with Reading station and trains on the Great Western main line, but anyone can take it - you don't need to be making a railway journey to use the coach.


Edit: The overly wordy reply above was composed whilst others were quickly posting rather more concise replies! And like stut, I hadn't spotted the bit about starting from a hotel near Heathrow, rather than from the airport itself - in which case Swiss Tony's advice is good. But then again, Swiss Tony's advice is always good...

Last edited by Mizter T; May 10, 2016 at 5:33 pm
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Old May 11, 2016, 6:56 am
  #11  
 
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I used 500 Cars as my regular service from LHR to Reading last year. Should come in at around Ł50 or less. Very reliable.

The final decision will be cost vs time vs convenience. Cheaper to get the train and/or the bus. More convenient to get a cab. Unless the M4 grinds to a halt, like it did this morning. Also, getting into central Reading in the morning or evening rush by road is no picnic.
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Old May 11, 2016, 9:43 am
  #12  
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Thank you everyone for the advice. Very valuable.
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Old May 11, 2016, 10:16 am
  #13  
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Thanks everyone for the advice. It looks like 500 Cars is the best choice. Has anyone else used them?
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Old Aug 18, 2016, 2:42 pm
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What happened to the National Express stop at Reading Calcot?

I'm trying to arrange a journey from LHR to Newbury for my father (LHR-Calcot then by local bus to Newbury), but I can't see the Calcot stop on NE's website. Does anyone know if they've changed the stops?
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Old Aug 18, 2016, 3:56 pm
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Originally Posted by scotlass
Thanks everyone for the advice. It looks like 500 Cars is the best choice. Has anyone else used them?
I live in Reading and highly recommend Ace Cars.
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