We are in the process of updating and improving this page so apologies for the duplicates of data
Travelling to and around the UK
There are a number of different travel options for heading to UK Universities. Depending on the location of your event, it may be wise to consider travel options that are not dependant on travelling via London. Advice on this matter will be in the specific sections for each university.
As far as possible we have included the IATA codes for airports and the short codes railway stations.
Please use the following Table of Contents to jump to the section appropriate for your needs…
Table of Contents
General Advice: Travelling into the UK
The following is a list of the major UK International airports with links to their destinations sites.
London:
- London Heathrow Airport (LHR)
- London Gatwick Airport (LGW)
- London City Airport (LCY)
- London Luton Airport (LTN)
- London Stansted Airport (STN)
- London Southend Airport (SEN)
Other Major UK Airports
- Edinburgh Airport (EDI) (Scotland)
- Newcastle Airport (NCL) (North East)
- Leeds Bradford Airport (LBA) (North Central)
- Liverpool John Lennon Airport (LPL) (North West)
- Manchester Airport (MAN) (North West)
- Birmingham Airport (BHX) (Midlands)
- East Midlands Airport (EMA) (Midlands)
- Bristol Airport (BRS) (South West)
The following map of the international airports across the UK, including some of the smaller airports with limited international destination lists - obtained from thetrainline.com’s very helpful UK travel site (further usage in Travel Within the UK section).
For travel from mainland Europe, to check Eurostar prices, you can click on the following link. Eurostar Booking
Eurostar will take you into London St Pancras station (STP), which is a direct neighbour to London King’s Cross station (KGX).
On the Eurostar website, it is possible to look at high speed links to Eurostar hubs from cities across France and western Germany as well as the Belgium and the Netherlands.
Train travel is the Green Option for travelling into the UK from mainland Europe.. It is, unfortunately, often quite expensive.
There are a number of bus routes from mainland Europe into the UK. They may be cheap (Berlin - Birmingham is approx. £70) but can be quite a long journey (Berlin - Birmingham is around 30 hrs with Flixbus).
General Advice: Travelling Around the UK
The likelihood is that when you arrive into the UK your onward travel will be via the railway network. The Trainline has a very useful page about travelling to/from UK airports via the railway network as well as the nearby major rail hubs for your onward journey.
As the UK rail system is privatised it is worth noting there are about 28 different rail operators. When buying tickets you should double check what station, via what route and which operator the ticket can be used.
Ticket machines at stations and websites/apps such as The Trainline will usually display the route restrictions when you look at ticket types.
Train Ticket Types in the UK
There are different train travel ticket types and staff will often be very strict about these:
- “Advance” tickets are generally cheaper but you are only allowed to travel on the specfied route at the specified time.
- “Off-Peak” tickets, if available, are generally more expensive than “Advance” tickets but cheaper than “Anytime” tickets, They have a designated time frame for travel (usually outside commuter times) and is dependant on the start and end points of the full journey.
- “Anytime” tickets are the most expensive and can be bought for any time train on a specific route.
There are a number of cheap, long distance bus routes available accross the UK. Companies such as FlixBus, National Express and Megabus offer a variety of routes, prices (much cheaper than trains) and standards of comfort/security.
It is quite hard to give general information about local buses in the UK. However, most major cities will have some kind of transport system app so a quick google search (other search engines are available) should find you the details.
The standard price-per-mile for taxis is very dependant on the city. The size of the town/city determines whether, for example, Uber or online booking is available.
While the iconic London “Hackney Cabs” are usually black, there are no standard vehicle makes or colours of taxis in the UK.
We would recommend you check the payment method before entering a cab.
In general, in the UK you can pay either by cash or by card. However, transport is more often paid by card (in stations/London Underground) or through transport apps. Since 2020, many smaller businesses have moved to card payment only.
Travelling to University College London - Home of the Worth Group
This section is currently under construction and will continue to be updated.
Alternatively you can go to the official UCL travel advice site which can be found HERE
Notes on London Travel advice:
- TfL - Transport for London - refers to all public transport on the London Network. This includes London Underground, the DLR, the Elizabeth Line, Buses, Trams and Overground trains.
- London King’s Cross Station (KGX) and London St Pancras International Station (STP) are neighbours and share an underground station.
- Alongside the International and National railway connections, King’s Cross St Pancras Underground Station is a stop on 6 Underground Lines so is the biggest transport “hub” near UCL
- Travel times from London airports include both the nearest major station as well as travel time to KGX, STP or the London underground station “King’s Cross St. Pancras’'.
Travelling from Outside the UK
If you are travelling into the UK from mainland Europe, Eurostar is the Green option. For more details on Eurostar routes, go to General Travel Advice section above.
Eurostar is the most convenient method of transport for getting to UCL as you arrive into London St Pancras International - more on this below.
The following table includes the approximate travel time to the nearest London railway hub and, where necessary, the total travel time including underground travel to King’s Cross St Pancras.
London Heathrow has a separate table as it’s a bit more complicated!
| Airport | Airport Station | Nearest Rail Hub | Travel Time |
|---|---|---|---|
| London Gatwick (LGW) | Gatwick Airport (GTW) | London Victoria (VIC) | 31 mins (KGX 44 mins direct rail) |
| London Luton (LTN) | Luton Airport (LUA) | London St Pancras International (STP) | 23 mins |
| London Stansted (STN) | Stansted Airport (SSD) | London Liverpool St (LST) | 48 mins (KGX 59 mins) |
| London City (LCY) | London City Airport, DLR | Journey via DLR and Underground | KGX 34 mins |
London Heathrow (LHR) Travel (prices are one way)
| Heathrow Station | Method | Destination | Travel to UCL | Travel Time + Cost |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Central (T2 & 3) | Heathrow Express | London Paddington (PAD) | Hammersmith & City or Circle Line to Euston Square | 15 mins (£25) + 8 mins (£2.80) |
| Terminal 5 | Heathrow Express | London Paddington (PAD) | Hammersmith & City or Circle Line to Euston Square UG | 18 mins (£25) + 8 mins (£2.80) |
| Terminals 2, 3, 4 & 5 | Elizabeth Line | London Paddington (PAD) | Hammersmith & City or Circle Line to Euston Square UG | 27 mins (£12.80) + 8 mins (£2.80) |
| Terminals 2, 3, 4 & 5 | Elizabeth Line | Tottenham Court Road UG | Northern Line to Euston (or walk) | 45 mins (£13.90) |
| Terminals 2, 3, 4 & 5 | Piccadilly Line | King’s Cross St Pancras UG | Metropolitan, Hammersmith & City or Circle Line to Euston Square (or walk!) | 55 mins (£6.00) |
This is just a representative selection of possibilities!
Travel around London
University College London main campus is very well located for access from all major London National Railway stations via the London Underground network and London Buses.
The map below highlights the key UCL buildings, nearby rail and tube stations as well as the walking route between UCL Chemistry and the Medical Sciences building
The nearest railway station to UCL is London Euston Station, and is about 5 minutes walk to UCL Department of Chemistry. If your travel takes you into London Kings Cross or St Pancras Stations, it is 15-20 minutes walk to UCL (depending on your pace).
If you’re not familiar with getting around London via the London Underground network it is useful to get the Tube Map app (available for Apple and Android devices). This has a useful route planner and has live updates on line/station status.
You can use credit or debit cards directly on the readers (a yellow circle) located on ticket barriers. You can also buy an Oyster Card (£5 + money for travel). It is not cost effective to buy a Day Travelcard - unless you will be making a very large number of journeys.
Info
You must always “tap in” and “tap out” of London Underground services, including the DLR and Elizabeth line.
If your travel into London has taken you via the London Underground network, the following stations are within reasonable walking distance:
- Euston Square (Hammersmith and City Line, Metropolitan Line, Circle Line) - under 5 mins
- Euston Station (Northern Line, Victoria Line) - 5 minutes
- Warren Street (Northern Line, Victoria Line) - 8 minutes
- Russel Square (Piccadilly Line) - 12 minutes
- Kings Cross St Pancras (Piccadilly Line, Hammersmith and City Line, Metropolitan Line, Circle Line, Victoria Line, Northern Line) - 16 minutes
- Tottenham Court Road (Elizabeth Line, Central Line, Northern Line) - 17 minutes
There are a number of dedicated apps available for guidance on London Bus routes. However, CityMapper and Google Maps are both quite adequate for a short visit.
Buses travelling from north to south stop in Gower Street, immediately outside UCL’s main gate, while those travelling from south to north stop outside Warren Street station, about five minutes’ walk from UCL. Services to these stops include route numbers: 10, 14, 24, 29, 73, 134, 390.
As with all transport systems, there can be days when there are problems or strike action. Or it may just be a day with good weather. It can be a good idea to just walk!
Travelling to Newcastle University - Home of the Penfold Group
When conducting your searches, please remember that it is “Newcastle upon Tyne”, not “Newcastle-under-Lyme”.
Travelling From Outside the UK
Eurostar will take you into London St Pancras station, which is a direct neighbour to London King’s Cross station. Direct trains from London to Newcastle depart from King’s Cross (more information below in the Travelling in the UK section).
It should be noted that travelling via Eurostar is the Green Option for travelling to the UK. It may, unfortunately, be quite expensive.
Depending on your nearest airport, it may be a good option to not travel via London Airports. We recommend you consider looking at the following alternatives to London airports (the links take you to the “where we fly to” pages for each airport):
- Newcastle Airport - NCL (Map and List)
- Edinburgh Airport - EDI (List with Search)
- Manchester Airport - MAN (List with Search)
- Birmingham International Airport - BHX (Map and List)
You should also note that if flying into London Heathrow Airport (LHR), you can fly directly from there to Newcastle Airport.
There are a number of bus routes from mainland Europe into the UK. They may be cheap (Paris - Newcastle is approx. £40) but can be quite a long journey (Paris - Newcastle is around 20 hrs with Flixbus).
Travelling within the UK
Below are a sample of journey times and return ticket costs to Newcastle Station. Please note that there are often many ways of doing the journies listed. The routes below are the most common, with changes listed in order for the outbound journey. See the General Advice section below for Ticket Types in the UK
| Start | Journey Time | Ticket Prices | Route |
|---|---|---|---|
| Newcastle Airport | 30 mins | £9 | Direct (metro) |
| King’s Cross Station | 2 hrs 50 mins - 3 hrs 20 mins | Advance: £87, Anytime: £164 | Direct or change in York |
| Edinburgh Airport | 2 hrs 15 mins - 2 hrs 45 mins | Advance: £53, Off-Peak: £81 | 1 change (Haymarket) or 2 changes (Haymarket, Edinburgh (Waverly)) |
| Manchester Airport | 3 hrs 5 mins - 3 hrs 45 mins | Advance: £55, Anytime: £142 | 1 change (York) or 2 changes (Manchester Piccadilly, Leeds) |
| Birmingham Airport | 3 hrs 30 mins - 3 hrs 50 mins | Advance: £87, Off-Peak: £144 | 1 change (Birmingham New St (BNS)) or 2 changes (BNS, York) |
Please note: These prices were accurate for September-December 2024. Journey times are unlikely to have changed. Price may have gone up.
See General Advice: Travelling Around the UK
Newcastle University travel advice has a downloadable city+campus map as well as some useful links to information about the local Metro and bus.
The Travel for Tyne and Wear website hosts the local travel ticketing, route maps and more. It can all be found on the Nexus website.