London to Southampton with National Express and Megabus
London to Southampton by coach
National Express coach from London to Southampton
Coach services from London to Southampton are operated by two UKs’ well-known carriers - National Express and South West Trains c/o Megabus.
National Express provides a direct, intercity coach service between London and Southampton. There is no other coach operator, which offers similar coach shuttle service between these two cities.
On this route Megabus provides additional option for travel. You can travel between London and Southampton by train. South West Trains, which operates these connections, is a partner of Megabus. Both companies belong to the Stagecoach corporation. Service operated by South West Trains, but seats can be booked through Megabus. In this case, stations and bus stops are situated in other locations. Travel time is about 1 hour and 30 minutes.
National Express offers about 13 direct services per day, while Megabus’ partner South West Trains has up to 6 connections a day.
Most services terminate in Southampton, but some of them are not intended to serve the route from London to Southampton only, the coaches and trains run on larger distances and Southampton is only an intermediate stop.
South West Train - Megabus partner from London to Southampton
The National Express direct coach line between London and Southampton is 032 and there are few other carriers’ routes passing through Southampton. There are currently no Megabus coaches from London to Southampton, but Megabus cooperates with South West Trains.
Some of the National Express coach services from Southampton to London begin their journey at one of the UKs’ south-western cities or towns, however, all terminate at Victoria Coach Station in London (see details below).
National Express coaches are high-class vehicles, equipped with toilet, air conditioning, reclining seats and radio. Both carriers put the safety and comfort of passengers first, so the vehicles are equipped with a large number of safeguards. The operators are using modern vehicles with large panoramic windows and increased legroom. Some coaches on this route provide free Wi-Fi and can take passengers in wheelchairs on board the bus.
Travelling between London and Southampton with National Express takes about 2 hours 15 minutes and 1 hour 30 minutes with South West Trains. This is one of the cheapest transport options between Central London and Southampton.
Go to National Express or Megabus website to check current timetable and prices and book a ticket for your journey.
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Bus and coach boarding points
London, Victoria Coach Station - for Nat Ex coaches only
London, Waterloo, Railway Station - for South West Trains (Megabus’s partner) only
London (Hammersmith), Hammersmith Bridge Road - for Nat Ex coaches only
Southampton, University, Highfield Interchange - for Nat Ex coaches only
Southampton, Coach Station, Harbour Parade - for Nat Ex coaches only
Southampton, Central Train Station - for South West Trains (Megabus’s partner)
Timetables and fares for coach services between London and Southampton
| Route | Carrier | Frequency | Travel time | Timetable | Online prices | Bookings |
| London to Southampton | National Express |
up to 13 per day | approx 2hrs 15mins | stops & times | from £5.50 |
Book now |
| Southampton to London | National Express | up to 13 per day | approx 2hrs 15mins | stops & times | from £5.50 | Book now |
| London to Southampton | SWT c/o Megabus |
up to 6 a day | approx 1hr 30mins |
stops & times | from £1+50p | Book now |
| Southampton to London | SWT c/o Megabus | up to 6 a day | approx 1hrs 30mins | stops & times | from £1+50p | Book now |
How to buy tickets online for travel from London to Southampton?
To purchase tickets online for National Express routes you can do it directly at the Europebus’s home page using a journey planner provided. You can also do it on the National Express’s website. For South West Trains (Megabus’ partner) connections visit Megabus website. Simply fill out all fields in the journey planner and follow the instructions to buy a ticket. Discounted tickets are also available for youths, children and seniors. If you book early and your travel dates and times are flexible, you may get ticket with a discount. Early booking is highly recommended, because services between London and Southampton are very popular and the coaches are fully booked on some days.
Carriage of luggage
The National Express’ coach driver will load and unload customers’ luggage but customers are responsible for seeing their own luggage onto and off the coach on which they are travelling.
Each customer has a free luggage allowance of two medium sized suitcases, weighing no more than 20 kilograms each and 1 piece of hand luggage, which must be located on the shelf above your head or under the passenger seat.
Megabus doesn’t check luggage or provide receipts for luggage transported on the bus by the passenger. Passengers are advised that Megabus will accept up to one piece of luggage per passenger. For guidance this should be no more than the size of a standard suitcase and should not weigh more than 20kg. Passengers can also take on board one small piece of luggage that must fit either on your lap or under the seat in front of you.
Trains & airlines services within the UK
If our information is insufficient for you to convince you to travel by coach, or simply you don’t like this transportation arrangement then we encourage you to take advantage of rail or in some cases flight services. If you want to travel for example from London to Southampton or vice versa by train we suggest you to visit the My Train Ticket website, while good flights between British cities are recommend on the Budget Air’s website
Rail services in the UK are fast, frequent and convenient. Tickets can be bought in advance easily via a train reservation service available at www.mytrainticket.co.uk
Regular air links to distant cities in Britain can be checked and booked at www.budgetair.co.uk. Flights connections are available to various destinations in the UK, Europe and worldwide.
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