transport

[pensnest]

Can I just have a confirmation on who will be needing a lift from the airport to Camp Sparkle?

Just comment if you're coming in to Stansted or Heathrow. I'm assuming a pickup from Stansted at around lunchtime, and I should think about an hour later at Heathrow, so let me know when you're due in.

EDIT

Right. I've booked the minibus, and I've also seen it. It's a 15-seater, which means it will easily accommodate those of use who are staying for the week and doing some sightseeing, *but*, there is no separate space for luggage. So I will have to assume that in practice we have rather fewer than 15 seats available for the trip to Camp Sparkle, as we'll have to put the luggage somewhere.
particularly as most of you coming from outside the UK are staying the full week, which will mean a decent-sized suitcase rather than a weekend-only backpack. Plus, I'll have to pack in a fair bit in the way of comestibles. So if you can, bring baggage that can be stuffed under seats!

I know that last year we had around ten passengers from Stansted to Camp Sparkle, including three Londoners. This time, I suggest that the UK-dwellers make their own way, and I will take myself and nine passengers, picking up from Stansted and Heathrow. I think it's fair to give priority to the people who've had to fly in.

As far as I can see, that means stellamira, bubbleforest, fadedsouls, adelate, iconis, and rikes can be picked up from Stansted, and saba1789, ninjetti75 and - I assume? - msktrnanny from Heathrow.

Is that going to leave anyone stranded at the airport?

Things will be easier when it comes to the return trip on (I assume) Friday (7th) morning, as bubbleforest and fadedsouls are only staying for the weekend* - and there won't be supplies (not in any great quantity, anyway) needing space. So turloughishere can certainly get a ride back too. (I've seen you post that you'll be meeting up with some of the UK peeps for the journey to Lyndhurst on the 29th, yes?)

My apologies to London-dwellers who were hoping to join the minibus ride, but I don't think it'll be possible. Note that when I checked the National Express coach site, there were coach trips to Southampton available from £1 each way. I dunno what the train fares are. The number 56 or 56A bus to Lymington leaves Southampton railway station at 19 and 44 minutes past the hour for most of the day, with the last buses at 1754 and 1854, and goes into Lyndhurst (nopseud and I will get a better idea of where exactly it stops when we do our scouting foray), but if you arrive later on, I'm sure one of us (ie nopseud, as I shall be Lying Down**) will be able to retrieve you.

Cost of minibus: £7.50 each way.

Any questions?


* and can travel back to Stansted in luxury on a nearly-empty minibus!
** being fanned and plied with restorative beverages, I do trust

Comments

[stellamira]

I'll fly into Stansted, arrival time is 11:55.

[rikes]

iconis and I will arrive at Stansted on Thursday already and spend the night somewhere nearby, so we'll be ready any time.


adelate, iconis and I will be flying back from Stansted on Friday at 17:50, in case that's of any use at this point.

[adelate]

bubbleforest, fadedsouls and myself will be on the same flight in from Copenhagen, which arrives at Stansted a quarter past eleven, I think. :)

[bubbleforest.livejournal.com]

Ooh, fadedsouls is on our flight too? Fun! But yes, we arrive at 11.15. :)

ETA: Also, if there's a possibility of a ride when we go home, I just have to be back in Stansted before 4pm on Monday.

[fadedsouls.livejournal.com]

Oh yes, I am on your flight! Heeee!!!!

[pensnest]

Hi - what time and day is your return flight?

[fadedsouls.livejournal.com]

It's at 8 pm on Monday. So I'll need to be at the airport by 6pm I would think. :)

[pensnest]

That's cool - it'll mean a rather boring wait at Stansted for you, since bubbleforest needs to be there by 4pm, but at least there's no need to get up at the crack of dawn!

[fadedsouls.livejournal.com]

I will bring the trusty iPod and a book or two for the wait!! And it's not that long of a wait really. Could be a lot worse!

[pensnest]

What time on Thursday? Would you like to stay with me?

[rikes]

23:45, which is the most unfortunate time ever. We'd love to stay with you, but I don't know how practical it would be. :(

[rikes]

Update: Iconis has negotiated for us to stay at Ephemera's. So I have no idea if we'll still need a lift or take the train. What do you think would be the best option for us, and how soon do you need to know?

[pensnest]

Ah, cool - I imagine you can get a convenient bus from Stansted into London.

I'm pretty sure ephemera and randomling will be going by train, and turloughishere is making plans to meet up, so if you want to go along with that, it's fine - or, if you'd rather get back to Stansted and come in the minibus, that's okay, too. Minibus will be £7.50 per journey, but of course there's also the fare to Stansted to consider.

I'll to a strict headcount of 'who needs a lift' when everyone is booked, but I just needed to know how big a minibus to hire. However, there are going to be quite a few of us staying for the week and presumably wanting to do the tourist stuff, so we'll need transport that'll carry all of those people. So it turns out the week-occupancy figure is really the one I need!

[rikes]

Iconis and I would like to come in the minibus, if there's room! :)

[ephemera.livejournal.com]

is there any chance of blagging additional spaces in the minibus? I still have' book tickets' on my to do list, and it may turn out easier for me to travel solo, as I need to come back early, but it may be easier, and cheaper, and more fun for Randompling and Turlough to join you even if I don't, if it's an option for any of us, if you see what I mean.

[ephemera.livejournal.com]

note to anyone who needs to know, a saver return London to Southampton is £22

[pensnest]

The minibus is a 15-seater - although there will of course have to be more allowance for luggage than last time, with people staying longer, and it'll have to accommodate food and drink. But I expect we should be able to cram in a reasonable number!

Since there'll be a Heathrow pickup as well as a Stansted pickup, London-dwellers can figure out which airport is most convenient to get to.

[pensnest]

Having rejoiced in the size of the minibus, I've just gone to have a look at it, and though the seats are decent and there is space beneath them, there's no separate luggage space at all - so folks who don't feel ill on coaches might like to know that National Express are offering several trips from London to Southampton, starting at £1.

[saba1789.livejournal.com]

I'm going to arrive at Heathrow at around 1pm and would be very glad to get a lift :) .

[ninjetti75.livejournal.com]

My flight is into Heathrow at just before 10am, so it'll be after 10 by the time I'm processed and all. I could certainly use a lift, but if Saba isn't getting in until 1pm, I'll be waiting until then anyway, yay!

[saffronra.livejournal.com]

No need for a lift, I'm getting the train after work :)

[turps33.livejournal.com]

Is the offer still open to get a lift back to yours at the end of the week, so James can pick me up from there?

It's fine if it can't be managed, he can drive a little further *g*

[nopseud]

If it will help, I can come get you from Pen's and bring you back here, which will save James another three hours+ driving. I don't have college on Friday, so it's no trouble.

[turps33.livejournal.com]

You are amazingly lovely.

[pensnest]

Certainly you can come back with me! I'm thinking I can assess the exact situation with regard to luggage etc once I have all my passengers on the Friday, and if necessary, my Beast can drive down to The Old Stables in our car so that we have the option of some extra space. (He can't do that on Friday, because he's working, but he's joining us for the midweek part.) I think the minibus will work out, though.

Also, it's nice for everything sparkly not to come to an end all at once. I think it'd be quite melancholy, dropping all the airport people off and coming back on my ownsome, sniff, much better to have a Terri to take home!

[turps33.livejournal.com]

A very belated, thank you!

Though after a full week of Camp Sparkle and lack of sleep I may be even worse company than usual. So be warned *g*

[turlough]

I would love to go back in the minibus on Friday! My plane doesn't leave Heathrow until 17:55 so I'm not in any hurry but avoiding having to change from train to underground or Heathrow Express would be fabulous.

[pensnest]

Excellent. It's much more fun with company.

Working out the timing for the return trip will be quite interesting, though!

[randomling]

Is there any chance of me coming back in the minibus on Friday? Would make booking train tickets for myself and Turlough so much easier...

If not no problem. :)

[pensnest]

I think that will be okay - we should have greater seat availability, given that the supplies on the outward trip will (I trust!) have been used up, so there should be room for two extra people plus luggage. I think I've counted that right! Though some of the luggage may be on laps, at least until we get to Heathrow!

It'll certainly be more fun to travel homewards on the minibus, though you should check whether it's actually a better bet financially - £7.50 for the minibus trip, whether you go to Heathrow or Stansted, but you still have to get yourself into London from there...

[randomling]

Awesome. That works out fine for me - and I'm pretty sure I can get home quite easily from Stansted!

Thanks!

[msktrnanny.livejournal.com]

I arrive at half 8 on the 29th. It looks like you won't be heading out of London until after 1pm or even later. [if I'm mistaken here, please correct me!] I'll be fit to injure people if I spend that much time in the airport, lol. I suppose looking into train or car rental is the best way to keep me out of the airport for 4+ hours?

[pensnest]

There is an hourly coach service from Heathrow to Southampton, see this page. Almost certainly your best bet, unless you loathe coach travel.

I thought you'd have to go back into London for a train, but there is a bus+train option, getting the bus from Heathrow to Reading, and then two trains... Try http://www.nationalrail.co.uk/ for details.

[msktrnanny.livejournal.com]

Oh! Thanks for the tips, I'll check those out. I'm just not patient enough to hang in an airport with my luggage for hours on end. I suppose I could go DO something and return to meet you as well. That would work, yes?

[ninjetti75.livejournal.com]

Dur, I'm a ninny, having just posted our arrival timings without having read the comments first, lol.

ANYWAY, if you're in at 8:30 and I'm in at ten, you'd only have to wait until ten on your own. You've done Sparkly Gatherings before, did you fly in to Chicago? Airports are sort of mini-Hells of boredom and waiting, but waiting is FUN when you're squeeing with fellow People Who Get It. If you totally can't handle an airport for that long, that's understandable, but I rather suspect we should be able to connect and kill time waiting for Saba and the minibus without TOO much effort. Plus, two people waiting together at an airport means one can watch both their luggage while the other pops off to do something, get food, hit the loo, wutevs. and I'm totally using a TrickC icon with you, 'cuz Pen & me using the same Camp Sparkle icon is starting to get confusing, hee.

[msktrnanny.livejournal.com]

Yeah. I think I should probably give it a whirl. I'm lousy at airport waiting, but worse possible case scenario I can pop outside and wander or something. Plus it is a HUGE airport, I can always shop or something. lol

[pensnest]

I don't think there's a lot of scope for popping outside to wander, when you're at Heathrow, and nowhere of the slightest interest to wander to. However, it is, as you say, a HUGE airport, so there'll be places to sit and read the paper, at least.

You'll probably both come in to the same Terminal, but you may well find that saba1789's flight comes in to a different terminal. Incidentally, I'll need to know which one that is! I have no faith at all in my ability to negotiate a Heathrow Airport car part in the minibus, they're intimidating enough in a Volvo, so I will pull in to the drop-off/pick-up point.

I would think it'll be about an hour and a half from Stansted to Heathrow, but unfortunately it's unlikely we'll be able to communicate before we reach you, unless one of you has a mobile which will work in the UK. If there is such a mobile, that'll be excellent, someone can call you when we get off the M25 so that you can get yourselves out to the pick-up point. It looks as though the latest arrival at Stansted is due in at just before midday, so I would hope we'll leave there at about 12.30pm, but of course, you never know, with planes.

[ninjetti75.livejournal.com]

Okay, an Update to your Edit:

Yes, KC and I will both be arriving from America in Heathrow, as is Saba from Germany. KC's in first at 8:30ish, I'm at ten, and Saba's at 1ish, so we won't need picking up until 1pm at the earliest. And I have **NO** idea what the arrival schedules at Stansted are, nor how long it takes to trek from Stansted to Heathrow, so however that works out. *g*

Looks like nine total passengers, I think this is gonna work out well! (I'm going to have stupid amounts of luggage, but it's the same three bags as last year. The duffel will totally go under a seat, or hell, in my lap if it has to. The black case should slide under a seat, as long as the seats aren't too low. Otherwise, it's boxy, so it can totally have other things stacked on top of it, like the less-boxy red one or whatever else is needed. I've loaded cars for YEARS in retail, so I'm quite sure we'll be able to make us & it all fit. YAY!!!)

[pensnest]

I *think* there's a reasonable chance we'll get to Heathrow not much after 2pm, which will give saba1789 time to get off her plane, reclaim her luggage, and meet up with you and KC. Check with saba1789 which terminal she'll be coming in to, and let me know, so that I can pick you all up from there.

We'll fit the luggage in somehow! There is quite a lot of cubic space within the minibus, unfortunately a good bit of it seems to be in headroom and therefore not very helpful. But we'll manage.

[saba1789.livejournal.com]

FYI: I just checked my flight info and I'm arriving at Terminal 2 :) .