Group Flight or Not?

I think I asked this before, but I can't find it.

Just to confirm, it's my understanding that I don't need my student visa first before I buy my plane tickets.

But I can't remember if I MUST buy round trip tickets so that when I'm going through customs in London, they don't think I intend to stay past my visa dates. I'm asking because right now I'm debating between choosing the group flight for my program or traveling independently. Here's a short rundown of the differences:

Group Flight:

• $652.00 - Round trip on Virgin Atlantic from Newark to London
• One free flight date change (therefore I would be able to adjust my leave date as or if necessary without extra charge.
• I'd be picked up at the airport and taken directly to orientation with all the others on the group flight, thus not having to navigate from Heathrow to wherever the orientation site is while carrying my bags.
• Responsible for purchasing ticket from Phoenix to Newark.

Independent Travel:

• $???.?? for tickets, but I would be able to buy a one-way now and a one-way on the way back at my discretion.
• I might be able to save some money if I go though STA Travel's site since they're currently selling one way from NY to London for $241.00. I could potentially save a few hundred dollars.
• I would have to get off the plane and find my own way to the orientation site.
• I would have to make sure I got to London and to the orientation office between 9AM and 12PM or I could possibly be penalized for it.

I'm thinking it may just be worth it to go for the group flight and pay extra rather than try to navigate London for the first time with heavy baggage. Any thoughts?

I say the group flight.  Mostly because the extra cash you may pay will be worth not having the hassle of navigating an unfamiliar city with heavy baggage while jet-legged.  And you can meet a few people going over so you won't feel totally alone and stranded.  That's a bonus! 

Okay, let's see if I can help.

Firstly, no, you don't have to wait for your visa before booking the flights, but it's usually advised that you do, just in case you pay for the flights and then get refused a visa - you'll have wasted all that money.

It's not often that you will get refused a student visa, but nothing is 100% guaranteed until you've received it - so it's really up to you to decide whether it's worth the risk to book before you get it.

You don't have to buy return tickets to get through immigration - your visa should have your dates of study on it and as long as you can tell them that you intend to return home at the end, it should be okay.

In terms of which flights to go with, it might be easier for you to pay more and go with the group flight as everything is arranged for you. However, it is possible to do it yourself if you want.

A quick online search has shown that you can fly from Phoenix to London Heathrow for about $800-$850 (round trip) on Yahoo travel (the cheapest one-way I can find at the moment on STA is $530 from Newark to London). Most flights are overnight and will get you into London between 7am and 9am. It is only a short train and tube journey into Central London from there (you can get a tube pretty much right to UCL, as it is so central), but the only problem might be the length of the immigration line (I've spent 2.5 hours going through immigration in the US before), so it's not guaranteed that you'd get to the office by 12pm.

If you decide to go with independent travel, you might need to arrive a day earlier and stay in a B&B for a night before going to the orientation office.

You guys both have really good points. The problem I was having with the independent travel option for only buying one way is that most places don't allow you to select my potential return dates yet. I'll be returning in June 2008, so the date is so far out right now that you can't even get tickets for round trip for it yet. I think, though, that I will just do the group flight. Now that I think on it, I'm terribly directionally challenged and while that does not bother me, I often get lost. Even if I managed to make it out of immigration soon enough to get to the orientation office (which is at 21 Pembridge Gardens, London W2 4EB, and  I don't have the slightest clue where that is compared to UCL... ), I might just end up lost on the tube. If anyone could do it, it would be me! Hopefully I will be able to get my visa before the deadline for signing up for the group flight program. Otherwise I will have to take the leap of faith! 

You guys both have really good points. The problem I was having with the independent travel option for only buying one way is that most places don't allow you to select my potential return dates yet. I'll be returning in June 2008, so the date is so far out right now that you can't even get tickets for round trip for it yet.

I had the same problem, so just booked a return coming home at the end of the first term (Christmas) - although I didn't use it in the end. That way you have a ticket home if you really want to go back for Christmas. If not, you should be able to change the date on the ticket.

I think, though, that I will just do the group flight. Now that I think on it, I'm terribly directionally challenged and while that does not bother me, I often get lost. Even if I managed to make it out of immigration soon enough to get to the orientation office (which is at 21 Pembridge Gardens, London W2 4EB, and  I don't have the slightest clue where that is compared to UCL... ), I might just end up lost on the tube.

The orientation office and UCL are on the same tube line (Notting Hill Gate - Euston Square) - six stops apart - which should only take a few minutes to get to (http://www.multimap.com/map/tube.cgi?client=public&tsize=1&tmap=to&mapsize=big&lang= ).

The harder part is getting from Heathrow to 21 Pembridge Gardens to start with...

The London office is located very conveniently about 150 metres from the Notting Hill Gate tube station in central London. This station lies on the Central, Circle and District underground (tube) lines. When exiting the tube, head north on Pembridge Gardens (the road flanked by the Royal Bank of Scotland and the Book Warehouse) and the office, number 21, will be on your right. It has a blue door and a fair amount of foliage out front.

From Heathrow Airport

You have two options coming from Heathrow. Option #1: the easiest and fastest is to jump on the Heathrow Express (15 min ride; costs about £25 return) which will take you straight to Paddington Station in central London. From here you can either take a cab (5-10 min ride; costs £7; just give the driver the address above) or take the tube to Notting Hill Gate (5 min ride; costs £3 for a single). Option #2 is to take the tube the whole way (takes over an hour and is a greater hassle, but will cost only about £5, the price of a single from Zone 6 to Zone 1): take the Piccadilly line to Earl's Court where you'll switch to the District line and take it up to Notting Hill Gate.

If anyone could do it, it would be me! Hopefully I will be able to get my visa before the deadline for signing up for the group flight program. Otherwise I will have to take the leap of faith! 

When I went on study abroad, orientation in the US was on August 19th. I got my visa on July 10th, but couldn't book flights until I had confirmation of accomodation (in case I needed to travel on a different date to find accomodation)- which came at the end of July. I couldn't actually book my flights until 2 weeks before I had to leave!! I've heard the UK visa system is much quicker than the US though, so hopefully you won't have the same problem.

Wow... Yuck. I don't know how easy it'd be hopping from shuttle to cab or shuttle to tube or tubing it the whole way with however many heavy bags I'll have! Plus, now that I'm looking more thoroughly, I think the group flight will be cheaper in the end. I wouldn't have to worry about travel from airport to office, and wouldn't have to debate over whether or not to come a day early and book a B&B room.

That's kinda nice to know UCL is pretty close to the office. I should have looked more closely at the website to find that info, but thank you so much for locating it

Right now I'm waiting for my home uni to input some more transcripts I sent to them (they take 15 days to input them! ridiculous!) so that I can be switched from freshman to sophomore. Once that happens, the financial aid office can amend my FAFSA info to increase my funding another $1,000 to meet the sophomore allotment, and then they can certify my loan amount with my alt loan lender. Then my alt loan lender can actually approve the money. I was planning on waiting to apply for my visa until all that was finished, which HOPEFULLY will be by June 25th or so. Such a long process!

That's kinda nice to know UCL is pretty close to the office. I should have looked more closely at the website to find that info, but thank you so much for locating it

Just a quick note on this - although it's fairly quick on the tube, it doesn't necessarily mean they are that close together. If you were to walk from the office to UCL, it would take you more than an hour as they are a few miles apart. That's what's so great about the tube - in a few minutes on the underground, you can travel several miles across the city.

It probably is going to be easier and maybe cheaper for you to book the group flight - I've had to lug heavy suitcases all the way home from the airport when I've returned from the states before and it's not easy (4-hour coach journey from Gatwick, via Heathrow, to Bristol, then a one-hour public bus journey to my town and then a 15-minute walk back to my house!!)

If you decide to go it yourself you could use a shuttle service from the airport to the hotel, then tube it to your orientation.  We used Hotelink on out last trip, and I highly recomend them.  They helped with all of our baggage, and got us from the arrival counter at Gatwick to the check-in counter at the hotel without any hassle.  They also have a service from Heathrow.  Their website is below if you want more info.

http://www.hotelink.co.uk/

Just a quick note on this - although it's fairly quick on the tube, it doesn't necessarily mean they are that close together. If you were to walk from the office to UCL, it would take you more than an hour as they are a few miles apart. That's what's so great about the tube - in a few minutes on the underground, you can travel several miles across the city.

Oh no, I meant close by tube!

It probably is going to be easier and maybe cheaper for you to book the group flight - I've had to lug heavy suitcases all the way home from the airport when I've returned from the states before and it's not easy (4-hour coach journey from Gatwick, via Heathrow, to Bristol, then a one-hour public bus journey to my town and then a 15-minute walk back to my house!!)

Yeah that doesn't sound fun no matter how I justify it. I'm just gonna save myself the frustration and do the group flight. Thanks for your input ksand! i really appreciate it and it really helped me decide.

If you decide to go it yourself you could use a shuttle service from the airport to the hotel, then tube it to your orientation.  We used Hotelink on out last trip, and I highly recomend them.  They helped with all of our baggage, and got us from the arrival counter at Gatwick to the check-in counter at the hotel without any hassle.  They also have a service from Heathrow.  Their website is below if you want more info.

http://www.hotelink.co.uk/

Thanks for the link! I will probably just use the group flight as it seems the logical choice now, but that company could still be useful if I have people visit, etc.

If you DO go independently, I bed of...don't take the Tube!!  You'll be travelling during rush hour with lots of baggage - it'll be a total nightmare, TRUST ME.  The Tube has lots of stairs to navigate and during rush hour, the Picadilly line is notorious in its delays.  If you do come in on your own, take the train (Heathrow Express into Paddington station) and/or fork out for a taxi.