Travel: Flights to Bristol from Aberdeen

Bristol International Airport is situated 8 miles south-west of Bristol city centre and offers scheduled flights from major European cities, including Amsterdam, Barcelona, Berlin, Brussels, Copenhagen, Edinburgh, Frankfurt, Glasgow, Paris and Prague (but not London), and as of May 2005 a daily flight from New York. There is currently no train link between the airport and the city, but there is a 'Flyer' bus service that takes 30-45 minutes and has a peak-daytime frequency of every 20-30 minutes, costs are £7 for a return ticket, £5 for a one-way.

The alternative is to use one of the London airports or Birmingham airport and travel on to Bristol by train, car or bus. The most convenient are:

• Heathrow Airport is about two hours drive straight down the M4 (westbound) motorway. Alternatively the RailAir express bus service (running every 20 minutes) connects with the main London to Bristol rail service at Reading rail station; expect the total journey to take slightly over two hours.
• Birmingham International is within quicker (and cheaper) reach of Bristol than London's two other airports, Gatwick and Stansted. By car it takes about 1h45min and you'll be avoiding the congestion-prone M25. Rail services connect Birmingham International to Bristol every 30 min at peak times with a change in Birmingham New Street. The journey takes between two and two and a half hours.
• Gatwick Airport is about three hours drive away via the M23 (northbound), M25 (clockwise) and M4 (westbound) motorways. Alternatively a half-hourly rail service from Gatwick connects with the main London to Bristol rail service at Reading rail station; expect the total journey to take slightly over two hours.
• Stansted Airport is about three hours drive away via the M11 (southbound), M25 (anti-clockwise) and M4 (westbound) motorways. By train you will need to catch a Stansted Express train to London Liverpool Street station, the tube to London Paddington station, then follow the directions below; expect the total journey to take around three and a half hours.