You can visit Stonehenge from London in a day either on an organised coach tour or on your own by train to Salisbury and then the Stonehenge Tour bus, which takes about two hours each way in total. An adult ticket costs from £24.65 when booked online by midnight the day before (2026 prices).
Stonehenge is a prehistoric stone circle on Salisbury Plain in Wiltshire, in south-west England. The first monument on the site was built around 5,000 years ago, and the huge standing stones were raised in the centuries that followed. It is a World Heritage Site, cared for by English Heritage, with the surrounding landscape owned by the National Trust.
The site itself is simple to understand: a modern visitor centre with an exhibition, café and shop, and the stone circle about 25 to 40 minutes' walk away, linked by a shuttle bus. The harder part is getting there, because there is no railway station nearby. This guide compares the two main ways of doing it and explains how to add Salisbury or Bath to the same day.
Stonehenge in brief
- Adult ticket, booked by midnight the day before
- £24.65 off-peak, £27.03 standard, £29.32 peak (no donation)
- Adult ticket on the day
- £29.00, £31.80 or £34.50 depending on the date
- Opening hours (September 2026-March 2027)
- 09:30-17:00, last admission 15:00; closed 25 December
- Nearest station
- Salisbury, 12 miles (19 km) away
- Train from London
- Waterloo to Salisbury, around 1 hour 25 minutes, usually every half hour
- Bus from Salisbury
- The Stonehenge Tour, around 35 minutes, generally hourly
- Left luggage
- None on site
Coach tour or train and bus: the honest comparison
Many visitors assume an organised tour is the only practical option. It is not. The public transport route is straightforward, and it gives you more control over your time. But tours have real advantages, especially if you want to see two places in one day.
Train to Salisbury plus the tour bus
- You choose how long to stay at the stones
- Salisbury Cathedral and its Magna Carta are on the way
- Railcards can cut the train fare by a third
- No early pick-up from a hotel on the other side of London
What makes it harder
- Two separate tickets to buy (train and bus)
- In autumn and winter the last bus to Stonehenge leaves Salisbury at 14:05
- Hard to combine with Bath without a long day
- If a train is late, you may wait an hour for the next bus
Coach tours from London usually leave early in the morning, spend the day on the road and return in the evening. Many combine Stonehenge with at least one other place, such as Bath, Windsor Castle, Salisbury or a Cotswold village. The comfort is real: one booking, no changes, and a guide on board. The downside is fixed timings, often with only an hour or two at the stones, and the traffic on the roads out of London.
Before you book any tour, ask three questions. Is the Stonehenge entry ticket included, or do you pay it separately? How long do you actually spend at the site? Where exactly does the coach leave from, and at what time? Then compare the total with the train fare, the bus ticket and the entry price. We do not recommend any particular tour company; prices and inclusions change often, so compare several.
Getting there by train and the Stonehenge Tour bus
South Western Railway runs direct trains from London Waterloo to Salisbury. They also stop at Clapham Junction, and the journey takes around 1 hour 25 minutes. Trains usually run every half hour. Waterloo is a large station south of the river; our guide to London's railway terminals explains how to reach it from the rest of the city.
From Salisbury station, the Stonehenge Tour bus leaves from bus stop SC in the station forecourt: cross the road outside the station exit and the stop is about 50 metres to the left. The bus is run by Salisbury Reds and has onboard commentary about the landscape you pass. It takes around 35 minutes to Stonehenge and calls at Salisbury city centre on the way. On the return, it stops at Old Sarum, the site of the original hilltop town.
| Stonehenge Tour winter timetable (from 7 September 2026) | Times |
|---|---|
| Salisbury rail station to Stonehenge | 10:05, 11:05, 12:05, 13:05, 14:05 |
| Arrives at Stonehenge | 35 minutes later (10:40 to 14:40) |
| Leaves Stonehenge | 10:55, 11:55, 12:55, 13:55, 14:55, 16:05, 17:15 |
| Last bus back reaches Salisbury station | 17:35 |
The summer timetable (from late March to early September in 2026) adds more departures, so always check the official Stonehenge Tour timetable for your date. A taxi from Salisbury station takes around 20 minutes; there is a rank to the right of the station exit.
Which bus ticket to buy
You can buy a bus-only return, or combined tickets that also include Stonehenge admission and Old Sarum. An all-in-one ticket adds Salisbury Cathedral, and the cathedral part is valid for up to 48 hours after your bus trip. Tickets are sold online, at Salisbury station, at the Salisbury tourist information centre and on the bus from the driver (card or cash). The operator does not publish its prices on its information pages, so check them when you book.
Your train ticket does not cover the Stonehenge bus. South Western Railway points out that train and bus tickets are bought separately. Buy the train to Salisbury first, then choose a bus ticket with or without Stonehenge entry. If you have already booked Stonehenge with English Heritage, a bus-only ticket is enough.
Salisbury is outside the London fare system, so you need a National Rail ticket, not Oyster or contactless. Off-Peak day returns and Advance tickets are usually the best value; our guide to Advance fares and railcards explains how they work. Overseas visitors can buy a Two Together Railcard or a 16-25 Railcard online, each £35 for a year, which gives a third off most fares.
Stonehenge ticket prices and booking
English Heritage uses three price bands, depending on the date. Until 27 September 2026, weekdays are standard and weekends are peak. From 28 September 2026 until mid-March 2027, weekdays are off-peak and weekends are standard. Booking online by midnight the day before gives the lower price.
| Adult ticket (2026) | Off-peak | Standard | Peak |
|---|---|---|---|
| Online by midnight the day before | £24.65 | £27.03 | £29.32 |
| Online in advance, with Gift Aid donation | £27.20 | £29.75 | £32.30 |
| On the day | £29.00 | £31.80 | £34.50 |
A couple visiting on a weekday in October pays £49.30 by booking ahead, against £58.00 on the day. English Heritage recommends booking in advance, which is also the only way to get the lower price. Child and family prices appear only in the booking system, so check them on the official prices and opening times page.
English Heritage members go free, and so do National Trust (England) members, who book with a code given on the English Heritage page. If you plan to visit several English Heritage sites, such as Dover Castle, English Heritage also offers an Overseas Visitor Pass; compare its price with the individual tickets.
At the visitor centre and the stone circle
Your visit starts at the visitor centre. The exhibition explains who built Stonehenge and how, and includes the reconstructed face of a man who lived about 5,500 years ago. Outside, reconstructed Neolithic houses show how people lived at the time the monument was built, and you can try your strength at moving a copy of a giant sarsen stone.
Shuttle buses run every few minutes between the visitor centre and the stones, and the ride takes 5 to 10 minutes. You can also walk: a marked route crosses the National Trust landscape past Bronze Age burial mounds and takes 25 to 40 minutes each way, depending on your pace. Walking one way and riding the other is a good compromise.
At the stones, a path goes all the way around the circle, at some points only 5 metres from the stones. You cannot walk among them during normal opening hours; English Heritage says this protects the fragile archaeology and the lichens that grow on the stones. There is no shelter and no toilet at the circle, and the site is exposed to wind and rain, so dress for the weather. Our page on English weather and what to pack helps.
Going inside the circle
The only way to walk inside the stone circle is the Stone Circle Experience, a separate ticket for small groups at the beginning or end of most days, outside normal hours. Places are limited. If this matters to you, book it first and plan your transport around it: early-morning slots are difficult to reach by public transport from London.
Stonehenge has nowhere to leave a suitcase. English Heritage says there is no cloakroom or left luggage on site, and bags may be searched. If you are travelling on to Bath or the West Country with luggage, leave it in London or at your next hotel. Our guide to left luggage in London lists the options at the main stations.
How much time to allow
English Heritage says you can stay as long as you like within opening hours. In practice, two to three hours covers the exhibition, the shuttle, a slow walk around the circle and a coffee. Last admission is at 15:00 in autumn and winter, and the site closes at 17:00.
By train and bus, a comfortable plan in winter is a train from Waterloo at around 08:30, the 10:05 or 11:05 bus from Salisbury station, and a return bus at 13:55 or 14:55. That leaves the afternoon for Salisbury Cathedral. On the return bus you can hop off at Old Sarum, an English Heritage site about 7 miles from Stonehenge.
Adding Salisbury Cathedral to the day
Salisbury is the natural partner for Stonehenge because you pass through it anyway. According to the cathedral itself, it has Britain's tallest spire and Britain's largest cathedral close and cloisters. It also keeps the best-preserved original 1215 Magna Carta, the charter that first limited the power of the English king, and what it describes as the world's oldest mechanical clock.
The cathedral sometimes closes early for services and events. On 17 September 2026, for example, it closed for sightseeing at 13:00. Check the Salisbury Cathedral website on the morning of your visit.
Combining Stonehenge with Bath
Bath is one of the most common partners for Stonehenge on coach tours. By public transport it is possible but long. English Heritage notes that Salisbury has regular trains to Bath, so you could go London, Salisbury, Stonehenge, back to Salisbury, then Bath, and return to London from Bath Spa. Great Western Railway says trains from Bath Spa to London Paddington take around 1 hour 20 minutes.
The problem is time. With a morning at Stonehenge, you would reach Bath in the mid to late afternoon, leaving little time for the Roman Baths. In autumn 2026 an adult ticket to the Roman Baths costs £26.50 on weekdays and £29.00 at weekends when booked ahead (1 September to 31 October), and it deserves more than a rushed hour. Our Bath day-trip guide covers the city properly. If you want both, either take a tour that combines them or stay a night in Bath or Salisbury.
Driving to Stonehenge
Stonehenge is signposted from the A303, off the A360, and the postcode for satellite navigation is SP4 7DE. English Heritage charges non-members £4 for parking, and recommends downloading the RingGo parking app before you arrive. Driving makes early Stone Circle Experience slots and nearby sites such as Woodhenge (about 3 miles away) much easier to reach.
If you are considering a hire car only for this trip, read our advice on hiring a car in London and the rules for foreign drivers in the UK first. Getting out of London by road is slow, and a car is only worth it if you plan to explore more of Wiltshire.
When to go
Weekdays from late September to mid-March fall in the cheapest off-peak band, and they are usually the calmest days too. Summer weekends are in the most expensive band. The solstices bring large crowds and special arrangements; around the summer solstice in June 2026 the Stonehenge Tour bus stopped early and did not run on 21 June. Our guide to the best time to visit covers the seasons more generally.
For a detailed comparison of every way to travel, including coaches and journey times, see our sister site's London to Stonehenge route guide. Our overview of day trips from London compares Stonehenge with the other destinations within reach, including the villages of the Cotswolds.
Frequently asked questions
Can you visit Stonehenge from London without a tour?
Yes. Take a direct train from London Waterloo to Salisbury, which takes around 1 hour 25 minutes, then the Stonehenge Tour bus from outside Salisbury station, which takes around 35 minutes. Buy the train and bus tickets separately.
How much is a ticket to Stonehenge?
In 2026 an adult ticket booked online by midnight the day before costs £24.65, £27.03 or £29.32, depending on the date's price band. On the day it costs £29.00, £31.80 or £34.50. English Heritage and National Trust (England) members go free.
Can you touch the stones at Stonehenge?
Not on a normal ticket. The visitor path goes around the circle, as close as 5 metres at some points. Only visitors with a Stone Circle Experience ticket may go inside the circle, in small groups outside normal opening hours.
How long do you need at Stonehenge?
Allow two to three hours for the exhibition, the shuttle or walk to the stones and a full circuit of the circle. The walk from the visitor centre to the stones alone takes 25 to 40 minutes each way.
Can I bring luggage to Stonehenge?
There is no cloakroom or left luggage at Stonehenge, and bags may be checked on arrival. Bring only what you need for the day and leave suitcases at your hotel or a left luggage service.
Sources
- English Heritage - Stonehenge prices and opening times (checked September 2026)
- English Heritage - Stonehenge questions and answers (checked September 2026)
- English Heritage - Directions to Stonehenge (checked September 2026)
- South Western Railway - Trains to Stonehenge (checked September 2026)
- The Stonehenge Tour (Salisbury Reds) - Bus timetable (checked September 2026)
- The Stonehenge Tour - Frequently asked questions (checked September 2026)
- Salisbury Cathedral - Visit (checked September 2026)
- The Roman Baths - Tickets, September 2026 (checked September 2026)