Coach and Minibus Hire in the United Kingdom

Collected at Birmingham Airport, bags and all

Birmingham Airport sits right beside the NEC, so some groups are only minutes from their hotel when they land. How you get from the arrivals door to your seat depends on whether you've booked a coach or something smaller.

Coaches use Comet Road

Comet Road Coach Access sits just in front of the terminal, barely a minute on foot. Only coaches may use it, purely to load or unload with no waiting, and entry is through camera-operated barriers that charge per visit.

While you're collecting bags, the coach is parked in the airport's own open-air coach park, three minutes or so from the terminal on foot. That park can't be booked ahead and is paid on arrival.

Executive Sprinter van interior with leather seats
Executive Sprinter van interior with leather seats

Minibuses meet you elsewhere

Minibuses aren't allowed on Comet Road. For cars and smaller vehicles, the airport offers the Premium Set Down about a minute from the terminal and a Drop Off car park reached by a covered walkway in 5 to 10 minutes, free for the first 10 minutes.

Red routes on the airport roads mean no stopping outside those areas, so there's no quick kerbside pickup. Your confirmation should say which spot your driver will use.

The terminals

  • Single passenger terminal

Good to know at Birmingham Airport

  • The airport is reached from junction 6 of the M42, following the A45.
  • For cars and smaller vehicles, the Premium Set Down is about a minute's walk from the terminal, and the Drop Off car park (free for the first 10 minutes, with no return within an hour) is a 5 to 10 minute walk by covered walkway.
  • Red routes on the airport roads prohibit stopping, loading or parking; drivers must use the designated drop-off areas.

Into the city or out into the Midlands

The usual way to Victoria Square is the M42, then the M6 and the A38(M): roughly 15 miles, and 25 minutes if traffic is light. On the map the A45 looks more direct, but it's usually the slower choice. Hotels inside the A4540 Middleway ring road are within Birmingham's Clean Air Zone, where a minibus below Euro 6 (diesel) or Euro 4 (petrol) pays a daily charge, so ask whether the vehicle quoted meets it.

For touring, Warwick Castle is about 22 miles from the city and Stratford-upon-Avon about 25; Bourton-on-the-Water in the Cotswolds is roughly 55.

Your questions

Can our minibus collect us on Comet Road?

No, it's for coaches only. Cars, motorcycles and minibuses are kept off it, so your confirmation will name where a minibus meets you instead.

We're staying near the NEC. Is it worth booking a vehicle for such a short hop?

With a big group, luggage and perhaps a pushchair or two, usually yes. One vehicle keeps everyone together and saves several taxi queues.

We're travelling down from the north for a flight. Which way will we come?

Often the M6toll, a quick route to the airport and the NEC from the north. It has toll plazas that take contactless payment, and the quote can say whether the toll is included.

Cities

Vehicles