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FCFirst ClassCHAUFFEURS

ARCentral London · Greater London

Chauffeur service on Piccadilly, W1J and SW1Y

The Ritz has a short kerb under its awning and Arlington Street beside it. Between the two, most Piccadilly arrivals are solved without ever stopping in a running lane.

London City, 10 miles outCar in position before you leave PiccadillyJermyn Street and everything off itA Piccadilly figure in writing before the day
Railway station dawn

Written quotation, usually within the hour

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Chauffeur service in Piccadilly — summary

First Class Chauffeurs drives Piccadilly in Central London, and most of the work here is the ground half of a longer journey: the run out to London City before a flight, the car waiting when one lands, and days held by the hour between Burlington Arcade and Green Park. Collections are made from private addresses, from Le Meridien Piccadilly, and from the taxi rank side of Piccadilly Circus rather than the drop-off lane. London City is an indicative 35-65 minutes from Piccadilly, about 10 miles by road, using Jermyn Street. Vehicles run from the Mercedes-Benz E-Class up to the Rolls-Royce Phantom, whichever Piccadilly address the car is going to. Every class is quoted individually; the written quotation for Piccadilly confirms the final price, what it covers and any applicable tax.

Coverage area

Piccadilly, Central London

Region

Greater London, England

Closest airport to Piccadilly

London City

Drive time to London City

35-65 minutes

Postal coverage in Piccadilly

W1J, SW1Y and W1B

Key roads in Piccadilly

Arlington Street, Dover Street and Albemarle Street

Stations we collect from in Piccadilly

Bond Street and Green Park

Also on the Piccadilly list

St James's and Mayfair

01On Piccadilly

Chauffeur service in Piccadilly

A single long road from Hyde Park Corner to Piccadilly Circus, with a royal park on one side for half its length and some of the best-known addresses in London on the other. It carries a great deal of traffic and offers very little kerb in return. The short turnings on the north side are what make an arrival here work at all.

Hotels, clubs, a gallery and a food hall generate the bookings, and the hours are long: breakfast meetings from seven, exhibition previews at six, dinner and late collections after eleven. The area is inside the Congestion Charge zone, with the boundary at the Hyde Park Corner end where Park Lane begins.

02The essentials

Coverage area
Piccadilly, Central London
Region
Greater London, England
Closest airport to Piccadilly
London City
Drive time to London City
35-65 minutes
Postal coverage in Piccadilly
W1J, SW1Y and W1B
Key roads in Piccadilly
Arlington Street, Dover Street and Albemarle Street
Stations we collect from in Piccadilly
Bond Street and Green Park
Also on the Piccadilly list
St James's and Mayfair

03The area

Jermyn Street, and everything that hangs off it

Written from the driver's side of the windscreen, about Piccadilly rather than about the guidebook.

Wide, straight and deceptively slow. Buses and taxis fill the nearside, the crossings are frequent, and the Green Park flank offers nothing at all because the railings run unbroken for a quarter of a mile. On the north side, Arlington Street, Dover Street, Albemarle Street, Old Bond Street and Sackville Street each drop away from the main road within a few paces, and each is markedly quieter than the road it leaves.

04Demand

Airport runs and long days out of Piccadilly

The journeys Piccadilly books most, and the reasons behind them.

The hotels at the western end, then the clubs and galleries in the middle. Auction previews and exhibition openings at the Royal Academy produce short, concentrated evening peaks. There is a substantial airport trade from the hotels, weighted towards Heathrow and the private terminals. The food hall generates collections with parcels and hampers, particularly in December, which need a boot rather than a back seat.

05Road time

The Piccadilly clock

Departure planning for Piccadilly, without the optimism.

The eastbound crawl towards Piccadilly Circus starts at about four and lasts until seven, and westbound is worse in the morning. Weekend afternoons are busy with visitors rather than commuters, which is slower but more predictable. For a Heathrow departure, going west and out along the A4 takes about forty minutes outside peak and can double in the evening, so the booking is set from the flight rather than from the wish.

06The kerb

The last two hundred yards in Piccadilly

The pick-up point in Piccadilly, and the notes that come with it.

Arlington Street, beside the Ritz, is the most useful side street on the whole road and takes a car properly. Dover Street and Albemarle Street serve the middle stretch. The Royal Academy's courtyard is a pedestrian space, so collections there are made on Piccadilly itself or on Sackville Street behind. Nothing waits on the Green Park side. For the food hall, Duke Street St James's and Jermyn Street are the places to stand.

Collection notes for Piccadilly

  • 01Arlington Street runs alongside the Ritz and is the natural place for a car to stand rather than the hotel's short frontage.
  • 02The Green Park side has unbroken railings for a quarter of a mile and no stopping anywhere along it.
  • 03For the Royal Academy, the courtyard is pedestrian, so the meeting point is on Piccadilly or on Sackville Street behind.
  • 04December hamper collections need boot space booked for, not discovered on the pavement at the point of loading.

07Included as standard

What comes with the car in Piccadilly

  • 01

    Cases to the trolley at London City

    Awkward items are worth naming: a cello, a wheelchair, a set of display boards for a stand at The Wolseley. None of them are a problem, and all of them change which car we send to Piccadilly.

  • 02

    What we do while London City holds you

    The tail number is watched from departure, so a diversion or a two-hour hold changes when we leave Piccadilly for London City and not what you booked. The same applies to a train into Piccadilly Circus when rail is doing the middle of the journey.

  • 03

    No car park hunt at London City

    After a long flight the last thing worth doing is negotiating the London City short-stay barrier with Piccadilly still ahead of you. The chauffeur handles the London City end of it and you are pointed at Jermyn Street within a few minutes of clearing customs.

  • 04

    Local enough to park in Piccadilly

    Chauffeurs working Piccadilly know where a car can legally stand near Burlington Arcade, which entrance at Le Meridien Piccadilly is used for loading, and how long the lights on Jermyn Street actually take.

  • 05

    The figure agreed before you left Piccadilly

    The quotation states the price, the vehicle class, the waiting allowance at London City, and any applicable tax on the Piccadilly journey. There is no multiplier for a Friday out of Piccadilly and no surcharge that turns up afterwards.

  • 06

    Changing the plan halfway across Piccadilly

    At a wedding or an event in Piccadilly the car is usually wanted at both ends of the day rather than continuously. We quote that as one held Piccadilly booking, not two jobs with a gap you end up paying for twice.

08Terminals

The run to London City, and the others

These are timed from a Piccadilly door to the terminal, because that is the number you can plan against. The walk to the car in Piccadilly, the queue at the London City drop-off and the walk to the desk all sit outside it. The written quotation for Piccadilly puts them back in.
London City
Indicative drive
35-65 minutes
Distance
10 miles

Late landings still end with the bags carried to the door in Piccadilly.

Heathrow
Indicative drive
40-70 minutes
Distance
17 miles

If the flight into Heathrow diverts, the chauffeur leaves Piccadilly for wherever it lands.

Gatwick
Indicative drive
60-95 minutes
Distance
29 miles

Return run drops back into Piccadilly by Piccadilly.

Farnborough
Indicative drive
55-90 minutes
Distance
37 miles

Waiting from touchdown at Farnborough is part of the Piccadilly transfer, not an extra line.

The same runs are quoted from St James's and Mayfair, adjusted for the extra distance rather than reused unchanged.

09In detail

From a Piccadilly door to a departure gate

A car held for the day in Piccadilly

LF-01A car held for the day in Piccadilly

A car held for the day in Piccadilly

Hourly hire is the answer when a Piccadilly day has more than two fixed points. The car stays with you from the first address in Piccadilly, waits near Burlington Arcade while you are inside, and moves on when you do. Your coat, your papers and your umbrella stay in the cabin while you are inside Le Meridien Piccadilly.

Hourly rates for Piccadilly are published by vehicle class on this page, with the minimum block stated. What the written quotation adds is the specifics: the start address in Piccadilly, the expected finish, and what happens if the day runs long.

The pick-up in Piccadilly, step by step

LF-02The pick-up in Piccadilly, step by step

The pick-up in Piccadilly, step by step

The car does not circle Piccadilly. If the kerb outside is not available it holds somewhere legal nearby, often on Piccadilly, and comes forward when you say you are ready. None of that costs you a minute in Piccadilly.

Cases go in the boot while you are still saying goodbye on the Piccadilly doorstep. If the journey is to London City the route is already loaded, the traffic on Piccadilly has been checked once more, and the car is moving within a minute of the door closing. That minute is the entire difference between a Piccadilly chauffeur and a cab.

  • Chauffeur briefed on the Piccadilly address before the car sets off
  • Water, a charger and a cabin set for whatever Piccadilly is doing that morning
  • A written price agreed before the car is allocated to Piccadilly
  • Chauffeur, vehicle and registration on the Piccadilly confirmation before the day
The drive back into Piccadilly

LF-03The drive back into Piccadilly

The drive back into Piccadilly

The alternative to being met is a phone call from a London City car park, a walk with a trolley, a lift you cannot find, and Piccadilly still an hour away. We do the other thing: a person inside the terminal holding a board, who then carries the bags to the car and drives you to Piccadilly.

When your flight lands into London City alongside three others, the exit roads towards Piccadilly take all of it at the same moment. The chauffeur waits ten minutes instead of joining that, and you still reach Piccadilly sooner.

  • Return route into Piccadilly chosen at the airport exit rather than in advance
  • A second drop in St James's priced into the same booking
  • Trains into Piccadilly Circus watched the same way as flights
  • Private arrivals met airside at the London City handling agent, then driven to Piccadilly

10The cars

Vehicles for a Piccadilly booking

From the everyday cabin to the car booked in Piccadilly when the photograph outlives the day. All four are driven across Greater London.

Cabin

Mercedes-Benz E-Class

Passengers
Up to 3
Large cases
2, plus cabin bags
Cabin class
Cabin
Get a quote

First Saloon

Mercedes-Benz S-Class

Passengers
Up to 3
Large cases
3, plus cabin bags
Cabin class
First Saloon
Get a quote

Cabin MPV

Mercedes-Benz V-Class

Passengers
Up to 7
Large cases
5, plus cabin bags
Cabin class
Cabin MPV
Get a quote

First SUV

Range Rover Autobiography

Passengers
Up to 4
Large cases
4, plus cabin bags
Cabin class
First SUV
Get a quote

The hourly and half-day rates apply anywhere we drive, including Piccadilly. The two airport columns are London reference fares, kept on the card so classes can be compared honestly from Piccadilly.

11Longer bookings

Which car, and for how long, in Piccadilly

Piccadilly Circus and the drive that follows

LF-04Piccadilly Circus and the drive that follows

Piccadilly Circus and the drive that follows

Where the itinerary is a flight into London City, then a train into Piccadilly Circus, then a car, all three legs get watched. The last one starts at Piccadilly Circus and finishes at a door in Piccadilly, at a price fixed before you set out.

Short connections at Piccadilly Circus are worth flagging. If you have twenty minutes between arriving at Piccadilly Circus and being somewhere in Piccadilly, we will say honestly whether Jermyn Street makes that realistic.

Working backwards from check-in at London City

LF-05Working backwards from check-in at London City

Working backwards from check-in at London City

We would rather wait at London City with twenty spare minutes than leave Piccadilly late and reach the drop-off with none. The collection time on a Piccadilly confirmation carries that bias, openly and on purpose.

On a very early start the streets around Burlington Arcade are the easiest they will be all day, which is why a five o'clock collection is quoted with more confidence than an afternoon one.

12Local reference

Reference points across the W1J district

Not a list of Greater London sights. A list of places in Piccadilly a car can be sent to without a street number and without ambiguity.

Landmarks

  • The Ritz
  • Fortnum and Mason
  • Royal Academy of Arts
  • Burlington Arcade
  • Green Park
  • Piccadilly Circus
  • St James's Church Piccadilly

Venues and hotels

  • The Ritz London
  • Royal Academy of Arts
  • Fortnum and Mason
  • Le Meridien Piccadilly
  • The Wolseley

Stations

  • Green Park
  • Piccadilly Circus
  • Hyde Park Corner
  • Bond Street

Roads

  • Piccadilly
  • Arlington Street
  • Dover Street
  • Albemarle Street
  • Jermyn Street

W1J · SW1Y · W1B

13Practicalities

How a Piccadilly booking is arranged

Four classes for Piccadilly work

LF-06Four classes for Piccadilly work

Four classes for Piccadilly work

We would rather send the right car to Piccadilly than the dearest one. If the run out of Piccadilly is one person and a weekend bag, the E-Class does it properly and the difference stays where it was.

The photograph beside this section shows a chauffeur-driven car of the kind described, not a specific vehicle held for your Piccadilly booking. What is confirmed for your Piccadilly journey appears on the quotation.

Before the car is allocated to Piccadilly

LF-07Before the car is allocated to Piccadilly

Before the car is allocated to Piccadilly

A Piccadilly quotation is not a negotiation. The same journey is quoted the same way whoever is asking, and the written figure for your own run out of Piccadilly to London City settles it.

The confirmation is the reference point for the whole Piccadilly journey. Time, Piccadilly address, vehicle, price. If any of them changes, a new confirmation is sent rather than a verbal amendment nobody can find on the morning in Piccadilly.

14Services

Chauffeur services available in Piccadilly

Everything below can start at Piccadilly Circus, at Burlington Arcade or at your own front door in Piccadilly.

15What it costs

How a Piccadilly booking is priced

The published card, unchanged for the W1J district and every other area we cover. What changes is the Piccadilly journey, which is why the quotation is written.

Hourly, as directed

By the block

The car held for you between stops, with a minimum block named on the quotation.

Airport transfers

Quoted per journey

Priced against the drive from Piccadilly, not against a zone map. Searching for a chauffeur service near me in Piccadilly? This is that local service, quoted in writing before you travel.

Long distance

By the route

One car and one chauffeur from Piccadilly to the far end of the run.

No standing price list. Send the journey on WhatsApp and the written quotation confirms the price, what it includes and any applicable tax. The pricing page sets out what moves a figure, and one message on WhatsApp fixes it for your journey.

16Nearby coverage

Areas next to Piccadilly

Same coverage, next postcode along from the W1J district. Follow one for its own timings and its own drive to London City.

Piccadilly sits in Central London. Every Central London area we cover is listed on one page, and the full coverage index runs to every town and district on the list.

17Answers

Piccadilly chauffeur questions

Four things worth knowing before you book a collection in Piccadilly.

Where does a car wait for the Ritz?

Arlington Street, immediately alongside. The hotel's own frontage under the awning takes a set-down but not a wait, and Piccadilly is a running lane with buses in it. Arlington Street is quiet, wide enough and a few paces from the door, which is why it is the default for every driver who works this road.

Can a chauffeur set down at the Royal Academy?

At the entrance on Piccadilly, yes, briefly. The courtyard beyond the arch is a pedestrian space and no vehicle goes in. For a private view or a preview, when a lot of people arrive at once, the car sets down on Sackville Street behind instead and the walk through takes about a minute.

Is Piccadilly slow in the evening?

Eastbound, from about four until seven, consistently. The bus lanes keep some movement but the junction at Piccadilly Circus meters everything approaching it. If your journey is heading east at that hour the driver will often go north through Mayfair and across, which looks longer on a map and is usually faster on the clock.

Do you handle collections with a lot of parcels from Fortnum and Mason?

Yes, and we ask about it in advance, because the difference between four hampers and four bags is the difference between two vehicle classes. The car waits on Duke Street St James's or Jermyn Street rather than on Piccadilly, and the driver comes in to carry rather than leaving you to manage it at the kerb.

18Elsewhere on the site

Keep reading

FCReservations

Tell us the Piccadilly journey. We will send the price in writing.

Message us the date, the pick-up and where you are going. You will get a fixed written quotation with the vehicle, the chauffeur’s arrival time and what the figure includes — no form to fill in, and no estimate that moves later.

Get a quote on WhatsAppCall +44 7775 554848
Telephone
+44 7775 554848
Email
info@firstclass-chauffeurs.co.uk
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