North or South Terminal
Blean to Gatwick
Typical drive from Canterbury
1h 15m – 1h 45m
Fixed fare for Gatwick
Blean Airport Transfers · Express Travel Kent
Airport taxi from the University of Kent campus, Blean, Rough Common and Tyler Hill
Airport transfers booked in advance for students, parents, staff and visiting academics at the University of Kent's Canterbury campus, and for homes in Blean, Rough Common and Tyler Hill. Heathrow, Gatwick, Stansted, Luton and London City, at any hour of the day or night.
Fixed fare for the car, quoted before you pay
Flight tracked; your driver waits in arrivals
Bookable 24/7 for dawn flights and late landings
- 01843 247247
Call to book
Blean Airport TransfersExpress Travel Kent
Blean Airport Transfers is the airport service of Express Travel Kent, a licensed private hire service operating across Kent. Type in your college, court or village address and the online booking system gives a fixed fare for the whole car before you pay; once confirmed it stays the same, even when the M2 or the M25 is crawling.
Further down: what the university asks of cars on Arrivals Weekend, which road leads to each block of halls, typical airport times (the ones published for Canterbury, since the campus sits on the city's northern edge), graduation and open-day notes, and the questions families ask most.
Airport Transfer Service
Airport times from the campus and the Blean villages
Express Travel Kent publishes no separate times for Blean, so the cards show the typical door-to-terminal drives it publishes for Canterbury, the city at the foot of the hill. Traffic moves them, which is why the collection time suggested at booking is worked back from your flight. Other airports on request.
A fixed fare for the car, shown before you book
Flight tracking and meet and greet on every airport collection
Same fare for early mornings, late nights, weekends and bank holidays
Up to 6 passengers in an MPV; child seats on request
Terminals 2, 3, 4 and 5
Blean to Heathrow
Typical drive from Canterbury
2h – 2h 30m
Fixed fare for HeathrowMain terminal
Blean to Stansted
Typical drive from Canterbury
1h 45m – 2h 15m
Fixed fare for StanstedMain terminal
Blean to Luton
Typical drive from Canterbury
2h – 2h 30m
Fixed fare for LutonMain terminal
Blean to London City
Typical drive from Canterbury
1h 30m – 1h 50m
Fixed fare for London CityThese are the typical times Express Travel Kent publishes for Canterbury. Blean, Rough Common, Tyler Hill and the University of Kent campus sit on the city's northern edge and are collected as part of the Canterbury area.
Typical door-to-terminal times · Traffic can change them · Other airports on request
Local Knowledge
Arriving on campus at the start of term
The University of Kent asks new students to aim for Arrivals Weekend: Saturday 26 and Sunday 27 September in 2026, and 9 to 10 January 2027 for those starting in January (students on an international exchange are asked to come on Thursday 7 January). Before you travel, finish the accommodation e-induction, book an arrival slot and download your Arrivals Pass, which you show at your accommodation reception to collect your keys or fob.
Flying in from abroad? Book the car around the slot you chose and give us the flight number: the collection is timed to the real landing, not the timetable. If the plane is late and reception has closed by the time you reach the hill, the university's arrivals guide says to contact Campus Security, who hand over keys against your Pass; check-in is then finished the next day.
What the university's own pages say about vehicles and luggage on Arrivals Weekend:
- Traffic Marshalls direct the cars, and unloading is limited to 20 minutes.
- Once a car is empty, it moves on to the Giles Lane, Oaks or Pavilion car park.
- Food and parcel deliveries are not accepted during Arrivals, so plan the first big shop for later.
- Some rooms are several flights of stairs up: pack the essentials first and keep cases manageable.
- The Arrivals Hub in the Templeman Library is where new students collect their KentOne ID card.
Pickup Points
Which road leads to your college or court
The campus runs along a ridge and down University Road, with a second way in from Giles Lane. Name the block when you book, not only the campus postcode (CT2 7NZ), so the driver comes in by the right road. These are the routes the university signs for Arrivals Weekend.
01
Darwin College, Darwin Houses and Tyler Court
Signed from Giles Lane, then along Darwin Road. Tyler Court is reached the same way, turning off Giles Lane for Darwin Road.
02
Keynes College and Giles Court
Keynes is signed from University Road. Giles Court has no parking of its own, and its residents collect their keys at Keynes reception before going on to the Giles Court gate.
03
Turing College and Woolf College
Both are signed from University Road. For Woolf, the university directs cars to the Giles Lane car park.
04
Park Wood houses and flats
In from Giles Lane, then along Park Wood Road. Each court, including Stock, Bossenden, Nickle and Kemsdale, has its own postcode on the campus map: give us that one.
05
Becket Court
Signed along University Road towards Eliot College.
06
Guest rooms at Tyler Court C
The university's B&B rooms for visitors, open all year, with check-in from 15:00 and check-out by 11:00. Visiting academics and families can be collected from reception.
07
Canterbury West station
About 25 minutes' walk from the campus, with trains to London St Pancras. Arriving by rail before a long-distance journey? The station can be your pickup point.
Areas We Cover
Blean, Rough Common, Tyler Hill and the campus between them
Airport and long-distance journeys start from any address in these CT2 villages, and from any room or building on the campus that shares their hill above Canterbury.
Blean
The village strung along the A290 in the Forest of Blean. The row of shops by the zebra crossing, with Tyler Hill Road turning off beside them, makes an easy landmark for the driver.
Tyler Hill
The village on the far side of the campus, along Hackington Road. The bus stops and the Tyler's Kiln pub on that road are handy markers for a meeting point.
Rough Common
Homes on Rough Common Road and the streets off it, west of the campus. The RSPB's Blean Woods reserve is entered from the same road (CT2 9DD).
University of Kent, Canterbury campus
Colleges, courts and student houses, the Gulbenkian, the sports centre and the conference rooms. Give the building name and the meeting point is agreed with you when you book.
“Not on the list? Send us your address and we will reply with a fixed fare.”
Book Your JourneyJourney Times
The roads out of Canterbury to each airport
From the campus the car drops down into the city, by University Road or St Stephen's Hill, and joins the A2, which runs on as the M2 from junction 7. Blean and Tyler Hill use the same network. The times below are the ones Express Travel Kent publishes for Canterbury.
Door to terminal, by car
| Typical drive from Canterbury | Usual route after the M2 | |
|---|---|---|
| Gatwick, North or South Terminal | 1h 15m – 1h 45m | M25, then the M23 |
| Heathrow, Terminals 2 to 5 | 2h – 2h 30m | M25 heading west |
| Stansted | 1h 45m – 2h 15m | Dartford Crossing, then the M11 |
| Luton | 2h – 2h 30m | Dartford Crossing, then round the M25 |
| London City | 1h 30m – 1h 50m | A2 into London and the Blackwall Tunnel |
Typical times, not promises. Friday afternoons and the first days of school holidays can add 30 to 45 minutes on the M25, and the Dartford Crossing and the Blackwall Tunnel both charge between 6am and 10pm. Tolls and parking fees on the way can be added where they apply; the fare itself does not move with the traffic.
Beyond the Airport
Beyond the airport run: journeys that start on the hill
The same pre-booked cars and fixed fares cover longer trips from the campus and the three villages.
01Long-distance journeys
The end-of-term trip home to another UK city with a year's belongings, a day in London or a family event at the far end of the country, leaving Canterbury on the A2 and the M2 with the fare agreed in advance.
02Business transfers
Visiting examiners, speakers and conference delegates met at Heathrow, Gatwick or London City and brought to the campus; university staff taken to meetings and offices in London.
03Luxury and exclusive transport
An executive saloon for graduation day at Canterbury Cathedral, a dinner in London or a family's tour of Kent, with the car and driver kept for you by the hour or by the day.
04School and student transfers
Students taken between home, halls and the airport at the start and end of every term, and pupils travelling between home, school and the airport, booked by parents if they prefer.
05Cruise and ferry ports
The two cruise terminals at Dover's Western Docks and the five at Southampton, in an estate or an MPV when two weeks of luggage needs the room.
Local Knowledge
Open days, graduation and conferences
Canterbury open days bring families from all over the country; the next undergraduate open day on this campus is on Saturday 14 November 2026. Flying in for it? A car from the airport straight up the hill saves a train into London, a second train out and a bus at the end.
Kent's Canterbury graduation ceremonies are held in the Cathedral, and the November 2026 ones fall on 19 and 20 November. The university cannot offer parking in the Cathedral grounds. Guests usually start queuing about 90 minutes before a ceremony, seating opens an hour before, the ceremony lasts about 90 minutes, and graduates meet their families afterwards by the War Horse sculpture.
Conferences: the university lists more than 150 event spaces on its Canterbury campus, with B&B and self-catered rooms for delegates. Speakers landing at an airport can be met in the arrivals hall with a name board and driven straight to the venue.
- Graduation guests: book the car into the city well before the queue forms, and agree a pickup point for after the photographs.
- Open-day visitors: give the campus postcode, CT2 7NZ, and say whether you want to be set down near the Templeman Library or elsewhere.
- Conference delegates: give the venue and the name of your host, so the driver knows where on campus to head.
Common Questions
Questions from students, parents and visitors
Yes. Book with your flight number and your college or court. The flight is tracked, the driver waits in the arrivals hall with a name board, and free waiting runs for 45 minutes after an international landing, counted from when the plane actually touches down. The typical drive published for Canterbury is 2 hours to 2 hours 30 minutes, so choose an arrival slot that leaves room for passport control and the bags.
Yes. The fare is for the car, not per seat, so friends flying from the same airport can split it. Pick the car by the luggage: a saloon takes up to 4 passengers with 2 large cases, an estate up to 4 with 3 to 4 large cases, and an MPV up to 6 with 4 or more. If you are collected from two different courts, put both in the booking: stops that were not booked can be added to the fare.
At your accommodation or the building you name. Darwin and Tyler Court are reached from Giles Lane, Keynes, Turing and Woolf from University Road, and Park Wood from Park Wood Road. Give the court's own postcode from the campus map and add a note if you want to meet somewhere else.
Yes. Book online, by phone on 01843 247247, on WhatsApp or by email, and put the student's name and mobile number in the booking. Online payment takes cards, Apple Pay, Google Pay, Klarna and Revolut, and the code ExpressTravelKent gives 10% off.
No. There is no meter, and the fixed fare does not change for traffic, roadworks, a diversion, an early start, a late night, a weekend or a bank holiday. What can be added: waiting beyond the free time, stops that were not booked, big route changes asked for on the way, and parking fees or tolls on the journey where they apply.
More than 24 hours before pickup, cancelling costs nothing. Between 6 and 24 hours it can cost up to half the fare, and under 6 hours, or once the car has set off, the full fare may be charged. If the date simply moves, change the booking as soon as you know.
Yes, from any address in the three villages as well as the campus. The booking system quotes the fixed fare for your exact address, and the typical airport times are the ones published for Canterbury.
Client Reviews
What passengers say about Express Travel Kent on Google
Reviews of Express Travel Kent from customers in every area we cover, not only Blean, as shown on Google on 31 October 2026.
I was really impressed with the taxi service I used today to get to the airport. From the start, I received timely updates and reminders, along with the car number and driver's name well in… Read full review
Abdulai Latif
I can't recommend this taxi company highly enough. From great prices to consistent, exceptional service, they are truly the best in the area. I have been picked up and dropped off several ti… Read full review
Harriet Fleet
I cannot recommend John and his team enough. Excellent communication, professionalism and friendliness throughout my return journey to Gatwick. I will definitely be using them again, 10 out… Read full review
Angela King
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