A taxi from Bristol Airport to Bath costs roughly £45 to £70 and takes about an hour by road. The A4 Airport Flyer coach is the cheaper option at £9.50 for an adult single, running hourly and also taking about an hour door to door. There is no direct train from the airport, but a bus-and-rail combination via Bristol Temple Meads is a workable third option.
How much does it cost to get from Bristol Airport to Bath
By taxi
A taxi or pre-booked private hire car is the fastest door-to-door option. Fares are indicative rather than fixed for this route, but a typical quote runs from about £45 to £70, similar to the fare range published for Bristol Airport to Bath on this site's routes guide. Expect the fare to move toward the top of that range at weekends, on bank holidays, or when several flights land close together, in the same way city-centre fares do. See the taxis guide for how the official rank works and how pre-booked operators compare on price.
By coach (A4 Airport Flyer)
The A4 Airport Flyer is Bristol Airport's direct coach service to Bath, running hourly via South Bristol, Keynsham and Saltford. Fares, checked 2026, are:
- Adult single: £9.50
- Adult return: £16 (valid for one month)
- Child single: £6.50
- Child return: £9.50
- Student single: £7.50
- Group return (up to 5 passengers): £32
You board at the airport's Public Transport Interchange, directly across from the terminal, and the coach sets down at stops through central Bath. Buy tickets in advance online or pay the driver, and note that standard local bus passes and concessionary travel passes are not valid on this service.
By train
Bristol Airport has no railway station, so there is no single-ticket train option. The practical route is the A4 or A1 Flyer to reach the rail network, then a Great Western Railway train onward. If you take the A1 Flyer into Bristol Temple Meads (£9.50 single, running 24 hours a day with services up to every 8 minutes), you can pick up a direct train to Bath Spa. That leg takes an average of 15 minutes over roughly 11 miles, runs more than 100 times a day, and tickets start from about £10.20 one way when booked ahead, according to Trainline listings checked 2026. Combined, this route is rarely cheaper or faster than the direct A4 coach, so it mainly suits travellers who are also connecting onward by rail from Bath.
Comparison table
| Option | Typical cost (one way) | Journey time | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Taxi / pre-booked car | £45-£70 | About 1 hour | Fastest, door to door, fare not fixed |
| A4 Airport Flyer coach | £9.50 adult single | About 1 hour | Direct, hourly, no interchange |
| A1 Flyer + train via Temple Meads | From about £19.70 combined | Roughly 1-1.5 hours with a change | Only useful if also connecting by rail |
Which option makes sense for your trip
For most leisure travellers without heavy luggage, the A4 coach is the obvious choice: it is a direct service, costs a fraction of a taxi, and takes a similar amount of time once you allow for getting a cab through Bristol's approach roads at busy periods. Families and student travellers benefit most, since child, student and group return fares bring the per-person cost down further.
A taxi earns its price when you are travelling with young children and heavy luggage, arriving very late at night, or need to get to a specific address in Bath rather than a coach stop in the centre. It is also the only realistic option if the A4 has already finished for the day and you would rather not wait for the next early service (check the current timetable, since frequency and last departures can change).
The train-via-Temple-Meads route rarely beats the direct coach on price or time for a straight airport-to-Bath trip. It is worth considering only if your journey continues past Bath by rail, since you would be changing at Temple Meads anyway.
Traffic and timing
The drive between Bristol Airport and Bath runs via the A38 and A4, which can slow significantly during the Monday to Friday evening peak and on Bath's own approach roads. Both the coach and a taxi are exposed to this traffic, so build in extra time either way if you are catching a specific onward booking, dinner reservation or event start time. For an early flight, see this site's guide on how early to book an airport transfer before you fly.
Booking tips
- Book A4 Flyer tickets online in advance where possible; return tickets are valid for a month, which suits a short trip.
- If booking a taxi, use a pre-booked fixed-price operator rather than relying on finding a cab in Bath at the end of your stay, particularly for an early-morning departure.
- Check the current A4 timetable before you travel, since the last coach of the day varies and missing it usually means a taxi is your only option.
- If your flight is delayed, most pre-booked operators will track it and adjust your pickup time automatically; see this site's guide on flight delays and your taxi for how that works with the coach as well.