The Mayflower sailed from Rotherhithe in 1620, carrying the Pilgrims to America, and the pub named after it still stands on the riverbank near where she was moored. Two centuries later, Marc and Isambard Kingdom Brunel dug the world's first tunnel under a navigable river here, and the shaft they sank is now a museum. Rotherhithe today is a quiet peninsula of riverside flats, old warehouses, docks turned into lakes and woodland, and new homes around Canada Water. Minibus hire Rotherhithe customers book is mostly airport runs, riverside weddings, school trips and family outings.
Rotherhithe sits in a loop of the Thames in the east of Southwark, opposite Wapping and Canary Wharf, with Jamaica Road and Lower Road along its edges. From our base in SE1, it's about ten to fifteen minutes outside the rush hour, along Jamaica Road.
Minibus hire Rotherhithe for airport runs
London City Airport is about twenty to thirty minutes from Rotherhithe outside the rush hour, through the Blackwall or Silvertown tunnel. Gatwick is about fifty minutes to an hour, via the A2 and the A23 or the M25. Heathrow is about an hour, and Stansted about an hour. For Gatwick, an early start before six avoids the queues on the Old Kent Road and through Croydon.
Families flying out with children and luggage, and business travellers heading to Europe from City, book us for the run. The Jubilee line and the Overground from Canada Water are quick for one person with a small bag, but a group with suitcases is easier door to door. For relatives landing, share the flight number and the driver will be at arrivals.
The Rotherhithe Tunnel and the river crossings
The Rotherhithe Tunnel, which runs from Rotherhithe to Limehouse, looks like the obvious way north, but it has strict height and width limits that rule out most minibuses, and it's often congested. Its tight bends make it unsuitable for longer vehicles too, and it closes overnight at times for maintenance. We don't use it. Trips north of the river go over Tower Bridge or through the Blackwall or Silvertown tunnel instead, depending on the destination.
The Blackwall and Silvertown tunnels carry user charges at set times, and if your trip uses one during charging hours, the charge goes on the quote. Tower Bridge has its own weight limit and is sometimes closed for bridge lifts, which we allow for.
Riverside weddings
The Mayflower, the riverside pubs and restaurants, the hotels around Surrey Quays and the converted warehouses along Rotherhithe Street host weddings, receptions and parties, with views across to Wapping and Canary Wharf. The Mayflower's upstairs room and riverside deck suit a small gathering, while the hotels at Surrey Quays handle bigger receptions. St Mary's, Rotherhithe's eighteenth-century church, where the Mayflower's captain is buried, hosts church weddings.
Guests are collected from hotels and homes, taken to the ceremony, on to the reception and back home at the end of the evening. Rotherhithe Street is long, narrow and winding, so we'll check the venue's access and agree a drop-off and waiting point.
The Brunel Museum and school trips
The Brunel Museum, on Railway Avenue, tells the story of the Thames Tunnel, and visitors climb down into the great shaft where the tunnel began, and its rooftop garden sits on top of the shaft. Stave Hill Ecology Park and Russia Dock Woodland, built on filled-in docks, suit school nature trips, and Surrey Docks Farm, on the river, has goats, pigs, a working forge and a café.
Rotherhithe's primary and secondary schools book us for museum visits, swimming lessons at the leisure centre and sports fixtures across Southwark. The Greenwich museums are about fifteen minutes away.
Canada Water and the docks
Canada Water is being rebuilt with new homes, offices, shops and a new town centre around the dock, and Greenland Dock, the oldest of the riverside docks, has a watersports centre with sailing and kayaking. Families and groups book us for days out, birthday parties and outings from both. Southwark Park, the borough's oldest, sits on the edge of Rotherhithe with a lake, a gallery and an athletics track.
The new streets around Canada Water are still changing, so give us the address when you book and we'll check the current access.
Rotherhithe Street and the peninsula
Rotherhithe Street runs round the whole peninsula, and it's one of the longest streets in London, narrow and winding in places, with parked cars and speed humps. Jamaica Road and Lower Road are the main routes on and off, and they're busy at peak times, with queues for the tunnel approach. Minibus hire Rotherhithe families book for an early flight is planned around those roads, and for homes along Rotherhithe Street we'll check the approach in advance.
For minibus hire in Rotherhithe, call 020 7183 0567.