Possibly having a birdwatching hoiday in Cambrideshire in 2024. What is the local transport like for/buses and trains in Cambridgeshire

I agree. If you say where you think you're going people will be able to tell you what the transport is like to those places. Theres a guided bus that goes from Cambridge to Fen Drayton Lakes but beyond that I don;t really know. There are probably buses to villages near reserves but that might leave several miles of walking to get there.

Probably staying in the city Cambridge!

Don't know how frequent the trains are but Lakenheath Fen (just over the border in Suffolk) has a rail station close to it. That's a lovely reserve.

Hi
can't go wrong with Lakenheath especially in April May

Other sites close by too

S

Hi

WHERE TO WATCH BIRDS IN EAST ANGLIIA by Callahan is a pretty good guide- I think I reviewed it on here a while back- the American style ( he is! ) naming got up my nose though

S :)

Lakenheath Fen is great but the station only gets trains on Sundays, Only about 3 from Cambridge and the last train back is 15:49. OK for an early riser but definitely check the trains you need are actually running on the day.

My previous comment about 'where you think you're going' was meant to refer to the birdwatching locations you might visit. It might be worth choosing accommodation based on ability to get to your chosen destinations. For example RSPB The Lodge has a bus stop right outside and it would be easy to get there from Sandy but maybe not so easy to get there from Cambridge. Although I just checked and apparently there is a direct service there from Cambridge on Wednesdays, don't know times or frequency.

Unknown said:

Probably staying in the city Cambridge!

I don't know Cambridge that well, other than it isn't really vehicle friendly, which is a shame, because it is a beautiful university city. Many of the roads are set for buses and cycles, and the traffic warning signage is last minute,with lots of bus lane cameras to catch the unwary.

From the little I know, public transport outside Cambridge, tapers off, typical of many counties. My son lives near Stansted and finds train and bus services poor and regularly has a moan, when the so called dream is to get folk out of cars and onto public transport.

My experiences of Cambridge have been two visits, to watch my son compete in a kayaking competition, and then try to navigate to a place to eat before the drive home.

There’s also SWT Lackford Lakes, good reserve but how to get there from Cambridge no idea. There is a bus service from Cambridge to Bury St Edmunds, possibly a train but how to get out to Lackford sorry no idea. Like all rural areas public transport is not the most far reaching or reliable and distances from Cambridge to reserves by bus would be time consuming. I think on of the guided bus routes goes past Fen Drayton but how close don’t know. I think it’s the one that goes out towards St Ives.

As a Cambridge resident, I find getting around perfectly easy apart from the congestion and permenant roadworks but I can see that to an outsider it would be a nightmare. I think that from the ring road outwards everything's OK but best to avoid the centre. If you have a hotel with parking then work out a route from the ring road to the hotel and you should be OK and most things in the centre are walkable.
Personally I feel that finding a way to cope with Cambridge traffic would be easier than using public transport to get out of Cambridge. If I had to rely on public transport I'd hardly get out at all.