People who drive automatically assume that travelling by public transport is HORRID. It takes longer, it's probably more expensive, you have to sit with (get spoken at by) people you don't know and, very quickly, don't like, it's inconvenient…it has, in short, nothing to recommend it.

My experience of them has always been pretty good – with the exception of the one case where I was just going down with the Kathmandu quickstep & the on-board WC wasn't available (that was a few years back – we won't go there). Accordingly, let me redress the balance a little.

Price: prices change all the time, so check the latest website information or call into your local bus station. My latest excursion was £34 Norwich-Heathrow (single) – compared with the equivalent journey coming back (off-peak) by rail, which was £56.

I find the last option the easiest: going into the local bus station and purchasing at the counter. It gives you more options on how to pay, and the interaction with a real live human being does give you the chance of picking up on any current special offers. It also gives you more options on how to pay, if you still use cheques or cash.

On this occasion, I'm looking at the 13:40 departure National Express 727 (previously known as Jetlink) which serves Stansted, Heathrow, & Gatwick. This is something of a luxury. Normally, I find myself standing in the bus station at midnight waiting for the 01:40 departure.

All other things being equal my preference is to take the coach. I live in Norwich, with equally easy access to both bus and rail station, so connections at this end are not an issue.

Time isn't an issue. Not least because on this occasion I discovered fully just how much of an illusion timetables can be. The 13:40 left Norwich promptly and arrived at Heathrow bang on time at 17:35.

The Hassle Factor: changing trains is an inconvenience. If you have luggage, it is a downright pain. To get from Norwich to Heathrow or Gatwick, at best there are three trains to contend with (including the Underground). We cannot get direct to Stansted – that involves at least two trains (via either Ely or Cambridge). Knowing I can get on the bus in Norwich and stay there right through to the airport is a big plus. As is knowing that I have a seat. The coaches do not generally allow standing, so when you buy your ticket you buy your seat on that departure. I'll spare you my long & varied experiences of having to stand on trains!

That doesn't mean I'm going to put up with shoddy service, however. From the second I close my front door, I'm on holiday and I want to be looked after. National Express do.

Window curtains were available to deal with low-level-sun-in-the-eyes.
Overhead vents & reading lights, all fully operational and perfectly adequate to the job in hand.

The radio was on: quiet enough to be unobtrusive to those of us wishing to read, loud enough to actually be heard if you wanted to listen.

As it happened, even my fellow passengers were utterly inoffensive.

Previous Experience: this journey is not untypical. I have been using the service for nearly ten years. WC's apart – and they have been an issue on more than one journey in the past – I have never had a problem travelling National Express to and from any of the airports mentioned. (STN, LHR, LGW).

Timetable: If I do have an issue with the service it is the timetable. The service is approximately a two-hourly service, which is generally fine although it does depend upon your flight timing. Personally I'm happy to be there early, rather than stress about possibly missing the plane. However, there are exceptions. There is nothing from Heathrow between the 2300 departure and the 0325 (which itself involves a further change & half-hour wait at Stansted). A similar change is required on the 0525 departure. The first through service doesn't leave until 0715.

Rating: having to deduct one for unfortunate timetabling, and trusting that they've now updated the rolling stock and fixed the loos, I'm confident in giving the service 4-star rating.