Leicester City at the King Power Stadium
Football at Filbert Way, south of the centre, with match-day closures on the roads around the ground.
Sports group travel
Leicester minibus hire with a driver who knows the ring road, the stadium streets around Filbert Way and Welford Road, and how the city changes on Diwali night, so your group gets there and back without the hassle.
Leicester City at the King Power Stadium and the Tigers at Welford Road sit close together south of the centre. East Midlands Airport is usually 30 to 35 minutes up the M1. The Golden Mile lights up for one of the biggest Diwali celebrations outside India, with road closures on the main night.
Around the Clock Tower and Highcross, pickups are planned on the streets at the edge. Rutland Water, Bosworth and the Leicestershire villages are all within about 40 minutes.
Leicester is one of the most diverse and lively cities in England, with a compact centre built around the Clock Tower and the Highcross shopping area. The cathedral, where King Richard III was reburied, and the visitor centre telling his story are a short walk away, as are the Curve theatre and the cultural quarter.
The centre is circled by an inner ring road, with several streets inside it pedestrian or limited to buses. For Leicester minibus hire, that means pickups on the streets around the edge of the centre, close to where people want to be but where a vehicle can legally stop.
Leicester sits just off the M1 and the M69, so getting out of the city is quick. The station is on the main line to London, and the city's two universities, plus Loughborough a short drive north, bring a lot of student groups through the year.
The ring road itself is busy at peak times, and the radial roads into the centre, such as London Road, Narborough Road and Belgrave Road, carry heavy local traffic. We plan journeys to cross the city outside the rush where we can, and suggest pickup times that reflect the real conditions on the day.
The National Space Centre, in the north of the city by the river Soar, is one of Leicester's biggest attractions for schools and families, with its rocket tower visible from the main road. It has its own car park with space for coaches and minibuses, and pairs well with Abbey Park next door for a picnic.
Check the official dates each year before you book.
Leicester's calendar mixes top-flight sport with some of the biggest cultural celebrations in the Midlands. The busiest dates often fall in autumn, when the rugby and football seasons overlap with Diwali.
Leicester Tigers play at Welford Road, close to the city centre and the railway station, while Leicester City's stadium sits a little further south by the river. On the same weekend both can bring large crowds to the south side of the city. We check road closures before every fixture and agree a pickup street away from the stadium exits.
Football at Filbert Way, south of the centre, with match-day closures on the roads around the ground.
Sports group travelRugby in the heart of the city, a short walk from the station, with big crowds on home weekends.
The lights switch-on and the main celebration night draw huge crowds to Belgrave Road. Pickups are planned well outside the closed area.
At Donington Park, about 30 minutes north, a popular weekend for Leicester festival groups with camping kit.
Download Festival transportThe sizes Leicester groups book most.
Most Leicester groups travel in minibuses up to 24 seats, which reach hotel entrances and residential streets easily. Coaches are the better choice for school trips, airport runs for big groups and supporters' clubs heading to away grounds.
Leicester's family celebrations can be large, with relatives travelling in from across the Midlands and further afield. For a wedding or a religious festival, two or three minibuses running together often work better than one coach, collecting from different parts of the city at the same time and dropping at the door of a temple, gurdwara or banqueting hall.
8 Seater MPV
12 Seater Minibus
16 Seater Minibus
24 Seater Minibus
53 Seater CoachEast Midlands Airport is the closest, usually 30 to 35 minutes up the M1. Birmingham Airport is about 50 minutes to an hour away along the M69 and M6, and Luton about an hour and a quarter down the M1. For long-haul, many Leicester groups use Birmingham, Manchester or Heathrow.
The M1 between junctions 21 and 24 is one of the busiest stretches in the Midlands. For early departures we build in a margin, and for afternoon flights we check for roadworks before confirming the pickup time.
Leicester is small enough to cross in twenty minutes and busy enough on a match day to take an hour, so we plan your timings around the fixture list as well as the map.
The places we drive Leicester groups to again and again.
Leicester's attractions are spread across the city rather than packed into one district, so a minibus makes a full day of visits much easier. The Space Centre is in the north, the Richard III sites are in the old town, and the parks and stadiums are to the south.
The King Richard III Visitor Centre stands on the site where the king's remains were found in 2012, opposite the cathedral where he was reburied. Together they make a moving and popular visit for school and heritage groups, and both are in the old town, a short walk from where we set down.
North of the centre by Abbey Park, with a coach drop-off. A favourite school and family trip.
The story of the king found under a car park, and his tomb in the cathedral next door.
One of the largest covered markets in the country, in the pedestrian heart of the city.
Riverside parkland and the ruins of Leicester Abbey, used for summer events.
Concerts and theatre, both busy on show nights.
Approximate road times from the city centre in normal traffic.
Leicester's central position makes it an easy base for trips in every direction. The M1 runs north to Nottingham and south to London, the M69 links to Coventry and the M6, and the A47 heads east towards Peterborough and the coast. Most of the Midlands' big cities are within an hour.
Friday afternoons and bank holiday weekends are the slowest times on the M1, particularly around junction 21. If your trip falls then, an earlier start makes a real difference.
East Midlands Airport is usually about 35 minutes north up the M1, and Birmingham Airport about 45 minutes west along the M69 and M6. The M1 junctions around Leicester Forest East and Leicester's western edge are busy at rush hour, so we leave extra time for early flights and Friday afternoon departures.
| Destination | Road time (approx.) | Worth knowing |
|---|---|---|
| Nottingham | About 40 minutes | Up the M1 or A46. See Nottingham. |
| Coventry | About 35 minutes | Along the M69. See Coventry. |
| Birmingham | About 1 hour | M69 and M6 to the city or the NEC. See Birmingham. |
| Northampton | About 45 minutes | Down the A508 or M1. See Northampton. |
| Peterborough | About 1 hour | East along the A47. See Peterborough. |
| London | About 2 hours | Down the M1, for theatre trips and airports. See London. |
Weddings, Diwali, Eid and big birthdays often mean moving lots of relatives at once.
Elderly relatives, young children and guests in formal clothes all travel more comfortably in one vehicle with a driver who waits at the venue. A booked return also means nobody has to drive home after a long evening, and the group can stay together from the first event of the day to the last.
Grandparents, children and guests arrive at the same time, without a convoy of cars.
Venues on busy celebration nights rarely have space for every car.
A fixed return time means nobody has to leave early to drive.
A 24 seater minibus has space for the group and the bags.
Leicestershire and Rutland are full of easy, rewarding days out.
Bradgate Park, about 20 minutes north-west in Charnwood Forest, has deer roaming among rocky outcrops and the ruins of Lady Jane Grey's childhood home. Its car parks fill on sunny weekends, so an early arrival helps. Further afield, Rutland Water, about 45 minutes east, offers cycling, sailing and walks around the reservoir.
About 40 minutes east, the reservoir is ringed by cycle paths, sailing clubs and walks, with Oakham and Uppingham nearby. Good for team days and family groups. Bike hire and watersports centres sit around the shore, so tell us which side of the water you are heading to; the drive between the north and south shores takes longer than it looks.
About 30 minutes west, where Richard III lost his crown. Combine it with the visitor centre in Leicester for a full history day for schools.
About 50 minutes east, a stone market town and one of England's grandest Elizabethan houses. See Peterborough for the wider area.
A pattern that keeps a family group together on the busiest night of the year.
The Diwali celebrations on Belgrave Road and the Golden Mile are among the largest outside India, with the lights switch-on and the main Diwali night drawing huge crowds. Roads in the area close during the main events, so the drop-off is a short walk away. Check the official dates and arrangements each year before you book.
Road closures and the event timetable are published each year.
We set down a short walk from Belgrave Road, outside the closed area.
Agree the time and place for the return before you leave the vehicle.
Back once the crowds start to thin, with everyone in one vehicle.
Trips often join up Leicester with these places.
Leicester sits between Nottingham, Coventry and Northampton, each about 40 minutes to an hour away. Groups often collect friends from several towns before a night out or a wedding, and we plan a route that keeps the time on the road as short as possible for everyone.
London Road outside the station is busy, so we meet groups at a nearby point and send directions with the booking.
No, the area around the Clock Tower is pedestrian. We stop on a street at the edge of the centre, a short walk away.
Yes. The main night brings road closures around Belgrave Road, so we drop and collect outside the closed area. Check the official plans for the year.
Yes. Roads around the ground close on match days, so we drop a short walk away and agree the pickup point in advance.
Yes. Donington Park is about 30 minutes north. See our Download Festival page for camping and timing advice.
Yes. The ground is close to the station, and roads around it are busy on match days, so we agree drop-off and pickup points in advance.
Usually 30 to 35 minutes up the M1, longer at peak times.
Yes. It has a coach drop-off and is about 10 to 15 minutes from the centre. See school trip minibus hire.
Usually about 50 minutes to an hour along the M69 and M6. See Birmingham Airport transfers.
Yes. Loughborough is about 25 minutes north of Leicester. Name the hall or building and we will plan the stop.
Send the date, the pickup, where you are going and how many are travelling. For match days and festivals, tell us the event so we can plan around it.
Pickups planned around kick-offs and road closures.
Vehicles sized for relatives, guests and gifts.
Timed for East Midlands, Birmingham and Luton flights.
Send the trip through the quote form.
We reply with a vehicle and a quote.
We confirm the pickup details before the day.