Clocktower Cars has run licensed taxis, minicabs and cabs in Godalming for years, from our office on the Godalming side of the borough. Whatever you call it — a taxi, a cab, a minicab, private hire — it is the same booking and the same number: 01483 422 222, twenty-four hours a day, every day of the year.
Godalming is a town of about 21,800 people in the Borough of Waverley, on the River Wey, roughly thirty miles south-west of central London and four miles from Guildford. Its civil parish takes in Farncombe, Binscombe and Aaron’s Hill, along with part of Busbridge, and we cover all of them, plus Milford and the villages down the A3100. If you would rather not ring, the online booking form takes the same details and comes back with a quoted price before you travel.
Most people in this town assume Gatwick is the local airport. From Godalming it is not, on either measure, and booking on that assumption can cost you an hour of your morning.
We measured both on 29 September 2026. Heathrow is 30.2 miles and about 47 minutes via the A3 and the M25. Gatwick is 41.5 miles and about 50 minutes. Heathrow is eleven miles nearer and three minutes quicker. If your airline flies from both, the Godalming answer is Heathrow.
| Airport | Route | Distance | Drive | Average speed | By public transport |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Heathrow | A3 and M25 | 30.2 miles | ~47 min | ~39 mph | ~1 hr 2 min |
| Heathrow | A3, M25, Southern Perimeter Rd | 30.9 miles | ~48 min | ~39 mph | — |
| Gatwick | A3 and M25 | 41.5 miles | ~50 min | ~50 mph | ~1 hr 22 min |
| Gatwick | A281 | 35.6 miles | ~57 min | ~37 mph | — |
| Luton | M25 | 60.9 miles | ~1 hr 20 min | ~46 mph | ~1 hr 52 min |
| Stansted | M25 | 89.8 miles | ~1 hr 48 min | ~50 mph | ~1 hr 55 min |
Straight up the A3 to the M25, about 47 minutes for 30.2 miles. The train-and-coach alternative — South Western Railway to Woking, then RailAir — takes about an hour and two minutes and involves moving luggage between two vehicles. Our airport transfer service covers all terminals, and for an early departure a car from your door is the whole point.
About 50 minutes for 41.5 miles via the A3 and M25. There is a more direct-looking route down the A281 that is 5.9 miles shorter and 7 minutes slower — 37 mph against 50 mph on the motorway. A firm charging strictly by the mile would send you the short way, bill you less and get you there later. We take the quick road and quote the job. Our Gatwick transfer service covers both terminals.
Luton is 60.9 miles and about 1 hour 20 minutes. Stansted is 89.8 miles and about 1 hour 48 minutes — note that the train takes almost exactly as long (1 hour 55 minutes) but requires three changes with your bags. These are long enough jobs that a fixed quote and a driver watching your flight matter far more than the mileage.
Coming home, our meet and greet service puts a driver inside the terminal holding a board with your name. We track the flight, so a delay moves the pickup rather than costing you the car. After a long-haul into Heathrow at midnight, that is the difference between a 47-minute drive and an ordeal.
Godalming station is on the Portsmouth Direct Line, run by South Western Railway, 34 miles 37 chains from London Waterloo, with two platforms. Off-peak you get three trains an hour to Waterloo via Guildford, two an hour to Portsmouth & Southsea and one to Haslemere calling at all stations.
Station work is most of what we do on a weekday morning. Two things are worth knowing.
Godalming has no taxi rank with cars sitting on it through the evening. A 23:40 arrival off a delayed Waterloo train is the worst possible moment to start looking for a cab. Give us the train you intend to be on and we will be outside when it pulls in; if you miss it, ring and we move the booking.
Farncombe is 1.1 miles and about five minutes from the town centre via Nightingale Road, or 1.2 miles via Meadrow and the A3100. It sits on the same line one stop north, and for some addresses in the north of the parish it is simply closer. Milford is 2.6 miles and about seven minutes down the A3100 and is the sensible pickup for anyone out towards Witley.
| Station | Distance by road | Drive | By train from Godalming |
|---|---|---|---|
| Godalming | — | — | — |
| Farncombe | 1.1 miles | ~5 min | ~2 min |
| Milford | 2.6 miles | ~7 min | ~4 min |
| Guildford | 4.6 miles | ~15 min | ~5 min |
Godalming’s civil parish includes Farncombe, Binscombe and Aaron’s Hill, and part of Busbridge. People living in those places quite reasonably search for their own village rather than for “Godalming”, so to be explicit:
Yes, we cover Farncombe — it is a mile from the town centre and on the same booking line, 01483 422 222. Station runs, school runs, airport transfers and late collections, the same as anywhere else in the parish.
Milford is 2.6 miles down the A3100, about seven minutes, and has its own station on the Portsmouth Direct Line. We run it daily — pickups from the village, the station and the addresses off the Petworth Road.
All within the parish and all covered. Busbridge in particular runs up towards the hills south of the town where the lanes are narrow — give the driver a house name or number and a postcode and there is no hunting about in the dark.
All three words describe the same vehicle here, and it is worth two sentences on why.
A hackney carriage — the black cab — can be hailed in the street or taken from a rank. A private hire vehicle, which is what a minicab is, must be booked in advance through a licensed operator. Godalming has no cruising trade, so every car you get here is a pre-booked private hire vehicle. Ask for a taxi, a cab or a minicab and you will get the same licensed driver in the same licensed car. There is a fuller explanation on our minicab versus black cab page.
Give us passengers and bags when you book. Four adults with four large suitcases will not go in a saloon, and discovering that on the drive at 4am helps nobody.
Our wheelchair accessible vehicles load by ramp, so the passenger stays in their own chair and is properly secured for the journey. Drivers are trained on the restraints rather than working it out on the doorstep.
Godalming station has had £3.1 million spent on replacing its subway with a fully enclosed footbridge carrying two sixteen-person lifts, so the platforms are now step-free — but getting to and from the station, and everything beyond it, still needs a car that can take the chair. Book accessible vehicles in advance; there are fewer of them than saloons, and at short notice on a weekday morning they are usually out.
Godalming’s school traffic runs in several directions at once — into the town, out to Guildford on the A3100, and up the lanes towards Busbridge and the hills. Charterhouse, which relocated here from London in 1872, brings its own pattern of arrivals and departures at the start and end of terms, with trunks and parents and a lot of cars in a small place.
Our school run service uses the same named drivers on a standing account, so the child is collected by someone they recognise and you are not re-explaining the arrangement every week. Child seats fitted to order — tell us the age.
Dogs travel in our pet friendly cars. Mention it when you book, because it means a specific vehicle and a driver who is expecting it rather than a favour asked at the kerb. An estate takes a crate without difficulty. Vet runs into Godalming and Guildford are a regular job for us, and a nervous animal is far easier in a car that was booked for the purpose.
Our medical transport service books the outward and the return together and the driver waits rather than leaving you to find a car afterwards. Royal Surrey County Hospital is on the far side of Guildford — about fifteen minutes’ drive from Godalming on a good run, considerably more at rush hour — and after a procedure, having the same car waiting is worth a great deal more than the fare difference.
A corporate account turns expense claims into one monthly invoice and gives you a booking line that already knows your addresses, your usual vehicle and who may book on the account. For Godalming that usually means Waterloo, Guildford, the Heathrow corridor and Portsmouth.
For clients, board visits and anything where the arrival matters, executive travel in Surrey puts a suited driver in a quiet car that was cleaned that morning.
Godalming’s High Street, with the Pepperpot — the octagonal former town hall built in 1814, standing on its round-arched arcade — is the backdrop for a great many photographs, and the streets around it are narrow and largely one-way. We plan wedding and event work as a timetable rather than a series of separate bookings, so cars arrive in the order you actually need them.
For an evening out, book the return leg when you book the outward. A town with no rank and no cruising trade is a difficult place to leave at midnight.
Documents, samples, keys, a laptop left at home — our same day courier service moves them across Surrey and into London the same day, with the same licensed drivers. It is the usual answer when something must be in Guildford or the City by the afternoon and the post will not do it.
We quote the job rather than publishing a rate per mile, and the figures higher up the page are exactly why.
Ring 01483 422 222 or use the booking form, give us the postcode, the time and the number of bags, and you will have a price before you travel. No meter, no argument at the far end.
The Pepperpot is the distinctive octagonal building in the High Street, built in 1814 as the town hall. It is the landmark everyone gives when they cannot describe where they are standing, and it works perfectly well as a pickup point.
Charterhouse School moved to Godalming from London in 1872, to buildings designed by Philip Charles Hardwick, with the chapel erected in 1927. Term-start and term-end traffic is heavy and the approach roads are narrow; book early on those weekends.
The Godalming Navigation opened in 1764 with four locks, extending navigable water south from Guildford. The towpath and the water meadows bring walkers into the town all year, and we pick up from the car parks along the river regularly — particularly on winter afternoons when the light goes early.
Godalming has a claim to be the first town in the world with a combined public and private electricity supply, installed in 1881. The first railway station opened here in 1849. For a town of 21,800 people it has an unusual amount of history per square mile, and a correspondingly awkward road layout to go with it.
All our offices are on the branch locator, with addresses and numbers on the find us page.
01483 422 222. That is our Godalming office and it is answered twenty-four hours a day, every day of the year, including Christmas. You can also book through the online form if you would rather not ring.
Heathrow, on both counts. We measured it on 29 September 2026: Heathrow 30.2 miles and about 47 minutes, Gatwick 41.5 miles and about 50 minutes. Most people here assume the opposite. If your airline flies from both, Heathrow is the shorter and quicker job from Godalming.
About 50 minutes for 41.5 miles via the A3 and M25. Avoid assuming the shorter A281 route is faster — it is 5.9 miles shorter and about seven minutes slower. Allow extra at rush hour, and for an early flight we will suggest a departure time when you book.
Yes. Farncombe is part of Godalming’s civil parish, 1.1 miles and about five minutes from the town centre, and it is on the same booking line: 01483 422 222. Same for Binscombe, Aaron’s Hill and Busbridge.
Yes — Milford is 2.6 miles down the A3100, about seven minutes, with its own station on the Portsmouth Direct Line. We run pickups from the village, the station and the Petworth Road addresses daily.
Yes, but book it. There is no rank with cars waiting on it through the evening, and a delayed Waterloo train arriving at 23:40 is the worst moment to start looking. Tell us the train you mean to be on and we will be outside when it arrives; ring us if you miss it and we will move the booking.
Not in practice. A black cab can be hailed; a minicab — a private hire vehicle — must be pre-booked. Godalming has no cruising trade, so every car here is pre-booked private hire whichever word you use. Same driver, same licensed vehicle, same number.
Yes — ramp-loading wheelchair accessible vehicles where the passenger stays in their own chair, with drivers trained on the restraints. Book ahead, since there are fewer accessible vehicles than saloons and they are usually committed on weekday mornings.
Yes, in a pet friendly vehicle. Say so at the time of booking so the right car and driver are sent. An estate takes a crate comfortably.
Yes — twenty-four hours, every day of the year. Late nights, early airport runs and bank holidays are booked ahead as a matter of course, and Christmas and New Year fill up well in advance.
4.6 miles and about fifteen minutes up the A3100, measured 29 September 2026. The train does it in about five minutes when it is running, which is why the car tends to win for luggage, late hours and anything involving the far side of Guildford — the Royal Surrey, for instance.
It depends on where you are going, the hour, the vehicle and whether there is waiting or meeting involved, which is why we quote each job rather than publish a rate per mile. On these roads a mileage rate would mislead: the shorter route to Gatwick is seven minutes slower. Ring 01483 422 222 or use the booking form and you will have the price before you travel.
Licensed drivers, quoted fares, twenty-four hours a day, covering Godalming, Farncombe, Binscombe, Busbridge, Aaron’s Hill and Milford. Call 01483 422 222 or book online.
A fair number of people reach this page searching for car hire in Godalming, so here is a straight answer rather than a page that ignores the question. Clocktower Cars is a licensed private hire taxi operator, not a car hire or van rental company. We do not rent out vehicles for you to drive yourself, and we have no servicing or leasing arm. If a rental agreement is genuinely what you need, we are not the firm and we would rather say so than waste your time.
What we do is supply the car and the driver. Worth a thought if your real need is simply to get somewhere: hiring a car for one journey means the rental cost, the insurance, the fuel, the parking, the deposit, and getting the vehicle back by a deadline. A pre-booked car with a driver is one fixed price, no paperwork, and nobody has to stay off the wine at dinner.
This is the case where people assume hiring is the only option, and often it is not. We can hold a car and driver for a set period — a day of appointments, a wedding, a house move with several trips, a day out with elderly relatives — rather than quoting each leg separately. For a day with more than two or three stops it is usually better value than booking individual journeys, and considerably less trouble than a rental. Ask when you ring and we will price it properly.
And if what you want is a smarter car with a driver rather than a standard one, that is our executive car and chauffeur service — again, with a driver included, never self-drive.
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