- Flight
- about 8 hours eastbound
- Departs
- O'Hare
- Lands at
- Heathrow
- Time difference
- London is 6 hours ahead
- Currency
- Pounds sterling, in cash
Chicago to London is eight hours and six hours of difference. What makes it different from the coastal routes is not the flight, it is how often the journey involves a connection.
The connection is the risk
There are plenty of direct services from O’Hare, but a large share of midwest traffic routes through another hub first, and that is where plans come apart. A delay on a domestic leg does not just cost you an hour, it can cost you the transatlantic departure and put you into London a day late.
If you are booking anything for your first evening, know whether you are direct or connecting before you commit to a time. On a connection, leave the first night loose and arrange something for the second.
Winter is a real factor
O’Hare has a deserved reputation between December and March. Snow and de-icing push departures back routinely, and a two hour slip at the Chicago end lands you in London mid-morning instead of first thing, tired and behind schedule.
This is the one route where it is genuinely worth telling whoever you are meeting that you are flying that day, so a delay is a message rather than a no show.
Six hours is a workable gap
Morning in Chicago is afternoon in London, which is a comfortable window for arranging things before you fly. You are not messaging at odd hours in either direction.
Worth reading first
The visitor guide covers what differs from home, and incall and outcall explains why outcall to your hotel is the simpler arrangement when you do not know the city.
When to get in touch
London runs 6 hours ahead of you. Messages sent between about 5am and 5pm your time land during London working hours, which is when replies actually come.
Areas near where you land at Heathrow
The big figure is the straight line distance from the airport in miles, and nothing about travel time, which in London is always longer. Each page has the stations, the route from Heathrow and the measured rates.
Common questions
Do I need to arrange things before I fly?
It helps. Good diaries fill days ahead, and arranging from home means you are doing it awake and unhurried instead of jet lagged in an unfamiliar city.
What time should I message from the United States?
London is five to eight hours ahead of most of North America. Aim for mid morning on the east coast or mid morning on the west coast, which lands in London in the afternoon or early evening, when people are answering.
Will my hotel mind?
Central London hotels see guests receive visitors constantly. Pass your room number by message and the evening is unremarkable.
What currency do I need?
Cash in pounds sterling, agreed beforehand. Draw it before you need it rather than looking for a cash machine late at night.
Is prostitution legal in England for tourists?
The law applies to everyone in the country equally, visitors included. Selling or buying sex between consenting adults is legal in England and Wales, but soliciting in public and using brothels are not.
Is escorting legal in the UK?
Yes, in England and Wales it is legal for two consenting adults to exchange sex or company for money. What is illegal is the activity around it, such as soliciting in the street, running a brothel or controlling someone else's work. The Crown Prosecution Service sets this out in its published guidance.