Destinations & day trips · 2026-09-21 · 8-minute read
London, Ontario to the Stratford Festival by car is 60 kilometres and fifty minutes - Highway 7 north through Elginfield and Highway 19 through St. Marys, or the 401 to the 8 through Shakespeare - at a LondonLimo.net planning figure of $130-160 plus HST each way for a business sedan, $160-190 for an executive SUV and $260-320 for a Sprinter, or the evening by the hour in a luxury sedan at $135-165 from the door at 5 to the door at midnight; the Festival's four stages - the Festival Theatre on Queen Street, the Avon on Downie, the Tom Patterson on Lakeside Drive and the Studio behind the Avon - have their doors and their 8 o'clock curtains, the pre-theatre dinner is on Ontario Street or by the river, and the Stratford page has the destination. This article is the evening, curtain to curtain, with the honest note on the two-lane road home in the dark.
The evening, in a table
| Time | Where | What | The chauffeur's note |
|---|---|---|---|
| 5:00 | London | Leave | Highway 7 and 19, or the 401 and the 8 |
| 5:50 | Ontario Street, or Lakeside Drive | Pre-theatre dinner | Booked through the travel desk; the restaurants seat at 5:30 for the curtain |
| 7:15 | The Avon's bank | The swans and the walk | Fifteen minutes; the lake's path |
| 7:40 | The theatre's door | The drop | The Festival Theatre's loop; the Avon's Downie curb; the Tom Patterson's Lakeside curb |
| 8:00-10:45 | Inside | The play | The chauffeur waits by the hour or returns for a fixed fare |
| 10:50 | The same door, or the agreed corner | The pickup | The Festival Theatre's lot empties in twenty minutes |
| 11:45 | London | Home | The two-lane road in the dark, driven every week |
LondonLimo.net planning figures before HST; the Stratford Festival site has the season's plays and the Stratford page the fare.
The road, in detail
Richmond Street north to Highway 7 at Elginfield, the 7 northeast, the 19 north through St. Marys' limestone town to Stratford's south edge; or Wellington Road to the 401, the 401 east to Exit 235 and the 8 north through Tavistock and Shakespeare to Stratford's east side; fifty minutes either way, the 7 and 19 the prettier and the 401 and the 8 the surer in snow; the Woodstock page has the 401's exit.
The four stages, and their doors
The Festival Theatre on Queen Street with its tent-shaped roof and the loop at the door; the Avon on Downie Street downtown with the curb and the lot behind; the Tom Patterson on Lakeside Drive with the Lakeside curb and the river beside it; the Studio behind the Avon; the chauffeur drops at 7:40 and the pickup is at the same door or the corner the lot's exit makes, and the Festival's site has each theatre's address.
The pre-theatre dinner
Ontario Street's restaurants and the ones by the river seat at 5:30 for the 8 o'clock curtain and the travel desk books the table with the tickets; a couple who wants the river's terrace books in May for July; the birthday and anniversary article has the evening as the anniversary it usually is.
The swans, and the walk
The Avon's swans below the Festival Theatre, the path along the lake to the Tom Patterson, the bridge and the island: fifteen minutes between dinner and the curtain, and the chauffeur waits at the theatre's loop.
The fixed fare against the hour
A couple books two fixed fares at $130-160 and the chauffeur returns to London and comes back for the curtain's end; or the evening by the hour in the luxury sedan - seven hours at $150 is $1,050 plus HST - with the sedan at the theatre through the play and the couple's coats in it; the desk says which is cheaper for the evening described and the rates page has both.
The matinee-and-dinner day
A 2 o'clock matinee with lunch before, the Avon's walk, dinner after and home by 9: a day by the hour from 11 to 9, or two fixed fares with the chauffeur waiting in Stratford's lot; the hourly page has the day and a family with children books the matinee.
The group's Sprinter
Fourteen from a London office or a book club in a Sprinter by the hour with dinner booked for fourteen and the Festival Theatre's loop for the drop; the group transportation page has the manifest and a coach for a larger group's corporate evening.
The overnight, and the season
A Stratford inn or a bed-and-breakfast on the river through the travel desk for the couple who wants two plays, with the run home after brunch; the season runs from April's previews to October's last week, and the events page has the Festival's dates beside London's own.
The two-lane road home, honestly
Highway 7 and 19 are two lanes, unlit, with deer at the edges from Elginfield to St. Marys and fog in the river valleys in October; the chauffeur drives it every week at the speed it deserves, takes the 401 and the 8 when the snow is on it, and the winter article has the rules for the winter's few Festival nights.
Three Stratford evenings, as they went
A thirtieth anniversary, Old North, a Saturday in July. The sedan at 5, dinner by the river at 5:50, the swans, the Festival Theatre at 7:40, the loop at 10:50, home at 11:45. Seven hours by the hour.
A book club of fourteen, a Wednesday matinee in September. The Sprinter at 11, lunch on Ontario Street, the Avon at 1:40, the curb at 4:20, dinner, home at 8:30. Nine and a half hours.
A couple's two plays, a Friday and Saturday in August. The fare up on Friday at 4, an inn on the river, two plays, brunch, the fare home on Sunday at 1. Two fares and the travel desk's inn.
Booking it
The evening is two fixed fares on the reservation engine with the theatre in the notes, or one email to the desk for the evening by the hour with the dinner and the tickets through the travel desk; the Stratford page has the destination.
Three questions the desk is asked about Stratford
Can we go for a matinee and be home for dinner? Yes - a 2 o'clock matinee with lunch before, the curb at 4:20 and home by 5:30; two fares or the day by the hour.
Can the chauffeur wait through the play? Yes - by the hour, in the theatre's lot with the coats in the car; or two fares with the chauffeur back in London between.
Is there a train? VIA's Kitchener line stops at Stratford's station about an hour from London, and the last evening train leaves before the curtain falls; the car is the evening's only sensible way home. The FAQ has the rest.
Highway 7 and 19, in detail
Richmond Street north past Masonville and Arva to Elginfield's junction with the 7, the 7 northeast through the flat farms to the 19's turn, the 19 north through St. Marys' limestone main street and over the Thames, and the last twelve kilometres into Stratford's south end at Erie Street; fifty minutes, two lanes, and the prettier road on a summer evening.
The 401 and the 8, in detail
Wellington Road to the 401, the highway east to Exit 235 at Woodstock, the 8 north through Tavistock and Shakespeare's village to Stratford's east side at Ontario Street; fifty minutes, four lanes to Woodstock and two after, and the surer road when the snow is on the 7; the Woodstock page has the exit's town.
The Festival Theatre, in detail
The theatre on Queen Street above the Avon with the tent-shaped roof, the loop at the front door for the drop, the lot behind that empties in twenty minutes at 10:50, and the lake's path below for the walk before the curtain; the Stratford Festival site has the theatre's address and the season.
The Avon, the Tom Patterson and the Studio, in detail
The Avon on Downie Street downtown with the curb at the door and the Studio Theatre behind it on George Street; the Tom Patterson on Lakeside Drive with its 2020 building on the river and the Lakeside curb; the drop at each is a stop of thirty seconds and the pickup at the same curb or the corner the desk names.
The dinner, in detail
Ontario Street's restaurants from the Avon to the river, the ones on the lake's north shore with the terraces, and the inns' dining rooms; the travel desk books the 5:30 table for the 8 o'clock curtain and the river's terrace in May for July; the Stratford page has the town.
The matinee day, in detail
A Wednesday or a Saturday matinee at 2: the car at 11, lunch on Ontario Street at 12, the swans, the theatre at 1:40, the curb at 4:20, an early dinner or the drive home, and the door at 5:30 or 8:30; the day by the hour or two fares, and the hourly page has the day's rate.
The group's evening, in detail
Fourteen in a Sprinter from a London office's lot at 4:30 with dinner booked for fourteen on Ontario Street, the Festival Theatre's loop at 7:40, the same loop at 10:50, and the lot at 11:50; the group transportation page has the manifest and the corporate page the account for a company's client evening.
The overnight, in detail
Stratford's inns on the river and the bed-and-breakfasts on the Victorian streets through the travel desk, two plays on consecutive nights or a matinee and an evening, brunch and the run home; the birthday and anniversary article has the milestone weekend it usually is.
Booking checklist for the Stratford evening
The date and the play; the pickup; the dinner; the theatre; the evening by the hour or two fares; the overnight if any; the numbers; the card. Eight lines to the desk and the travel desk books the tickets and the table.
The honest summary
Fifty minutes to the Avon at $130-160 for a sedan or the evening by the hour with the car at the door, dinner by the river and the two-lane road home driven by someone who does it every week; the Stratford page has the destination.
A worked example: the evening by the hour, priced
A Sunningdale couple's fortieth anniversary at the Festival Theatre on a Saturday in July: the luxury sedan at 5, dinner by the river at 5:50 booked by the travel desk, the swans, the loop at 7:40, the sedan in the lot through the play with the coats and the flowers, the loop at 10:50 and the door at 11:45; six and three-quarter hours at $150, $1,013 plus HST, against two fares at $145 and a chauffeur who would have driven the 7 and 19 twice more; the couple chose the hour for the car at the door. The hourly page has the rate.
The desk's rule of thumb
Fifty minutes; $130-160 for a sedan, fixed; the evening by the hour for the car at the door; dinner at 5:30 for the 8 o'clock curtain; the 401 and the 8 when the snow is on the 7; and the tickets and the table through the travel desk. The Stratford page has the destination.
Booking it, in one line
The evening is two fixed fares on the reservation engine with the theatre in the notes, or one email to the desk for the evening by the hour with the dinner and the tickets.
