Getting to Sunderland

Sunderland has excellent transport links within the local area and the rest of the UK, with frequent trains, busses, and coaches bringing people into the city.

If your date of arrival in the UK does not fall on one of our Airport Arrival service weekends, you must plan to travel to your accommodation/Sunderland University independently. Do not worry, there are many different options that are easy to plan.

We have listed several different options below so you can find which one works best for you.

Tyne & Wear Metro

The Metro is a regional train network that covers the Tyne and Wear area. Trains are frequent and affordable, with stations located conveniently across Sunderland and Newcastle.

For live updates and timetable information please visit www.nexus.org.uk/metro

The table below states the closest metro stations to our University accommodation and campuses:

University Campuses and Accommodation	Nearest Metro Stop
Clanny House	Millfield
The Forge - U Student Village	Pallion
Panns Bank & Scotia Quay	Sunderland
Sunderland University- City Campus	University
Sir Tom Cowie Campus at St. Peter's	St. Peter's

Please note that the Metro service does not operate overnight. Please plan your travel accordingly, and use the timetable in the link above to check the arrival and departure times of trains.

There is a Metro station at Newcastle International Airport (NCL), with trains heading to Sunderland without the need to change train mid-journey. This is an excellent option for those arriving outside of the operating hours of our Airport Arrival Service.

Arriving by Taxi

Arrow Cars is the official taxi operator at Newcastle Airport. If you would like to pre-book a taxi in advance you can book one via the airport taxi website.

You can book a taxi using the options on the right-hand side of the page. You will need to provide a pick-up point, drop-off point, and the date and time you wish to travel - ARROW CARS

If you are instead arriving in Sunderland, the local taxi operator is Station Taxis - STATION TAXIS

Arriving by Coach / Bus - Sunderland Interchange

If you arrive in the UK at a different UK airport you can proceed to Newcastle/Sunderland via coach.

National Express and Megabus offer frequent journeys from various locations that will take you to Sunderland or Newcastle (if it is Newcastle you can then transfer to the Metro service or taxi.)

https://uk.megabus.com/

https://www.nationalexpress.com/en

The main bus station in Sunderland is called 'Sunderland Interchange' and is a 5-10 minute walk from Sunderland University City Campus.

Sunderland Interchange is also referred to as 'Park Lane'.

Click Here for Google Map Directions

Arriving by Train - Sunderland Station

The UK has an excellent rail network which means you can easily book a train from your arrival city that will take you to Sunderland or Newcastle. If your train gets you to Newcastle central station, you will then need to transfer to the Metro or a Northern service train for the remainder of your journey.

To view train times and book tickets in advance, please visit the following webpage - www.thetrainline.com

If you arrive at Sunderland Station, it will take around 10 minutes to walk to Sunderland City Campus - Click Here for Google Map Directions

Accommodation

Before you travel to Sunderland, we encourage you to organise suitable accommodation as demand can be high at the start of the academic year.

If you have not been able to secure accommodation before you arrive in the UK, please factor this into your expected costs as you will need to arrange for short-term accommodation, such as a hotel. You can find hotels in the local area via websites like booking.com, or contacting hotels directly.

There are three hotels close to City Campus in Sunderland that may have availability. These are:

Travelodge

Premier Inn

Holiday Inn

For long-term accommodation, you should research accordingly based on your needs. Particularly, if you are bringing your family to the UK (dependents). You can look for accommodation via www.rightmove.com

Staying Safe in the UK

Moving to a new country can be a big adjustment, on rare occasions, you may encounter a situation that may make you feel unsafe. It is important to know who to contact if this happens to you.

The University has a range of support in place to ensure our students feel as safe as possible on Campus. Please visit the following webpage that has some useful information about who to contact when you're inside the UK and need help:

https://www.sunderland.ac.uk/about/safety-security/

The British Council has also produced a useful guide on staying safe in the UK for international students. The guide also contains information on managing the cultural adaptation of moving to a new country. You can find the guide here:

https://www.britishcouncil.org/sites/default/files/safety-first.pdf