How to get to London - Getting to London by plane, train, bus or car

1. Before Arriving in London
2. How to get to London - Getting to London by plane, train, bus or car
3. Public Transport in London - Getting around London
4. Cost of Living in London
5. Save Money in London - Tips for Living in London on a Student Budget
6. London neighborhoods - The most important districts of London
7. London Nightlife - A guide to nightclubs and going out in London
8. Where to eat in London - British Cuisine and British Gastronomy Restaurants
9. Top London Attractions - The best things to do in London (1st part)
10. Top London Attractions - The best things to do in London (2nd part)
11. Top London Attractions - The best things to do in London (3rd part)
12. Top London Attractions - The best things to do in London (4th part)
13. Day Trips from London - Places to visit and excursions around London
14. Festivals in London - Festivities and celebrations calendar
15. London in 3 days - What to see in London in 3 days

Okay, so now that you know what you need to bring with you, let’s figure out how to get you from your airport to the city of London. There are 5 airports which come under the title of ‘London’, although they are not all necessarily in or anywhere near London.

London Heathrow (LHR):

This is not only arguably the easiest airport to arrive to, but also the one with best connections to Central London as it is actually based in London. With daily flights from Europe as well as the States, Heathrow is a destination for airlines such as British Airways (both from European destinations and the US), Iberia, Vueling, Eurowings, Lufthansa which are all coming from Europe and Virgin Atlantic, Delta, American Airlines and United coming from the USA.

Whichever airline it is that you choose to take, once you’ve landed and cleared customs, you have various options you can take to get to Central London. It’s worth noting that once you’re in Central London, it’ll be easier to find your way to whichever part of London you’re staying in, especially if you can use Google Maps.

Heathrow Express:

The Heathrow express runs every 15 minutes from Terminals 2, 3, 4 and 5 and takes approximately 15 minutes to get to Paddington in Central London from terminals 2 and 3 (allow a bit more time if you’re travelling from terminals 4 or 5). Tickets start off at£22 for a one-way journey. Once in Paddington, you’ll have access to the Bakerloo line, the Circle and District lines, the Circle line and the Hammersmith & City lines, you will also be close to Hyde Park and Oxford Street underground stations when you arrive in Paddington.

London Underground:

The London Underground is the most cost effective way to get to Central London from Heathrow Airport. Ticket prices start from£6 to Zone 1 (Central London) if you’re paying with cash, you can however pay via Oyster Card (if you own one) or with a contactless credit or debit card. If you opt to pay with one of these cards, the fare will cost you £5.10 (Mon - Fri, 06:30 - 09:30) and £3.10 (all other times). There is a shared station for terminals 2 and 3 which is located in between the two terminals and is a walk away via pedestrian subway. Terminals 4 and 5 have their own stations which are located in the basements of the terminal buildings. The journey should take under an hour and you shouldn’t have to wait more than 10 minutes for a train.

National Express Coach:

Taking a National Express coach is also a fairly cheap way of getting from Heathrow to Central London. Coaches run from pick-up and drop-off points from terminals 2, 3, 4 and 5 and the journey to Central London will take between 40-80 minutes depending on your final destination in London. There are a variety of stops in London which the coaches go to, with London Victoria being one of the most useful thanks to the number of trains and the Underground services which are found there.

Taxi:

Getting a taxi is definitely the most expensive option; the journey would take about an hour and cost around £45-70 depending on your final destination. There are taxis available outside each terminal.

If none of these methods of transport suit your needs or if you still have some questions or concerns, you can always visit Heathrow Airport's web-page to find out more.

London Gatwick (LGW):

Ask any Londoner and you will soon find out that Gatwick isn’t actually in London at all! However, it does host airlines such as EasyJet, Ryan Air and Monarch from Europe and British Airways, Air Canada and Virgin Atlantic from the States, so it is quite a useful airport when it comes to travelling to London. As with Heathrow, there are multiple ways you can get from Gatwick to London.

Train:

There are 3 different options of train routes you can take, each going via and to different parts of London. The Gatwick Express is the fastest of them all with trains leaving from Gatwick every 15 minutes and taking only half an hour to get you to London Victoria from a price of£17.80. Once at Victoria, you will have access to the Circle and District lines as well as the Victoria line.

You can also get a Southern Train which will take you from Gatwick to London Victoria in around 35 minutes and will stop off at East Croydon and Clapham Junction. Generally speaking, a Southern Train will be cheaper than the Gatwick Express.

The last of the train options is a Thameslink & Great Northern train which will take you from Gatwick to London Bridge and St. Pancras International with a journey time between half an hour and 45 minutes with trains running 4 times an hour.

Bus:

There are 2 different bus services which you will be able to use from Gatwick: The easyBus service and National Express. National Express coaches depart once every hour and take from an hour and a half to two hours to take you directly to London Victoria. National Express Coaches leave from both terminals.

There is also the option of the easyBus which runs from both terminals to Earls Court/West Brompton and to London Victoria. Prices start from £2 and buses leave every 15 minutes at peak times. The easyBus also runs a service between the South Terminal and London Waterloo train station where 4 tube (underground lines) depart from.

Taxi:

Of course you can get a taxi, however, prices and journey times differ depending on your final destination.

Take a look at Gatwick Airport's website to find out more.

London Luton (LLA):

Again, London Luton isn’t actually in London, but it is a popular airport for flights arriving from all over Europe with airlines such as EasyJet, Ryan Air and Monarch (and more).

Train:

There is a shuttle bus which will take you from Luton airport to the train station where you will be able to catch a train to St Pancras International and other central London stations. From St Pancras, you will have access to the Circle, Hammersmith & City and Metropolitan lines in addition to the Victoria line, Piccadilly line and Northern line. The average journey will take around 40 minutes and trains run every 10 minutes during peak times.

Bus:

The National Express Coach Service runs over 60 coaches a day from Luton airport to Central London (Victoria) via other main stops in London. The journey takes around 50 minutes and ticket prices aren’t usually too expensive.

Check out Luton Airport's website for more information.

London Stansted (STN):

Along with Luton airport, Stansted is also not actually in London, although saying that, it does provide fairly easy routes to get to London.

Train:

The Stansted Express runs from the airport’s railway station which is a 2 minute walk from the airport with trains leaving every 15 minutes to London (00, 15, 30 and 45 minutes past the hour). Trains travel to Liverpool Street and Tottenham Hale taking 47 and 36 minutes respectively.

Bus:

As with all the other airports, you can get a National Express coach to various destinations in Central London including London Victoria, King’s Cross - St Pancras and London Waterloo amongst others.

Taxi:

Taxis are of course available from the airport.

For more information on getting to London from Stansted airport, please have a look at their website.

London Southend Airport (SEN):

Although Southend airport is around 42 miles (68 km) from the centre of London, it’s still quite a busy airport for people coming to London considering airlines such as EasyJet and FlyBe come to the airport from destinations all over Europe.

Train:

With the train station opposite the main terminal (2 minute walk through a covered walkway), trains leaving up to 8 times an hour during peak time and a maximum journey time of 53 minutes, getting the train from Southend to London couldn’t be easier! It’s also super easy to connect to other train lines - passengers should get off at Stratford for connections to the London Overground, the Circle Line, DLR and the Jubilee line or at London Liverpool Street for the Hammersmith & City line, the Circle line, Metropolitan line and Central line. Fares start at£13.20 for Stratford and £16.20 for London Liverpool Street.

Bus:

It is possible to get a National Express coach from the airport to central London, but unfortunately the coaches really don’t run too often. Please check the National Express website for more details.

Taxi:

Don’t worry if your flight arrives too late for you to catch the train, you can always use Southend airport’s reliable taxi service, “Andrews Taxis”, straight from the airport to London Liverpool Street. You can either get a 7 seat taxi which costs £20 per person for a minimum of 5 people or a 4 seat taxi which costs £25 per person for a minimum of 4 people. Please note, that if a fewer number of people than the specified minimum are travelling, then the cost will be £100 divided by the amount of people present.

If you need more information, you can have a look at Southend airport’s here.

London City (LCY):

London City airport is the closest to Central London; you can even buy an Oyster Card (the travel card used in London) from the DLR counter which is adjacent to the airport terminal.

Train:

The DLR overground train service runs from the airport and connects it with the London Underground tube services

For other services available and for more information, you can have a look at their website here.

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Continue to Public Transport in London - Getting around London

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