London Airports
What’s Here
London by Air
The major airport for arrivals from North America is Heathrow (LHR) outside London. This is the hub of most airlines, including British Airways and American carriers, and has the best transportation links to London. Gatwick (LGW) is the second major airport outside London, but it is much farther from the heart of the city, requiring longer and often more expensive hauls into the city.
Chances are you will not land at London's minor airports, certainly not if you're making a transatlantic crossing; however, you might land at one of these airports if you're winging in from the Continent. They include Stansted (STN), London City (LCY), London Luton (LTN), and London Southend (SEN).
The Carriers
British Airways (tel. 800/247-9297; www.britishairways.com) offers flights from 19 U.S. cities to Heathrow and Gatwick airports, as well as many others to Manchester. Nearly every flight is nonstop. With more add-on options than any other airline, British Airways can make a visit to Britain cheaper than you may have expected. Ask about packages that include both airfare and discounted hotel accommodations in Britain.
Known for consistently offering excellent fares, Virgin Atlantic Airways (tel. 800/821-5438; www.virgin-atlantic.com) flies daily to either Heathrow or Gatwick from Boston, Newark, New York's JFK, Los Angeles, San Francisco, Washington's Dulles, Miami, Orlando, and Las Vegas.
American Airlines (tel. 800/433-7300; www.aa.com) offers daily flights to Heathrow from half a dozen U.S. gateways -- New York's JFK, Chicago, Boston, Miami, Los Angeles, and Dallas.
Depending on the day and season, Delta Air Lines (tel. 800/221-1212; www.delta.com) runs either one or two daily nonstop flights between Atlanta and Gatwick. Delta also offers nonstop daily service from Cincinnati.
Northwest Airlines (tel. 800/225-2525 or 800/447-4747; www.nwa.com) flies nonstop from Minneapolis and Detroit to Gatwick.
Continental Airlines (tel. 800/231-0856; www.continental.com) has daily flights to London from Cleveland, Houston, Newark, Orlando, and San Francisco.
United Airlines (tel. 800/241-6522; www.united.com) flies nonstop from New York's JFK and Chicago to Heathrow two or three times daily, depending on the season. United also offers nonstop service from Dulles Airport, near Washington, D.C.; Newark; Los Angeles; and San Francisco.
Read more at Frommer's.
Arrival
All About London's Airports (long long long, but with a few bits of wheat amongst the chaff)
Air Brokers
Heathrow Airport
London’s main airport is 15 miles (24 km) west of central London. The Heathrow Express train to Paddington is the quickest way into the centre, and takes only 15 minutes. Trains run from 5am until about 11:30pm daily. Taxis take about an hour, depending on the traffic, and are very expensive. Cheaper options include the tube (Piccadilly line) or Airbus into the centre.
The older terminals 1, 2 & 3 are unappealing. The newer T4 and the newest T5 are nice and very nice respectively, with plenty of shopping and eating options to help fill in the time.
Heathrow is renowned for its delays when it comes to just about every part of the airport experience, and also has a reputation for losing luggage. The new Terminal 5 has reduced some of the pressure on the airport, however, so perhaps Heathrow these days is better than the Heathrow of 2007 and before.
Traveling in to the city is very quick and easy.
Heathrow is one of the very busiest airports in the world (its exact ranking depends on if you are counting in/out flights or actual passenger numbers). In terms of passenger numbers, it scores as the world's third largest. The airport's own website describes it as the world's busiest international airport without giving the details for this claim.
It has 92 airlines that operate flights, serving 187 destinations. British Airways, bmi and Virgin Atlantic Airways have their major hubs at Heathrow. The airport operates 24 hrs a day with no curfew restrictions on flights. Currently it has two runways and five terminals. It is the second closest of the airports around London (tiny London City Airport being the closest).
If Heathrow: If you have luggage you can manage yourself, I recommend the Heathrow Express train; you can use a trolley to get down to the train, then its a short (15 minute) direct trip to Paddington station. It costs about 15 pounds one way. From Paddington, it will be a short taxi ride to your hotel. Other options; you can catch the tube but only if your luggage is really manageable – it's the Piccadilly line, it takes about an hour to get into the centre of the city. I haven't done this since I was a broke student – all those stairs and elevators are no fun with bags. There is also a bus service, but I have only done this when it was a replacement service for the train so I don't know too much about it. In addition, you can catch a taxi straight from the airport – I do this if I am arriving early in the morning (before 6am) or late at night, because in fact it's not much more expensive = a mini cab runs about 35 pounds to the centre of the city. A black cab will be more expensive. Only use a mini cab company you trust. I would never do this outside of these hours though – traffic above ground can be savage. Unless money is of absolutely no consequence to you, DO NOT book a car through your hotel – I've seen charges of over 100 pounds for a car – they really take advantage of rich tourists fears!
If you decide to use the Heathrow Express, buy your ticket online and print it out at home before you arrive – its cheaper, you don't have to queue, and you don't have to worry about currency when you are sleep deprived from the flight. just google it – the site is very easy to use.
From the Heathrow Express website:
Every passenger can enjoy a comfortable, spacious seat with plenty of space for luggage and the opportunity to watch Express TV. On board facilities include toilets, air-conditioning and passengers can also make use of free Wi-Fi.
Those who want a bit more luxury can opt for a seat in First Class where they will have more leg room, a table and complimentary copies of the Financial Times and various magazines.
The Quiet Zone is great for passengers who want an even more relaxing journey to the airport. Passengers are asked to use mobile phones and personal stereos with consideration and discretion. Even Express TV is switched off.
Heathrow Express LineTrains are level with the platform to ensure luggage is easily transported on and off the train.
Buying onboard? If you don't have time to buy your ticket before boarding, you can get a full fare ticket onboard. Please note that a £5 surcharge applies for Express Class customers (from the ticket machine/office fare).
| Ticket Name | Adult fare | U.S. $ | Canada $ |
|---|---|---|---|
| Express Class Single online From ticket machine/office Purchased onboard | £16.50 £18.00 £23.00 | $25.07 $27.35 $34.94 | $26.72 $29.14 $37.24 |
| First Class Single online From ticket machine/office Purchased onboard | £26.00 £26.00 £26.00 | $39.50 $39.50 $39.50 | $42.10 $42.10 $42.10 |
| (Conversion rate on 1 July 2010) | |||
First class HEx
Standard HEx
Paddington Station
The HEx arrives in Paddington Station, which is located in West London, which is a short distance from Marble Arch and Hyde Park. Heathrow Express services leave from platforms 6 & 7 at Paddington Station. The station is located in between two of London’s biggest and most beautiful parks: Regent’s Park and Hyde Park, both including picturesque lakes. Regents Park is also home to the famous London Zoo.
Paddington Station HEx location
Heathrow to London by road
For the longest time, the only way in to London from Heathrow was by bus or taxi, along the A4 road. The former was inconvenient, the latter was expensive, and both were very slow.
If you wish to take a (shuttle) bus into central London, there is National Express' Hotel Hoppa service, connecting 21 hotels with the airport, and which charges only £5 per one way journey.
National Express also offers direct coach service between other parts of Britain and Heathrow, making for sometimes convenient and easy ways to get to/from wherever it is you're ultimately coming from/going to and LHR.
If you are taking a taxi from Heathrow, you'll find it easiest to just take a regular 'Black Cab' from one of the cab ranks outside the terminals. But if you're returning back to the airport, you should consider using a 'Minicab' service which will probably cost about half what a Black Cab would cost.
Most hotels will arrange a Minicab for you, but they often add an extra charge onto the cab's fee, so if you are able to find a Minicab service in the area of your hotel and arrange with them directly, that may save you money. On the other hand, detractors of this idea would point out that Minicabs are not as rigorously quality controlled as Black Cabs, and there is the risk you might get a bad car, a bad driver, or not be collected on time as arranged.
So, you pay your money and take your chances. If you have friends in London, they may be able to recommend a cab service for you. About the closest thing to an 'official' listing of Minicab companies is this one on the Transport for London website – at least, if you choose a Minicab operator from this list, you know you're dealing with an officially licensed company.
Otherwise, you can try negotiating with a Black Cab driver to see what the best deal he will do for you might be if he switches off the meter and charges you a flat fare. The Black Cabs will sometimes be competitive, depending on the time of day and how badly they want your business.
I usually find the best way to do this is to chat with a cab driver while taking a taxi somewhere the previous day. At a time like that, you are clearly able to negotiate from a position of strength, but when you're standing on the side of the road, in the rain, with your bags beside you, your ability to drive a deal is massively diminished.
It takes slightly less than an hour to travel by Tube from Heathrow to Piccadilly Circus in central London, and the trains have some extra room for suitcases in the carriages.
We used Simply airports to get us from and too the airport to and from our hotel. They were punctual and much cheaper than any taxi. You have to pay in cash though.
Is the price per car, or per passenger?? (price was quoted as 34-39 pounds, depending on type of car) What I am confused about is the type of car they are offering. We are two adults with two regular suitcases, 2 smaller suitcases and a couple of carry on (small duffeles). The sites say 4 passengers and 2 cases or 4 passengers and 4 cases. There are none for 2 passengers and say 4 cases. What they consider cases, are they like for large type suitcases, or any type suitcases. Our large ones aren't tremendous, just large. If we have more luggage than they assume, do they charge you more??
Price is per car. If there are two people travelling with 4 cases the smallest car should do.
These two address the low cost taxi Heathrow – London market and are probably the biggest/most respected.
The only thing you have to watch for is waiting times. Most of these companies only allow 45 or 60 minutes after the flight arrives before they start clocking waiting time, its relatively small but do look at the small print. In reality you'll take about an hour to get through customs/baggage at Heathrow at the moment and they'll normally ignore the waiting time surcharge – its aimed at those who take liberties and fancy visiting the duty free shops whilst the driver hangs around outside.
Heathrow to London by train
Another major enhancement came in 1998, when a new connecting section of railroad track between the airport and the existing Great Western line to/from Paddington was completed. This enabled nonstop train service, known as the Heathrow Express, between the airport and Paddington Station. This has a journey time of only 15 minutes between the T1/2/3 station and Paddington, and slightly longer for the extended journey on to T4. This has now been switched to for the new Terminal 5, with rather clumsy connections for passengers arriving/departing from Terminal 4. A journey from Paddington to T4 can now take either 23 or 30 minutes, and a return journey from T4 to Paddington can be even slower.
A new train service was started in 2005. Called Heathrow Connect, it has less frequent trains (two an hour instead of four with the Heathrow Express, and only one an hour on Sundays) and makes five stops along the route, resulting in a 25 minute rather than 15 minute journey time.
On the other hand, the journey cost is much lower. A ticket costs £6.90 one way and £13.80 return (no discount for a return as compared to two one way tickets). This compares with the Heathrow Express which costs £16.50 one way and £32 return. Depending on the exchange rate, this is a saving of about $14 each way compared to the Heathrow Express, for a ten minute longer journey time and possibly a bit more waiting for a train. If two of you are traveling together, you can save almost $28 – that's a great saving for ten minutes extra traveling time.
Whereas Heathrow Express starts/finishes at T5, Heathrow Connect starts/finishes at T4. If your journey takes you to T4, perhaps Heathrow Connect is not only much less expensive, but it may be no slower than a Heathrow Express train.
Suggestion – when you know what time you'll be wanting to travel to the airport, check the Heathrow Connect website to see if there is a Heathrow Connect train you can take instead of the Heathrow Express, and also make a note of the times the trains depart Heathrow so you know your options when you fly in to Heathrow as well.
Frommer's Says:
London Heathrow Airport -- West of London in Hounslow (tel. 0870/000-0123; www.baa.co.uk), Heathrow is one of the world's busiest airports. It has four terminals, each relatively self-contained. Terminal 4, the most modern, handles the long-haul and transatlantic operations of British Airways. Most transatlantic flights on U.S.-based airlines arrive at Terminal 3. Terminals 1 and 2 receive the intra-European flights of several European airlines.
Getting to Central London from Heathrow -- It takes 45 to 50 minutes by the Underground (Tube) and costs £4 ($8) to make the 24km (15-mile) trip from Heathrow to the center of London. A taxi is likely to cost from £50 to £70 ($100-$140). For more information about Tube or bus connections, call tel. 020/7222-1234 or go to www.tfl.gov.uk.
The British Airport Authority now operates Heathrow Express (tel. 0845/600-1515; www.heathrowexpress.com), a 161kmph (100-mph) train service running every 15 minutes daily from 5:10am until 11:40pm between Heathrow and Paddington Station in the center of London. Trips cost £15 ($30) each way in economy class, rising to £46 ($92) in first class. Children younger than 15 pay £7.20 ($14) in economy, £23 ($46) in first class. You can save £1 ($2) by booking online or by phone. The trip takes 15 minutes each way between Paddington and Terminals 1, 2, and 3; 23 minutes from Terminal 4. The trains have special areas for wheelchairs. From Paddington, passengers can connect to other trains and the Underground, or you can hail a taxi. You can buy tickets on the train with a £2 ($4) surcharge, or at self-service machines at Heathrow Airport. (Tickets are also available from travel agents.)
Gatwick Airport
London’s second airport is 31 miles (50 km) south of the centre, on the Surrey-Sussex border. The Gatwick Express train runs every 15 minutes into Victoria Station, taking around 30 minutes. There are also train connections on City Thameslink trains to London Bridge. The Airbus is a little cheaper and takes an hour longer.
Gatwick is a medium-sized airport and scores middling for most other measures too. There's nothing profoundly good about Gatwick, but neither is there anything profoundly bad; it is just another somewhat generic airport.
Trains in to London are slow, but Victoria station is a good central location for many visitors. There is also train service to St Pancras, which is a convenient alternative for people wishing to get to the northern side of London's downtown core.
Gatwick is a large and busy airport, but is only about half the size of Heathrow. It is the second largest airport in the UK, and its website claims it to be the tenth busiest in the world. Notably, Gatwick is also the busiest single runway airport in the world, and serves around 80 airlines, who fly to 220 destinations (fewer airlines, but more destinations than Heathrow). Two terminals serve Gatwick's single runway, with round the clock operations all year long.
Gatwick to London by road
Gatwick has direct access immediately on to the short M23 motorway, which itself quickly links to the M25 motorway around London. With the other London airports also relatively close to motorway links (except for London City) this makes driving between airports moderately easy, and driving to the airport from somewhere else not too difficult.
Bus service between London and Gatwick's North Terminal is offered by easyBus. This company operates 19 seater mini-buses seven days a week, with services to Gatwick starting at 6am and the last bus leaving at 10pm, while services from Gatwick to London start at 6.40am with the last bus leaving at 11pm.
It is about a 70 minute nonstop journey between the airport and the Fulham Broadway Underground Station; services operate every 20 minutes and sometimes every 30 minutes.
The cost ranges from a low of £2 each way to a high of £10. Lowest prices apply to online advance booking, highest prices to paying cash to the driver on the day.
National Express offers coach services to other places in England.
Taxi service is also available, of course. Black cabs from Gatwick in to central London will probably cost you something over £80. If you're returning back to the airport, you should consider using a 'Minicab' service which will probably cost about half what a Black Cab would cost.
Most hotels will arrange a Minicab for you, but they often add an extra charge onto the cab's fee, so if you are able to find a Minicab service in the area of your hotel and arrange with them directly, that may save you money. On the other hand, detractors of this idea would point out that Minicabs are not as rigorously quality controlled as Black Cabs, and there is the risk you might get a bad car, a bad driver, or not be collected on time as arranged.
So, you pay your money and take your chances. If you have friends in London, they may be able to recommend a cab service for you. About the closest thing to an 'official' listing of Minicab companies is this one on the Transport for London website – at least, if you choose a Minicab operator from this list, you know you're dealing with an officially licensed company.
Gatwick to London by train
A rail station opened at Gatwick way back in 1935, and the airport has offered train connections in to London since that time – primarily to Victoria Station, but more recently there have been trains extending on to other places, including direct service to Luton airport.
The best known service is the Gatwick Express. This service, active since 1984, operates between the airport and London's Victoria station, with nonstop service every 15 minutes, and a 30 minute train journey.
Gatwick Express tickets are currently (April 09) £16.90 one way and £28.80 return.
Other train companies also have services to Gatwick station. Southern Trains offer a similar high frequency service to Victoria, with a 35 minute journey time, and a lower £10.90 one way fare. The trains stop at East Croydon and Clapham Junction, so if you're planning on traveling immediately out of London, you might be able to connect with a train from either of these busy stations rather than needing to go all the way in to London first.
First Capital Connect have an interesting alternative service that between St Pancras Station and Gatwick, with stops at Farringdon, City Thameslink, Blackfriars and London Bridge. This service operates three or four times an hour Monday to Saturday, but does not operate on Sunday. It is a 47 minute journey, and again costs £10.90 oneway – sometimes less depending on time of travel.
Frommer's says:
Gatwick Airport -- While Heathrow still dominates, more and more scheduled flights land at relatively remote Gatwick (tel. 0870/574-7777; www.baa.co.uk), located some 40km (25 miles) south of London in West Sussex but only a 30-minute train ride away.
Getting to Central London from Gatwick -- From Gatwick, the fastest way to get to London is via the Gatwick Express trains (tel. 0845/850-1530; www.gatwickexpress.co.uk), which depart approximately every 15 minutes, daily between 4:35am and 1:35am. The round-trip fare between Gatwick and Victoria Rail Station is £27 ($54) for adults and £13 ($26) for children age 10 and younger. (One-way fares cost £16/$32 for adults and £7.95/$16 for children.) The travel time each way is 30 minutes Monday to Saturday, and 35 minutes on Sunday.
A taxi from Gatwick Airport to central London costs from £95 ($190). Fares vary according to a printed price list that defines the fare from Gatwick to whichever neighborhood of London you're traveling to. Meters in this case don't apply because Gatwick lies outside the Metropolitan Police District. For further transportation information pertaining to either Gatwick or any other location within London, call tel. 020/7222-1234.
Stansted Airport
This fast-growing airport is 35 miles (56 km) to the northeast of London. From here, the half-hourly Stansted Express to Liverpool Street station takes 45 minutes. The Airbus service to Victoria takes about 90 minutes.
Standsted is a reasonably nice and medium sized airport, but with fairly spartan facilities.
It is a fairly slow train ride in to London from the airport, which is perhaps its biggest drawback, and Liverpool St station is far from where most tourists will wish to be in London, requiring either a costly (and slow) taxi ride on to one's final destination, or the unpleasant hassle of traveling through the Underground complete with your luggage.
Standsted to London by road
Stansted is located right next to the M11, and is about 20 miles north of the M25 circular motorway around London. This makes it reasonably accessible for most vehicular traffic.
To travel by bus into London you'd use the easyBus service, which operates 19 seater mini-coaches every 20 minutes during most of the day, and 30 minutes at off-peak times.
Buses to the airport start from 3am, with the last bus to the airport leaving at 10.20pm. Buses from the airport start at 7am with the last bus leaving the airport at 1.05am. The service operates daily except for Christmas Day.
The service has two London stops – the Baker St Underground station on the north side of London, which has underground connections to many different lines, and Victoria Station on the south side of London. It is about 85 minutes between the airport and Baker Street, and about 100 minutes between the airport and Victoria Station.
Fares range in price upwards from £2 each way, depending on if you buy them online in advance, or from the driver when boarding the bus.
National Express offer services to Victoria Station, with intermediate stops at Marble Arch, Baker St, and Marylebone, as well as stops at St Johns Wood, Finchley Rd and Golders Green.
They operate service about every 20 minutes, and it takes a little over 90 minutes to travel all the way between Victoria Station and Stansted. A one way ticket is £10.
National Express also has service from Stansted to other parts of the country.
A shuttle service that will take you all the way to/from your hotel is the Snowdrop Shuttle. This operates an hourly service, and spends the first hour traveling around London's hotels before then driving up to Stansted (taking another hour or so to get there). The service starts/ends in Earl's Court/Kensington (so this will be a two hour journey) then next is Bayswater, then Picadilly, then Russell Square, then Kings Cross (which will be the shortest journey time). Fares are £15 each way and you need to prebook your travel with them.
Taxis are available at the airport, of course, and a journey into London is probably going to cost about £100 or more.
If you're returning back to the airport, you should consider using a 'Minicab' service which will probably cost about half what a Black Cab would cost.
Most hotels will arrange a Minicab for you, but they often add an extra charge onto the cab's fee, so if you are able to find a Minicab service in the area of your hotel and arrange with them directly, that may save you money. On the other hand, detractors of this idea would point out that Minicabs are not as rigorously quality controlled as Black Cabs, and there is the risk you might get a bad car, a bad driver, or not be collected on time as arranged.
So, you pay your money and take your chances. If you have friends in London, they may be able to recommend a cab service for you. About the closest thing to an 'official' listing of Minicab companies is this one on the Transport for London website – at least, if you choose a Minicab operator from this list, you know you're dealing with an officially licensed company.
Standsted to London by train
Stansted has a train station directly below its main terminal building, making the train a convenient way to get to/from the airport, subject to the issue of traveling between where your journey starts/ends in London and Liverpool St Station, which is where the train service operates from.
The Stansted Express operates trains every 15 minutes, seven days a week. It is a 46 minute journey, which also includes a stop at the Tottenham Hale underground station (which is 11 or so minutes travel time from Liverpool St and 35 or so minutes from Stansted). Services start from Liverpool St at 3.40am weekdays and 4.10am weekends, and end with a last departure at 11.25pm. Services from the airport start at 5.30am and end at 1.30am except for Saturdays, when the last train is at 12.30am. Fares are £18/26.80 (one way/roundtrip) if prepurchased online and £1 each way higher if purchased on the train or at a ticket machine at the station.
Tottenham Hale station, in the Underground's Fare zone 3, has Victoria Line service, which might sometimes get you better connections in/out of central London than the underground lines which stop at Liverpool St Station, a train station that is on the eastern side of the city. Fares to Tottenham Hale are slightly lower – £16/24.60 for prepurchased tickets.
If you are arriving at Gatwick, the only sensible option is the Gatwick Express – again, you can take your luggage right to the train on a trolley. It costs 14 pounds one way from memory, and takes you straight to Victoria Station (from memory its about 45 minutes) – where you can either jump on the tube or catch a taxi to your hotel. There is a slow train that is less expensive and not direct but still gets you to Victoria. you can buy this ticket online before you go too – again, just google it.
When we stay in London we either take the train or a London taxi from the airport. The taxis are not inexpensive, but an easy way to travel into town.
Luton
Luton is the fourth largest of London's airports, and the fifth busiest airport in the UK. The airport comprises a single runway and a single terminal building, with road access to the terminal building going through a short tunnel under the main taxiway between the runway and the terminal hard stands. The airport operates essentially 24/7, and serves about 95 destinations in 30 countries.
By road – car, bus, shuttle, taxi Luton is located just a few miles from the M1, and just a short distance north of the M25 ringroad around London, giving it good road connections to most places north and west of London.
To travel from the airport in to London, easyBus offers full size bus service to Victoria Station, with service every 15 – 30 minutes every day except Christmas. The easyBus route includes stops at Marble Arch and Baker St (and also Finchley Rd and Brent Cross), and takes about 80 minutes for the complete route between Victoria Station and Luton airport. Baker St is about 15 minutes shorter. Buses operate 24 hrs a day. Fares start at £2 if you prepurchase a ticket online, and cost considerably more if you buy a ticket direct from the bush driver.
Other bus service is provided by Green Line, following essentially the same route as easyBus. Their website doesn't reveal ticket pricing, but it is sure to be more than £2 and probably not much more than £12 per person.
National Express also operate nonstop service every 15 – 30 minutes between Luton and Victoria Station, with about a 75 minute journey time, and a £13 one way fare. They also provide coach service to other cities as well as London.
We are unaware of any door to door shuttle type service being offered to Luton. Taxi service is of course available from directly outside the terminal. But if you're returning back to the airport, you should consider using a 'Minicab' service which will probably cost about half what a Black Cab would cost.
Most hotels will arrange a Minicab for you, but they often add an extra charge onto the cab's fee, so if you are able to find a Minicab service in the area of your hotel and arrange with them directly, that may save you money. On the other hand, detractors of this idea would point out that Minicabs are not as rigorously quality controlled as Black Cabs, and there is the risk you might get a bad car, a bad driver, or not be collected on time as arranged.
So, you pay your money and take your chances. If you have friends in London, they may be able to recommend a cab service for you. About the closest thing to an 'official' listing of Minicab companies is this one on the Transport for London website – at least, if you choose a Minicab operator from this list, you know you're dealing with an officially licensed company.
Road distance from Piccadilly Circus
Firstly, here is a table showing the road miles between each airport and Piccadilly Circus (chosen as a notional central point in London), along with a theoretical (i.e., non-congested) travel time by taxi (this data is from Google Maps)
| Airport | Miles | Best car/taxi travel time | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Heathrow | 17 | 32 mins | |
| Gatwick | 29 | 63 mins | |
| Stansted | 39 | 65 mins | |
| Luton | 34 | 51 mins | |
| London City | 9 | 29 mins | |
| (From: http://thetravelinsider.info/britain/londonbestworstairports.htm) | |||
Public Transport options, times and costs
Victoria Station is the terminus for direct public transport transfers to all of London's 4 main airports, Gatwick, Heathrow, Stansted and Luton. The London Underground runs direct from Victoria Station to Euston, Kings Cross, Marylebone, Liverpool Street and Paddington Stations via the Circle Line or Victoria. At Westminster the Jubilee Line/Circle Line connection serves Waterloo and London Bridge.
Victoria by Taxi The only worthwhile airport to consider using a taxi from is London Heathrow. A black taxi from in front of the terminal will cost in the region of £50, (taxis are metered but fares will vary markedly depending on time of day and time taken).
| Airport | Transfer Type | Travel Time | Service Frequency | Cost |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Heathrow | Heathrow Express train to/from Paddington station | 15 mins from T1/2/3, about 20 mins from T4 or T5 | Every 15 minutes | £16.50 ow £32 return |
| Heathrow | Piccadilly Tube Line | 50 mins to Piccadilly Circus | About every 5 mins | £4 ow |
| Gatwick | Gatwick Express train to/from Victoria station | 30 minutes | Every 15 minutes | £16.90 ow £28.80 return |
| Stansted | Stansted Express train to/from Liverpool St station | 46 minutes | Every 15 minutes | £19 ow £28.80 return |
| Luton | Train from Kings Cross or St Pancras station to Luton Parkway, then airport bus to the airport | Bus ride is maybe 5 mins. Train maybe 30 mins. Plus connecting time between train and bus. | Buses every 10 – 15 minutes; trains every 10 – 15 minutes too | £12.50 ow £22.50 return (approx) |
Not shown in the above table are various airport bus services. These are available from all five airports in some form or another, but will generally be by far the slowest and least reliable (in terms of travel time) option. Traffic jams may impact on the travel time, and while the bus might be the cheapest option, yet again this proves the truth of the adage 'you get what you pay for'.
Depending on the number of stops the buses will make to pick up and drop off passengers, you can take the travel times in the first table and then adjust them up to get a sense for how long a bus ride may take.
