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Getting to and from the airports in London.

Five airports, five different rule sets. Which payment method works, what the cheapest train actually is, and what to do at 3am when nothing is running.

At a glance

Quick reference. Each airport has its own page below.

Heathrow
Gatwick
Stansted
Luton
London City
Zone
Z6
Outside
Outside
Outside
Z3
Oyster
✓
✓
✕
✕
✓
Contactless
✓
✓
✓
✓
✓
Travelcard
✓
✕
✕
✕
✓
Daily PAYG cap
Z1–6
Partial
✕
✕
Z1–3
24hr public transport
Fri/Sat + N9
Sun–Fri rail
Coaches
DART + coach
473 / 474 bus
LHR

Heathrow

Zone 6 · 4 terminals · Piccadilly + Elizabeth + Express
Oyster Contactless Travelcard
Cheapest

Piccadilly line

Three stops (T2&3, T4, T5). About 50 min to central London. Single fare is flat all day — no off-peak rate.

£5.90Z1 ↔ LHR
Fastest PAYG

Elizabeth line

Two stations: Heathrow T2&3 and T5 (no T4 stop). About 28 min to Paddington. Faster to City and Canary Wharf. Flat all day, no off-peak.

£15.90Z1 ↔ LHR
Premium

Heathrow Express

Non-stop to Paddington in 15 min. Walk-up £26. Advance from £10 (book 30+ days, directional, non-refundable). Kids 15 and under free.

From £10 / £26Advance / walk-up
Coach

National Express / Megabus

To Victoria Coach Station, ~45 min. Frequent during the day, runs late.

VariesBook online
Overnight

N9 night bus

Aldwych ↔ Heathrow T5 via Hammersmith and Hyde Park Corner. Every 20–30 min through the night, ~75 min.

£1.75Flat fare
Heathrow Express on contactless = full walk-up rate. Tapping in gives you the £26 fare, not the £10 advance. Only worth it if you forgot to book.
LGW

Gatwick

Outside zones · 2 terminals · Southern + Thameslink + Express
Oyster Contactless Travelcard
Cheapest

Southern / Thameslink

Better value than Gatwick Express. Calls at two intermediate stations (Clapham Junction, East Croydon) on Southern; Thameslink continues through London Bridge, Blackfriars, Farringdon and St Pancras to Luton.

£9.50–17.50Off-peak / peak
Fastest

Gatwick Express

Non-stop to Victoria, 30 min, every 15 min. Walk-up £24.10 (10p less on contactless — symbolic). 10% off booked online in advance.

£24.10Walk-up single
Coach

National Express / easyBus / Flixbus

Multiple central London pickups. Generally cheapest if booked early. Slower but reliable.

From £5If booked early
  • Travelcards aren't valid to Gatwick — the airport sits outside the zonal scheme. Buy advance paper for the cheapest fare; PAYG works as a fallback.
  • All trains arrive at the South Terminal — a free shuttle runs 24/7 between the terminals and takes only 2 minutes.
STN

Stansted

Outside zones · Stansted Express + coaches
Oyster Contactless Travelcard
Fastest

Stansted Express

Liverpool Street via Tottenham Hale, 48 min, every 15 min during the day. Walk-up ~£21.90, advance from £9.90. Last train back from Stansted: 00:30.

£9.90–21.90Advance / walk-up
Overnight

National Express / Flixbus / Megabus

Multiple central London stops, 24/7. The reliable overnight option — Stansted Express has a gap roughly 00:30–03:40.

£8–20Single, varies
Direct

Greater Anglia stopping services

Direct trains to Cambridge, Norwich, and Birmingham (CrossCountry). Useful if you're not going central.

VariesBy destination
Contactless went live on 8 March 2026. Anyone whose info is older than that will tell you it doesn't work — but it does now. Oyster still doesn't. Railcard discounts apply only to paper/advance tickets, not contactless.
LTN

Luton

Outside zones · Thameslink + EMR + DART shuttle
Oyster Contactless Travelcard
Fastest

Luton Airport Express + DART

EMR non-stop St Pancras ↔ Parkway in ~22 min, then DART to terminal in 4 min. Total ~32 min, every 30 min. Advance from £10.

From £10+ £4.90 DART
Cheapest

Thameslink to Parkway

Stopping service from St Pancras, Farringdon, Blackfriars, London Bridge. Then the DART. Slower, cheaper, and runs hourly through the night Sun–Fri.

Varies+ £4.90 DART
Shuttle

Luton DART

Automated people-mover, Parkway ↔ Terminal in 4 minutes. Runs 24/7. Under-5s free, child (5–15) £2.45.

£4.90Adult single
Coach

NX / Green Line 757 / easyBus / Flixbus

Most run 24/7. Drop straight at the terminal — no DART needed.

VariesBook online
The DART is a separate tap. Contactless to Parkway is treated as a Parkway-only ticket — pay £4.90 again at the DART gates. To get the through-fare, book a paper ticket to Luton Airport (LUA), not Luton Airport Parkway (LTN).
LCY

London City

Zone 3 · DLR + 24-hour buses
Oyster Contactless Travelcard
Default

DLR

Direct stop at the airport. ~22 min from Bank, ~25 min from Canary Wharf. Full TfL rules — daily cap applies. Closes around 00:30 (later Fri/Sat).

£2.50–3.60Off-peak / peak
Overnight

473 & 474 buses

Both 24/7. The 473 runs Stratford ↔ Prince Regent via the airport; the 474 runs Canning Town ↔ East Beckton via the airport. Connect to night buses at Canning Town or Stratford.

£1.75Hopper free 2nd
Scenic

Uber Boat by Thames Clippers

From Royal Wharf or Trinity Buoy Wharf piers — short walk or DLR connection from the airport.

VariesNot in caps
The simplest of the lot. London City sits inside the zonal system, every TfL payment method works, and the Z1–3 daily cap covers the round trip.

Arriving at 3am?

Most rail is suspended roughly 23:30–05:00. Here's the best overnight option for each airport.

Heathrow

Fri/Sat: Piccadilly Night Tube — T2&3 and T5 only, no T4.

Other nights: N9 night bus every 20–30 min.

Gatwick

Sun–Fri: Thameslink hourly through the night to St Pancras via Farringdon.

Sat night: gap until early Sunday. Coaches cover.

Stansted

Coach only. Stansted Express stops 00:30–03:40.

National Express and Flixbus run 24/7.

Luton

DART runs 24/7. Luton Airport Express has a 23:25–05:00 gap.

Coaches (NX, Green Line 757) cover the overnight period.

London City

473 and 474 buses run all night.

Connect to other night buses at Canning Town or Stratford.

!Airport-specific pitfalls

The traps that catch even experienced London travellers.

01Stansted contactless is new. Live since 8 March 2026 (originally 14 Dec 2025; delayed). Older guides still say it doesn't work.
02Stansted Oyster still doesn't work. Only contactless and paper. Tap an Oyster and you'll get a max fare.
03Luton DART is a separate tap. Tap-in at St Pancras only gets you to Parkway — pay another £4.90 at the DART gates to reach the terminal.
04Heathrow Express on contactless = £26. No PAYG discount. Book the £10 advance fare unless you're at the desk.
05Travelcards only cover Heathrow and London City. Gatwick, Stansted and Luton are all outside the zonal scheme.
06Heathrow Z1 fares have no off-peak. Both Piccadilly and Elizabeth line singles are flat all day.
07Elizabeth line to Heathrow eats most of the daily cap. A single £15.90 trip plus one Tube journey hits the £16.30 Z1–6 cap.
08Piccadilly Night Tube skips Terminal 4. Use T2&3 or T5 stations on Fri/Sat nights.

Not sure which card to use?

Our fares decision tree tells you exactly when to use Oyster, contactless, or a Travelcard — and when paper is actually cheaper.

Fares guide →
i Accurate as of May 2026 · Bus fare frozen at £1.75 until July 2026
Fares and policies change. This is guidance, not a guarantee — always check current TfL and operator information before travelling or relying on this advice for an important journey.