London is one of the best connected cities in Europe, with 12 train terminuses serving much of the UK and great road routes into the centre. It also has one of the largest concentrations of airports in the world, with 6 international airports serving almost every country out there. For guests of London West End stay packages, picking the right airport to fly into can be crucial to arriving on time and arranging secondary travel from your flight’s destination to the hotel.
So whether you’re flying from within the UK or from the other side of the world, the 6 airports of London cater to different needs. From bargain airlines to match your great value stay at discount hotels in the West End of London to the mega, once in a lifetime trips, this blog will outline everything you need to know about London’s six airports and which are the best for your specific needs.
Getting Into Central London
One of the first problems you’ll have to face when you reach your destination is how to travel to your final destination once you’ve arrived. Some airports are better equipped than others to get you into the centre of London.
Heathrow
The Heathrow Express train that runs to and from the airport will get you into Paddington Station in just 15 minutes. Tickets can be quite expensive though, so if you’re looking to save money there are longer journey trains available to the same destination as well Piccadilly Line underground services that take just about an hour into the city centre.
Gatwick
The Gatwick Express will take travellers from the airport’s train station into central London’s Victoria Station in just 30 minutes. From here, guests of the Piccadilly London West Endand other tourists can reach central, north and south London destinations via the Victoria Line.
Southend
SOuthend Airport is located in Essex east of London and is therefore served by the Abellio Greater Anglia Service. These trains can take you into London Liverpool Street in 52 minutes and Stratford Station in just 45 minutes. Both of these stations are served by the Central Line and Overground services, as well as Liverpool Street’s District, Circle, Hammersmith & City Lines and Stratford’s Jubilee Line.
City Airport
City Airport is the only London airport actually within the boundaries of the city centre. Visitors can only get to City Airport, a popular business travel airport, via the Docklands Light Rail, a monorail that serves much of East London’s financial districts. For guests of the Piccadilly Hotel London, the best station for travel to and from City Airport is Bank, which takes just 21 minutes.
Stansted
Stansted Airport is to the northeast of London and is served by the Stansted Express into London Liverpool Street Station. The train takes about 50 minutes, but if you’re strapped for time, you can take the train to and from Stansted Airport to Tottenham Hale. From there, you can jump on the Victoria Line into Central London.
The Tottenham Hale – Stansted train takes just 35 minutes and the tube into central London stations such as Oxford Circus takes just an extra 17 minutes.
Luton
The Luton Express train takes just 35 minutes to and from Farringdon Station, but you’ll have to buy a ticket for the airport shuttle bus service to reach Luton Parkway from the station. This shuttle bus takes just 4 minutes.
Airports For Europe
Stansted Airport and Gatwick are probably the best two airports for cheap and quick flights to Europe. Both airports are bases EasyJet flights, whilst Gatwick serves WizzAir and Stansted Airport serves RyanAir. All three of these airlines are great for cheap flights to European destinations.
Airports For International Flights
Heathrow is the largest of the airports and so has some of the longest haul flights in the city. With four passenger terminals serving every continent in the world, Heathrow Airport can get rather congested at check in and check out, especially around the holiday and school break seasons. Keep this in mind when travelling to and from the airport and make sure you factor in an extra hour for queues.
Travel To Other Areas Of The UK
If you’re planning on travelling to other parts of the UK from London airports, some will be better than others for your plans. Here’s how the six London airports fare.
Heathrow
Based in the northwest of London, Heathrow is actually best suited to travel into London, rather than any other areas. This is due to the London Underground being connected to the airport, but you can alternatively travel to cities such as Reading and Oxford from Heathrow Airport’s train station.
Gatwick
Based about 40 miles outside of London, Gatwick Airport also served much of the south coast of England, providing easy access to cities like Brighton and Portsmouth.
Southend
Based in Essex, Southend naturally serves much of the surrounding county as well as Kent and Suffolk. East coast cities such as Canterbury and Colchester are also easy to reach from Southend Airport.
City Airport
Let’s face it, if you’re travelling into City Airport, you’re probably going to be travelling to London! It’s in the name really, but if you really want to travel further afield from City Airport, you can take the DLR Line to Bank, connect to Liverpool Street Station via the Central Line and travel into the East of England from there. We’d recommend travelling to Southend or Stansted Airport though!
Stansted
Stansted Airport is another easterly plane terminus, and therefore provides great access to cities like Cambridge, Chelmsford and Colchester. Again, if you’re planning to explore outside of London, choose this airport instead of City Airport!
Luton
Luton Airport is situated to the north of the city, and is the airport of choice for travellers to Watford and Milton Keynes. Luton Airport can also be travelled from to Northampton and other cities bordering the midlands.
