Getting to the Airport

Planning Your Journey to the Airport

Getting to the airport smoothly is the first step in a stress-free trip. Most major airports are well-connected by public transport, but options vary widely by city. This guide covers the main transport links for popular airports across the UK, Europe, North America, Asia, and the Middle East.

Once you're at the airport, skip the security queue with a FastTrack pass — available at 288+ airports from just £5.

United Kingdom

London Heathrow (LHR)

• Heathrow Express — Paddington to Heathrow in 15 minutes. From £6 advance / £25 walk-up. heathrowexpress.com
• Elizabeth Line — Direct from central London (Liverpool St, Paddington, etc.) in 30–45 minutes. From £5. tfl.gov.uk
• Piccadilly Line — Cheapest option (£5 Oyster/contactless), but takes 50–60 minutes from central London.
• National Express coaches — From £6 various pick-up points across the UK.

London Gatwick (LGW)

• Gatwick Express — Victoria to Gatwick in 30 minutes. From £5 advance. gatwickexpress.com
• Southern/Thameslink trains — Cheaper alternative from London Bridge, St Pancras, and Brighton.

Manchester (MAN)

• Train — Direct from Manchester Piccadilly in 20 minutes, from Leeds in 1h10m, from Liverpool in 1h20m.
• Metrolink tram — Connects to terminals via the airport station.

Edinburgh (EDI)

• Edinburgh Trams — City centre to airport in 30 minutes, £7 single. edinburghtrams.com
• Airlink 100 bus — Waverley Bridge to airport in 25 minutes, from £6.

Europe

Paris CDG (CDG)

• RER B train — Central Paris to CDG in 35 minutes, ~£10. ratp.fr
• Roissybus — Opéra to CDG in 60 minutes, ~£14.
• Le Bus Direct — Direct coaches from Gare de Lyon, Montparnasse, Eiffel Tower.

Amsterdam Schiphol (AMS)

• NS trains — Amsterdam Centraal to Schiphol in 15 minutes, ~£4 One of Europe's best-connected airports. ns.nl
• Direct trains also from Rotterdam (25 min), The Hague (30 min), Utrecht (30 min), and Eindhoven (75 min).

Frankfurt (FRA)

• S-Bahn S8/S9 — Frankfurt Hauptbahnhof to airport in 12 minutes, ~£5. bahn.de
• Long-distance trains — Frankfurt Airport has its own ICE/IC station with direct trains to Cologne (1h), Stuttgart (1h15m), and Munich (3h).

Barcelona El Prat (BCN)

• Aerobús — Plaça Catalunya to airport in 35 minutes, ~£7.
• RENFE train — Passeig de Gràcia to T2 in 25 minutes, ~£4.
• Metro ~£0 Sud — Direct to both terminals, ~£4.

Rome Fiumicino (FCO)

• Leonardo Express — Roma Termini to Fiumicino in 32 minutes, ~£12 trenitalia.com
• F~£0 regional train — Cheaper alternative via Trastevere (~£7 30 min).

Dublin (DUB)

• Aircoach — City centre to airport in 30 minutes, from ~£6 aircoach.ie
• Dublin Bus (16, 41) — From O'Connell Street, from ~£3.

North America

New York JFK (JFK)

• AirTrain + LIRR — Penn Station to JFK in 35–45 minutes, ~£15 total.
• AirTrain + subway (A/E/J/Z) — Cheapest option at ~£8 total, 60–90 minutes from Midtown.
• NYC Airporter / shuttle buses — From Grand Central, Port Authority, Penn Station.

Los Angeles LAX (LAX)

• LAX-it ride-share lot — Uber/Lyft pick-up from the dedicated LAX-it area.
• FlyAway bus — From Union Station (~£8, 30–50 min) and Van Nuys (~£8).
• Metro C Line + LAX shuttle — Cheapest option, connections from across LA.

Chicago O'Hare (ORD)

• CTA Blue Line — Downtown Loop to O'Hare in 45 minutes, ~£4

Toronto Pearson (YYZ)

• UP Express — Union Station to Pearson in 25 minutes, CAD ~£10. upexpress.com

Asia & Middle East

Dubai International (DXB)

• Dubai Metro Red Line — Connects to Terminals 1 and 3. From Deira or Marina in 30–45 minutes, ~£1–8.50.
• RTA Bus — Multiple routes from across Dubai.

Bangkok Suvarnabhumi (BKK)

• Airport Rail Link — Phaya Thai to airport in 30 minutes, THB 45 (approx. ~£1). srtet.co.th

Singapore Changi (SIN)

• MRT East-West/Changi Airport Branch — City centre in 30 minutes, SGD ~£2. smrt.com.sg

Hong Kong International (HKG)

• Airport Express — Hong Kong station to airport in 24 minutes, HKD ~£91 mtr.com.hk

Tokyo Narita (NRT)

• Narita Express (N'EX) — Tokyo Station in 60 minutes, ~£16
• Keisei Skyliner — Ueno in 36 minutes, ~£13
• Access Express — Budget option via Aoto, ~£7

General Tips

• Book advance train tickets — Airport express trains are often much cheaper when booked in advance (Heathrow Express, Gatwick Express, Leonardo Express).
• Use contactless payment — Many city transit systems accept contactless cards/phones, eliminating the need to buy tickets.
• Allow plenty of time — Factor in delays, connections, and the walk from the station to your terminal. Add 30 minutes to advertised journey times for a buffer.
• Check terminal — Large airports (Heathrow, CDG, JFK) have multiple terminals served by different stations. Confirm which terminal your airline uses.
• Plan for multi-step journeys — Tools like Rome2Rio and Trainline compare all transport options with real-time pricing.
• Skip the queue once you arrive — Book a FastTrack pass to breeze through security at your airport.