London Airport Information
London attracts so many visitors from around the world that it needs to have five airports to accommodate them all. What follows is a brief overview of each of those airports and details of how you can travel between them and Central London.
Heathrow Airport – Heathrow is located approximately 20km from the centre of London and benefits from its own London Underground station. The journey into the city centre takes up to 50 minutes however the cost is minimal at around $6 each way. Heathrow is by far the busiest of the 5 airports, with 5 terminals catering for 90 airlines that between them fly to over 170 worldwide destinations.
Gatwick Airport – Gatwick, located 45km south of the city center, is London’s second-largest airport. It is the main hub for discount and charter airlines. The journey from Gatwick Airport to central London, takes anywhere from 60 to 90 minutes depending on traffic. To avoid potential traffic problems, you might want to consider a train instead, which will take you directly from the airport to Victoria Station.
Stansted Airport – Although not as big as the major airports Stansted caters for a range of budget airlines, a fact that makes it a popular choice for tourists. The airport is located nearly 50km NE of London’s centre but the variety of transport links make commuting easy. Terravision, Stansted Bus and easyBus are reliable methods of travel into London with Marble Arch, Baker Street and Victoria Station being popular destinations.
Luton Airport – Luton Airport is actually located in the county of Bedfordshire, approximately 55km north of London’s centre. Being a small, single runway airport it is commonly used by commuters traveling to destinations in Europe and for visitors arriving on budget airlines. There are bus services that run into London 24 hours per day, the most popular of which are easyBus and Green Line.
London City Airport – This is London’s smallest airport. The main users of it are business travelers as it is located so close to London’s financial district Canary Wharf. It is actually just 11km southeast of the city center. London City Airport only is compromised of just one runway and can not accommodate all types of planes (only those able to do short take-offs and landings). Getting to Central London is easy and convenient thanks to the Docklands Light Railway (DLR).
As an alternative, if you do not fancy flying directly into London, you can also fly to Birmingham Airport or Manchester Airport. Both of those are international airports are centrally located in the UK, meaning that you can reach either London or the north of the country in just a few hours.
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