This article explains the available ways to get from Heathrow Airport to the centre of London! Heathrow is the second closest airport to the city centre after City Airport, however it is still pretty quick to get to central. There are various transports that can take you to the city centre, such as the tube, the train, the Coach and Taxi.
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Train
There are two trains available, one of them is the Heathrow Express and the other one is TfL Rail’s Service.
Heathrow Express
This train takes you to Paddington Station from Heathrow Terminals 2 & 3 and 5 in 15 minutes. Passengers travelling to Terminal 4 should change on to the free transfer train at Heathrow Terminals 2 & 3 (connecting trains every 15 minutes, journey time four minutes) Tickets are available online or via the Heathrow Express app as well as in Arrivals or at the stations.
Express Singles cost £22 off-peak and £25 peak, peak times are 6:30am – 9:30am or 4pm – 7pm, Monday – Friday excluding UK Bank Holidays. Express Class Returns are £37 at all times. Alternatively book in advance from just £5.50 one way at weekends and £12.10 one way on weekdays. You can book your trip here.
TfL Rail’s Service
You can catch this train at the same place as Heathrow Express in terminal 2 and 5, and this will take you to west and central London stops. The last one is also Paddington Station, and it lasts for half an hour.
This is a cheaper option than Heathrow Express. The easiest way to pay for your travel on TfL Rail between Heathrow and Central London is to pay as you go using a Transport for London Oyster card or contactless payment mechanism. There is no need to buy a ticket – just touch in and go!
Single journey tickets and Zones 1-6 Travelcards can also be used for your journey and these can be purchased from one of the airport station ticket machines.
Coach
Coaches run throughout the day, from £10, offering journey times of 40–80 minutes to Victoria coach station (and many other destinations.
The first service departs from Victoria Coach Station at 03:00 and arrives at Heathrow’s central bus station (for Terminal 2 and 3) at 03:40. The bus arrives at Terminal 5 at 03:55 and Terminal 4 at 04:10.
You can book your coach to anywhere in the UK here.
Airport Transfers
Private transfer is probably the easiest and most organised way of traveling. You can book in advance and you will have a driver waiting for you when you arrive at the airport, and it will take you directly to your address! If you are arriving the city full of bags for your long stay, than this might be the perfect option for you.
Taxi / Uber
There are always taxis and ubers available at Heathrow. Usually a trip can cost between £40 to £70 and it will take you one hour!
Tube
You can take the picadilly line straight to the city centre and you can catch it on terminals 2,3, 4 and 5. Heathrow Terminals 2 and 3 station is between the terminals, which are a few minutes’ walk away via pedestrian subway. Heathrow Terminal 5 Underground station is in the basement of the terminal building.
All stations are in Travelcard Zone 6.
Underground tickets are available at all stations. For more information regarding all day travel passes, please visit tfl.gov.uk/fares-and-payments or visit the Underground Visitors Centres at Heathrow Terminals 2 and 3 underground station.
The Piccadilly Night Tube is currently suspended. For more information on travelling at night, please visit https://tfl.gov.uk/plan-a-journey/
The N9 night bus runs every 20 minutes to central London from Terminal 5 and Heathrow Central bus Station.