Which London Airport is the Best to Choose?
Choosing which London airport for your trip can be complicated if you don’t know the differences and locations. As an American living in London since 2013, I have had a lot of experience learning what makes one thing better than another.
If there was an easy answer for everyone, you probably wouldn’t be reading this! However, with the information below you will be able to make a decision as to which is best for you.
And, if you’re having trouble planning your trip to London, use our London Trip Planning page to get started.
Choice of London Airports
The variety of choices you have for airports near London can be confusing. To judge by the name, you will find 6 options identified as London airports. From largest to smallest they are: Heathrow Airport (LHR), Gatwick Airport (LGW), London Stansted Airport (STN), London Luton Airport (LLA), London City Airport (LCY) and London Southend Airport (SEN).
However, bigger is not always better. For international travel, larger airports usually mean more time to check-in, go through security, board your flight, go through Border Control and wait for baggage claim.
When deciding which London airport is best to choose, you need to consider distance as only one airport is actually located close to Central London. This is the area of London that is the most popular place for tourists to choose a hotel when visiting. In order of distance from closest to furthest, the options are below.
- London City Airport, 14 km (9 miles)
- Heathrow, 26 km (16 miles)
- Gatwick, 45 km (28 miles)
- Luton, 55 km (34 miles)
- Stansted, 63 km (39 miles)
- South End, 64 km (40 miles)
Hotel
If you haven’t booked a hotel for your trip to London yet, here’s an interactive map to get you started! It is based on the most central location in the city.
Which are the Most Popular
Heathrow Airport and Gatwick Airport are popular choices for first-time travelers to London. To be honest, they are both my husband (who has lived his whole life in London) and my favorite. We prefer to pay more for convenience and almost always book flights with British Airways due to the large number of flights to the continent.
If we book an earlier flight from Gatwick, we stay in a hotel near the airport as we live in North London. For transportation we use Heathrow Express, Uber, London Underground or Gatwick Express. Arriving early gave me plenty of time to visit World Duty Free.
If cheap airfares are your main concern, you’ll likely find the best deals through other London airports. By cheap I mean £30 one way or less to European destinations! However, these discount airlines tend to charge for choosing a seat, carrying luggage, checking in bags, and basically breathing on the plane – in our opinion. The seats also offer very little legroom.
Ryanair actually uses the whole concept of having to pay extra for everything as a unique selling point on their social media accounts. They didn’t apologize!
If you want a very clear comparison between Heathrow and Gatwick, that’s just one of many I outline (plus the cost differences) in my London Travel Planners.
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Let’s look at other options to consider regarding which London airport is the best to choose. This option will appeal to people traveling between London and other destinations in the UK or Europe.
London Stansted Airport
London Stansted provides access to 200 destinations in Europe, the Middle East and Africa. It has one main passenger terminal.
Regarding transport, Stansted Airport Train Station is in the terminal building. The Stansted Express runs to and from Liverpool Street in central London every 15 minutes when the train is running. If you book tickets online in advance, you can expect to pay from £9.90 one way between London Liverpool Street and Stansted Airport. This offer gives you completely flexible tickets.
You can travel on any train on your booked outbound date and can return any time within one month. This option is available up to 6 months in advance. Keep in mind availability is limited, so it’s best to book early.
The journey usually takes around 45-53 minutes. The busiest routes from Stansted Airport are: Dublin, Istanbul-Sabiha Gökçen, Edinburgh, Rome-Ciampino and Tenerife-South. The most popular airlines are below.
- British Airlines
- easyJet
- emirate
- Jet2.com
- Ryanair
- TUI Airlines
London Luton Airport
Luton is 45 miles north of Central London. It is the 5th busiest airport in the UK and has 1 terminal and one runway. Luton Airport is the location of easyJet’s base and head office. Most of the route goes through Europe. Generally, you will fly with the airlines below with very good ticket prices.
- easyJet
- Ryanair
- TUI Airlines
- Vueling
The fastest train between St Pancras station in Central London and Luton Airport Parkway train station takes 22 minutes, but the average takes 40 minutes. There is a 10 minute shuttle bus between the train station and the airport terminal. You can check National Rail for details, but a Super Off-Peak Single ticket is £13.10.
London City Airport
This airport was officially opened in 1987 and is quite small compared to other London airports. It has one two-story passenger terminal building. They claim you can get ‘From front door to gate in 30 minutes’.
British Airways (Club World) London City Service claims to be the smartest way to reach New York City. This exclusive business class service is the closest commercial flight to a private jet. You can also go through immigration on the way so you can skip the lines at JFK. There are only 32 seats on the plane.
London City Airport is busiest during the winter months. And the most popular destinations are: Amsterdam, Frankfurt, Dublin, Edinburgh, Zurich, Geneva and Milan. Airlines flying in and out of London City Airport are below.
- Air Lingus
- British Airlines
- Iberia
- KLM
- Lufthansa
- luxury
- Swiss International Air Lines
The most popular (and cheapest) transport option is the Docklands Light Railway. You can use a contactless card or Oyster card and connect easily to London Underground and London Overground. The Elizabeth Line can take you to Stratford or Canning Town and you can transfer to DLR for a short journey to London City Airport.
London Southend Airport
As the furthest ‘London’ airport, you’ll want to choose this airport if you’re planning a holiday on the east coast of England and renting a car.
The main rail link between the airport and London Liverpool Street is the Stansted Express. It is operated by Greater Anglia, with frequent departures (around four times per hour on weekdays) and journey times of around 45-48 minutes to the City. The airport has up to five services an hour during peak hours.
You can buy tickets at the station from ticket counters and ticket vending machines. Off-peak single fares start from £16.70 to Liverpool Road. They provide discounts for railcards, travelcards and groups.
Pre-booked fares can start from around £14–£17 one way. Standard rail discounts for eligible railcards and groups apply. Tickets can be purchased online, at the station ticket counter or from a ticket machine. You must have a valid ticket before boarding the flight as Oyster/pay-as-you-go contactless is not yet generally accepted on this service.
Final Thoughts
I hope that is one simple answer for everyone. If you are traveling alone to London on business and plan to stay mostly in the City area or Canary Wharf, then London City Airport is best for you.
Couples or families on holiday might consider Heathrow Airport and then Uber or Heathrow Express. Budget travelers with extra time will also consider Heathrow Airport, but then take the Elizabeth Line or Piccadilly Line to Central London. People traveling from the continent will probably use Gatwick, Stansted, Luton or London City with a train journey to Central London after landing.
For those who have visited London or live in London, which is the best airport to choose according to your circumstances? Do you consistently prefer one over the other? Do airline loyalty programs make a big difference? Is it due to time, budget and/or convenience?
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