Heathrow to Gatwick: Coach, Train or Taxi

London’s two biggest airports, Heathrow to the west and Gatwick to the south, are about 45 miles apart, and the direct coach between them takes about an hour from around £15; the train through central London takes an hour and a half to two hours, and a pre-booked taxi 45 to 70 minutes, all of it before checking in again.

The direct coach from Heathrow to Gatwick takes about an hour

National Express runs the only direct public service between the two airports, up to 56 coaches a day from about 12:40am to 10:40pm. At Heathrow they leave from the Central Bus Station, between Terminals 2 and 3, and also stop at Terminals 4 and 5; at Gatwick they call at both the North and South Terminals. The ride takes about an hour, as little as 50 minutes from Terminal 5 and longer when the M25, the motorway round London, is busy, and fares start at about £15 one way, booked ahead, with one large suitcase or two medium ones included.

The train runs through central London, not round it

There is no direct railway between the airports, so the train means two journeys and a change in London. The quickest pairing is the Heathrow Express to Paddington, 15 minutes from Terminals 2 and 3 or 21 from Terminal 5, then across to Victoria by taxi or the Underground, and the Gatwick Express from Victoria, about 30 minutes to the airport, twice an hour. The cheaper pairing is the Elizabeth line, London’s east-west railway, from Heathrow to Farringdon, then a Thameslink train, the north-south line through the city, to Gatwick. Either way, allow an hour and a half to two hours from platform to terminal, with the stairs and escalators of two London stations in between; Heathrow Express tickets booked ahead cost less than on the day.

Gatwick’s two terminals and the free shuttle between them

Gatwick has two terminals, North and South, joined by a free shuttle train every few minutes, a ride of about two minutes. The railway station is at the South Terminal, so a train arrival for a flight from the North Terminal means one more ride; the coach stops at both.

Check the departing terminal on the airline’s booking before setting out, and the Gatwick guide covers the airport itself.

A long gap between flights in London

With six hours or more between landing at Heathrow and leaving from Gatwick, the train route passes through the middle of London, and the main London guide covers a few hours in Westminster on the way. A luggage storage point near Paddington or Victoria leaves the cases out of the walk.

How much time to leave between the two flights

Allow at least three to four hours from landing at Heathrow to departure from Gatwick: passport control and baggage reclaim can take an hour, the transfer one to two, and Gatwick needs bags checked and passengers through security again well before the flight. On separate tickets, the airline won’t wait or rebook for free if the coach is stuck on the M25, so the longer the gap, the better.