London Gatwick (LGW)

First of all, it's worth looking at the excellent Journey Planner website, if you're headed towards London. It will plot a route for you, using public transport, with timings, costs and detailed destination and walking route maps.

Gatwick Express (GX)

Runs every 30 minutes and takes 30 minutes into London Victoria. Details on the Gatwick Express website.

The station is in the South Terminal. Passengers for the South Terminal can walk to departures in a matter of minutes. Passengers for the North Terminal can use the inter-terminal transit (once again operational, following commissioning of new vehicles) which runs every few minutes, taking a few minutes, from platforms just by the entrance to the railway station.

Note that Gatwick Express is part of Govia (the same company operating Southern and Thameslink). Weekday Gatwick Express trains run between London-Brighton, so these will also be occupied by commuters.

Fares

• £20.70 single (ticket)
• £20.60 single (Oyster or contactless)
• £18.50 single (online)

Carnets and combination fares available, along with through tickets to London Underground destinations and the whole National Rail network. London Transport travelcards are not valid unless ticketed with origin "Gatwick Airport" with route "Any Permitted", or with a suitable extension fare, but railcard discounts are available. Look out for frequent pre-booked discount codes on this and the BA fora.

Pros:

• Gatwick Airport station is right in the South Terminal.
• Fast and comfortable, with good luggage storage.
• Takes you to Victoria, which is in South-West Central London, where you can change to the Tube (Victoria, Circle, District) or a taxi.
• GX + taxi can work out cheaper, and is almost always much faster than taxi all the way.

Cons:

• Expensive, particularly for multiple travellers (but see the 4 for 2 offer below!)
• If using electronic ticketing (oyster / contactless bank card / Apple-Android Pay) the fare for this trip is additional to the daily cap, whereas using other brand services the (lower) fare does count towards the daily cap.
• Not necessary faster than Southern trains. Gatwick Express trains are timetabled to take 30 minutes into Victoria while the fastest Southern trains, making two additional stops, are timetabled to take 31 minutes into Victoria.
• The taxi queues at Victoria can be long at peak times.

Tips:

• The end of the train closest to the platform entrance at Gatwick is pretty much the one closest to the platform entrance at Victoria. Of course, this means it can get rather crowded.
• This stretch of railway can suffer from engineering works, and delays at weekends. Do check in advance.
• Group tickets can save you significant sums of money if there are 3 or more travelling together.
• Gatwick Express trains and fast Southern trains run on the same track to Victoria, therefore it is always faster to take the first Southern fast train instead of letting it go and wait for a Gatwick Express train.

Southern (SN) trains

Runs approximately every 10 minutes and takes 31-35 minutes into London Victoria, calling at East Croydon and Clapham Junction en-route. Trains in the other direction go to various places on the Sussex coast, such as Southampton, Portsmouth, Littlehampton, Brighton, Eastbourne, Ore or Hastings. Details on the Southern Railway website.

Fare to London Victoria:

• £18.30 single (ticket)
• £16.50 peak / £9.00 off-peak (Oyster & contactless)

Through tickets are available to London Underground and other National Rail destinations. If the ticket is routed "Not Gatwick Express", it can be used on Southern or Thameslink trains. If the ticket is routed "Any Permitted", it can be used on all trains including Gatwick Express. London Transport travelcards are not valid unless ticketed with origin "Gatwick Airport" with route "Any Permitted" or "Not Gatwick Express", or with a suitable extension fare.

Pros:

• Gatwick Airport station is right in the South Terminal.
• Fast and frequent.
• Takes you to Victoria, which is in South-West Central London, where you can change to the Tube (Victoria, Circle, District) or a taxi.
• Takes you to Clapham Junction, which is a convenient transfer to other rail services to peripheral London avoiding the hassle of going down the deep-level tube line, or connections to South Western Railway and other Southern Services to SW London, South London, Surrey, Hampshire and beyond.
• Train + taxi can work out cheaper, and is almost always much faster than taxi all the way.
• Unlike Gatwick Express, the cheaper fare does count into the daily cap, which is £35.20 all day and £22.40 after 09:30 or on weekends.

Cons:

• Expensive, particularly for multiple travellers (but see the 4 for 2 offer below!)
• The luggage storage on Southern brand trains is limited. Some Southern' brand trains may run in 4-car formation (but usually these are combined to 8 or 12) with the front and rear car of each unit having 2+2 table seating, and the rest with 2+3 bench-type seating. The table seats do have more luggage storage between the seats, and you will find luggage racks near the carriage connectors.
• The trains are commuter trains, therefore they can be extremely crowded in peak hours.
• The taxi queues at Victoria can be long at peak times.

Tips:

• The end of the train closest to the platform entrance at Gatwick is pretty much the one closest to the platform entrance at Victoria. Of course, this means it can get rather crowded.
• This stretch of railway can suffer from engineering works, and delays at weekends. Do check in advance.
• Group tickets can save you significant sums of money if there are 3 or more travelling together.

Thameslink (TL) trains

Takes about 28-41 minutes to London Bridge, and 44-56 minutes to St Pancras on the fast trains, crossing the city centre in between. Fastest trains only call at East Croydon en-route before London Bridge. Trains continue to northern destinations such as Cambridge, Peterborough and Bedford. In the other direction, trains go to Horsham or Brighton. Details on the Thameslink website.

Fare to central London:

• £12.90 single (ticket)
• £16.50 peak / £9.00 off-peak (Oyster & contactless)

Note that a "London Terminals" ticket entitles travel to Victoria and London Bridge, Blackfriars and City Thameslink, and other southern London terminals. However, for travelling to Farringdon and St Pancras, a "London Thameslink" ticket is needed.

Through tickets are available to London Underground and other National Rail destinations. If the ticket is routed "Thameslink only", it can only be used on Thameslink trains. If the ticket is routed "Not Gatwick Express", it can be used on Southern or Thameslink trains. If the ticket is routed "Any Permitted", it can be used on all trains including Gatwick Express. London Transport travelcards are not valid unless ticketed with origin "Gatwick Airport", or with a suitable extension fare.

Pros:

• Gatwick Airport station is right in the South Terminal.
• Fast and frequent.
• The cheapest option to get to central London.
• Takes you to St Pancras, with connections to services to East Midlands and high-speed services to Kent and mainland Europe (Eurostar).
• Takes you to Farringdon, which is right in the central financial district.
• Takes you to London Bridge, which is a convenient transfer to other rail services to peripheral London avoiding the hassle of going down the deep-level tube line, or to Southeastern services for Kent.
• Unlike Gatwick Express, the cheaper fare does count into the daily cap, which is £35.20 all day and £22.40 after 09:30 or on weekends.
• The rail service runs 24 hours. During weekday overnight, the night services run on the Thameslink route, no overnight service to Victoria.

Cons:

• Thameslink brand services are either 8 or 12 coach - fixed formation.
• This is on a prime commuter route, and these are normal commuter services.

Tips:

• Check to see if your train is a fast or a slow (all stations) train. If it's slow, see when the next fast one is - it could well overtake it. This applies to trains branded Southern and Thameskink.
• In prior years, it was possible to use Express brand trains without pre purchase a ticket, and buy on board. This no longer applies. A valid ticket (or an electronic entry using oyster / contactless /,Apple-Android Pay) is needed on ALL services - failure to comply can incur a penalty and possibly prosecution.
• There are credit-card accepting ticket machines at many stations, including Gatwick Airport. However, the array of tickets available is dizzying, with time and railway company restrictions. Check you buy the right one.
• The ticket machines are also slightly misleading, in that the 'front page' they display 'encourages' you to use expensive services. Press the 'Other Destinations' button, re-select Victoria (or whichever station you are travelling to), and you will then get multiple pages with your ticket options.
• If you are travelling around the Southern Railway area at weekends (particularly the coast), they have some excellent print-at-home all-day ticket offers here. They require a week's pre-booking, but £20 for 2 adults and 2 kids for the entire network is a bargain.
• For day return tickets (which are generally very little more than singles), GroupSave tickets are the secret bargain of travel in London and South East England. All regular railways offer these tickets - you pay for 2 people, and up to 4 can travel. You have to ask for them specifically, but they apply to most regular (non-Airport Express) services in the region.
• If pre-booking a flexible (e.g. off-peak, anytime) ticket, it's worth checking if there's a cheaper ticket to/from Three Bridges than Gatwick. This can be the case, and you are entitled to split your journey on such fares.
• Services may be affected by engineering works, especially overnight and weekends.. Check before travelling.
• As a result of the strange way London zoning works on Oyster/contactless, it is about 35% cheaper (the exact saving depends on peak or off-peak) to catch a train from Gatwick to East Croydon, exit the ticket barriers (about 45 seconds walk) and immediately re-enter to catch the next train (or if you're really, really quick the same train!) to Central London. With the volume of trains running through East Croydon, this is very rarely a long wait.

GWR trains

As of December 2023, GWR trains run every half an hour via Guildford to Reading (except peak hours where some trains start and end at Redhill instead of Gatwick Airport).

Pros:

• Often the cheapest option heading to the West Counties.
• Provides a convenient interchange at Guildford and Reading stations to other long-distance services

Cons:

• GWR services don't run as regularly as going via Central London (every half an hour off-peak).

Rank Taxis

Note that Gatwick Airport is outside Greater London, so black cabs do not pick up here. Instead, the airport has an 'official' taxi company, Checker Cars.

Fares:

• Varies according to length of journey.
• Prices are fixed, rather than metered.

Pros:

• Checker Cars get a lot of business from Gatwick, so it's reasonably well regulated.
• They're convenient.
• They may be your only option for cheaper off-airport hotels.

Cons:

• More expensive than many pre-booked taxis.
• No black cab privileges, such as bus lane use.
• The road from Gatwick to London is very slow and very congested, once you get past the M25 (London Orbital Motorway). This can take 2, even 3 hours at peak times.

Private Hire Vehicles (minicabs)

Fares:

• Varies according to length of journey and company involved.
• Flyertalkers have noted Addison Lee and Airport Direct as options.

Pros:

• Cheaper than a rank taxi, and cheaper than the Gatwick Express in a large group.
• You will get met at arrivals.
• You can order MPV vehicles, usually seating up to 7.

Cons:

• Much lighter regulation than the official rank Taxis. While I personally have had nothing but good experiences with the companies mentioned above, it is extremely important only to deal with reputable private hire ('minicab') companies in London. The PCO (website above) has a licencing scheme, which is a good indicator. You can also go on personal recommendations. But, I cannot stress enough, do not just get into a 'taxi'. Black cabs are fine, decent minicab companies are fine. But there are instances of all sorts of problems reported in London, from dangerous vehicles and driving, through to armed robbery and rape in illegal minicabs. Never take a taxi from a tout.
• Credit cards are not generally accepted.
• You are still subject to the vagaries of London traffic, without the ability to use bus lanes.

Tips:

• Private hire companies are not bound by per-mile or other fee regulations. Always agree a price beforehand.
• Unless you specify otherwise, a car will sit 3, 4 at a push.
• 7am-10am and 4pm-7pm are the peak times in London. Yes, they are that long. Be warned.

Coach Links

National Express run a series of coach (bus) services to Central London from Gatwick, mostly from the South Terminal. They also run direct, long-distance buses further afield.

easyBus now also serve Gatwick.

Fares:

• Search on the National Express website above for fare details, as these vary according to many factors.

Pros:

• Opens up a number more direct destinations within London, and around. Of particular interest are:
  1. Heathrow Airport
  2. Luton Airport (this does take a long time)
  3. Stansted Airport (this does take a long time)
• Dedicated luggage storage.
• Reasonably priced option, particularly on longer distances.

Cons:

• Again, traffic.
• Also, for longer distances, they're not always the most comfortable.

Tips:

• You can book e-tickets online, using the National Express website.
• You can also pay the driver, but it's cash only and subject to availability.
• There is a National Express ticket office at Gatwick, but it's not open 24 hours.
• If you wish to be dropped off at Victoria Railway Station (as opposed to Victoria Coach Station, where the service usually terminates), you can only do so if you have all your luggage in the bus with you (not stored underneath).

Bus Links

There are a number of bus links around Gatwick, if you are headed to the local area. These are run by Metrobus, and a map of services is here, a description here.

Fares:

• Varies according to distance.

Pros:

• Cheaper than a taxi for local journeys.

Cons:

• Very limited selection of routes.

Tips:

• Have change ready!