London has five airports and a dozen mainline terminals, but a wedding party rarely needs to master all of them. What matters is which airport each group of guests lands at, which station that airport feeds, and how far that station is from the venue. This guide follows that chain for the four areas where most of our London venues sit: Mayfair, St James’s, Strand and Covent Garden, and Marylebone. For the journey once guests are in town, see getting guests around a London wedding.
Five airports, five routes into town
Heathrow is the one most overseas guests will use. The Heathrow Express reaches Paddington in 15 minutes from Terminals 2 and 3, with six minutes more from Terminal 5, and runs every 15 minutes. Terminal 4 passengers use a free transfer. The Elizabeth line also serves the airport and reaches Paddington, Bond Street, Tottenham Court Road, Farringdon and Liverpool Street in under 40 minutes, according to Heathrow. The Piccadilly line takes under an hour and calls at Leicester Square, Piccadilly Circus and King’s Cross St Pancras.
Gatwick has the Gatwick Express, a non-stop service to Victoria that takes 30 minutes and runs twice an hour. Southern trains also serve Victoria, and Thameslink runs to London Bridge, Blackfriars, City Thameslink, Farringdon and St Pancras International. The airport quotes 30 to 45 minutes to London on these services.
Stansted is served by the Stansted Express to Liverpool Street, quoted at 48 to 50 minutes, with trains every 15 minutes. The last departure for Liverpool Street is at 00:30, which matters for guests on late flights.
Luton has a four minute automated shuttle, running around the clock, between the terminal and Luton Airport Parkway station. From there the Luton Airport Express runs non-stop to St Pancras International in 22 to 32 minutes, and Thameslink continues through Farringdon, City Thameslink, Blackfriars and London Bridge.
London City has its own DLR station. Transport for London’s live departures show direct trains to Bank, Stratford International and Woolwich Arsenal. By taxi, One Aldwych records about 30 minutes to its door.
Which station, and why the Elizabeth line matters
Each airport feeds a different terminus: Paddington for Heathrow Express, Victoria for the Gatwick Express, Liverpool Street for Stansted, and St Pancras International for Luton by the Luton Airport Express. Guests arriving by Eurostar use St Pancras International, where St Pancras Renaissance Hotel London sits directly above the station. The hotel records Luton as 25 minutes by train, Gatwick as 44 and Heathrow as 60 by Piccadilly line, and says Chambers Suite guests have a complimentary Eurostar transfer, requested 72 hours ahead.
For most central venues, the Elizabeth line is the simplest answer for Heathrow guests, because it stops at Bond Street and Tottenham Court Road, which are the nearest stations to several of the venues below. Give guests the operator’s current timetable rather than a rule of thumb, as journey times change with the time of day and with engineering works.
Mayfair and St James’s
Bond Street and Green Park do most of the work here. Claridge’s is a five minute walk from Bond Street on the Central and Jubilee lines, and ten minutes from Oxford Circus. It gives Heathrow at about 50 minutes by car and Gatwick at about 1 hour 30 minutes, and the concierge arranges private cars to and from the London airports. The Connaught is also five minutes from Bond Street, with Green Park ten minutes away, and offers chauffeur-driven transfers from Heathrow and Gatwick.
The May Fair is two minutes’ walk from Green Park. In St James’s, Spencer House overlooks Green Park and is a few minutes’ walk from the station, while Sofitel London St James is five minutes from Piccadilly Circus and eight from Charing Cross, with space outside for limousine or coach drop off. 116 Pall Mall puts Piccadilly Circus five minutes away and Charing Cross ten, and Heathrow about 35 minutes by car.
Claridge’s and The Connaught both record Flexjet helicopter transfers to the London Heliport in Battersea for guests in their upper suite categories, with 72 hours’ notice. That is a service for a handful of guests, not for a guest list.
Strand, Covent Garden and Marylebone
Around Covent Garden, One Aldwych is five minutes on foot from both Covent Garden and Embankment stations. Its record gives Heathrow and Gatwick at about 60 and 75 minutes by taxi, and St Pancras International at about 30. The Londoner is about 170 metres from Leicester Square station, and The Groucho Club lists Tottenham Court Road on the Central, Northern and Elizabeth lines. The Savoy is recorded with Embankment as its nearest station and with boat access.
In Marylebone, Great Portland Street is the station for One Marylebone and The Greenhouses, both of which give Heathrow at 45 minutes by road. The Wallace Collection is seven minutes from Bond Street, ten to fifteen from Marylebone station and twenty to twenty five on foot from Paddington, so guests arriving at Paddington will want a taxi or a change at Bond Street. The London EDITION, on Berners Street, is near Oxford Circus and Tottenham Court Road and describes itself as well connected by the Elizabeth line.
Cars, transfers and the late journey back
Road times vary more than rail times. The venues above give Heathrow at between 35 minutes and an hour by road, so ask your venue for the figure at the hour your guests will actually travel. For rail guests, the schedules above are the better guide.
At the end of the night, the Night Tube runs on Friday and Saturday nights on the Central, Jubilee, Northern, Piccadilly and Victoria lines, and on the Windrush line, according to Transport for London. Check service status on the day, because engineering works can close a line on a given weekend. For the weekend around the wedding, where guests stay sets out which London venues have rooms, and exclusive use in London and London venue costs cover the other planning questions. You can browse every London venue on our London page.
Questions couples ask
Which airport is best for a London wedding?
Usually Heathrow for overseas guests, because the Elizabeth line reaches central London in under 40 minutes and the Heathrow Express reaches Paddington in 15. Gatwick, Stansted and Luton suit guests on particular airlines, and London City suits those flying from nearby European cities.
Can the venue organise airport transfers?
Several of ours say so, including Claridge’s, The Connaught and St Pancras Renaissance Hotel London. Ask for a quote that covers the whole guest list, not only the couple.
Updated 31 October 2026
