London Luton Airport to London Bridge
London Bridge is about 62 km from Luton Airport. Direct Thameslink trains from Luton Airport Parkway take about 49 minutes, plus the 4-minute DART. Advance fares start around £11.40 including the DART. Late at night, use Blackfriars instead.
Bankside, the City offices and hotels south of the river are all served by one direct train. Thameslink runs from Luton Airport Parkway through St Pancras and Farringdon, crosses the Thames and stops at London Bridge without a change. You need the DART at the airport end, and you need to check times after about 23:30, when the London Bridge trains stop.
How far is London Bridge from London Luton Airport?
London Bridge is 62 km (39 miles) from London Luton Airport by road, about 1h by car outside rush hour. In a straight line it is 45 km. By public transport, National Express A1/A2/A31 + Tube takes about 1h 40m including a change and costs £7.
Every way to get there
Our verdict: National Express A1/A2/A31 + Tube is the cheapest way at £7 (1h 40m, with a change on the way). A private transfer from £75 saves roughly 25 min and takes you to the door. Timetable: 24/7.
What it costs for your group
The bus / shuttle is charged per person, while a private transfer is one price for the whole car — so the more of you there are, the better door-to-door value looks.
| Group | Bus / shuttle (per person) | Private transfer (per car) | Best value |
|---|---|---|---|
| Solo · 1 traveller | £7 | £75 | Bus / shuttle |
| Couple · 2 travellers | £14 | £75 | Bus / shuttle |
| Family of 4 · 4 travellers | £28 | £75 | Bus / shuttle |
Which option should you choose?
| If your priority is… | Our pick | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Lowest price | National Express A1/A2/A31 + Tube | From £7, about 1h 40m, with a change on the way. |
| Speed | Luton DART + Thameslink (direct) | 55 min, from £11.4. |
| A group of 4 | National Express A1/A2/A31 + Tube | Four tickets still come to about £28 — less than a car. |
| A late-night arrival | National Express A1/A2/A31 + Tube | It runs through the night (Up to 47 a day). |
By transport mode
Train
Average 49 min from Parkway. Advance from £6.50 plus £4.90 DART. Some southbound trains go via Elephant & Castle instead, so check the board.
Where to catch it: DART from the terminal front to Luton Airport Parkway, then southbound Thameslink
Times: About 05:27–23:36 for London Bridge; the night service runs to Blackfriars only
Best for budget travellers near a stationBus / shuttle
Coaches run to Baker Street, Marble Arch and Victoria only, so you then cross London by Tube (extra fare).
Where to catch it: Airport bus station, stands R and S
Times: 24/7
Best for solo & budget travellersPrivate transfer
Price per car, not per person, which suits small groups and late arrivals after the London Bridge trains stop.
Where to catch it: Arrivals hall meeting point. Confirm the £7 pick-up zone fee is included.
Times: 24/7
Best for families, groups & late arrivalsTaxi
Metered. No published fixed fare to London. Estimate only.
Where to catch it: Taxi rank beyond bus bay A
Times: 24/7
Best for small groups in a hurryLondon Bridge & London in photos
Buying tickets in London
Luton DART: buy a single at lutondart.com and keep it as a mobile wallet pass or PDF, or tap a contactless card at the barriers. Oyster cards are not accepted. An adult single is £4.90, a child (5–15) £2.45, and under-5s ride free. If you buy a National Rail ticket to or from Luton Airport with Thameslink, East Midlands Railway or Luton Airport Express, the DART is already included. A ticket to Luton Airport Parkway does not include it.
Trains: Advance fares from Luton Airport Parkway start at £6.50 on Thameslink and £10 on the Luton Airport Express, before the DART is added. Advance tickets tie you to one train. For a flight that could be delayed, an Off-Peak or Anytime ticket is the safer choice. Thameslink offers a third off for groups of 3 to 9 adults.
Coaches: book National Express at nationalexpress.com or in its app. The £1.50 booking fee is waived if you are logged in to My Account. Greenline 757 tickets are sold at the airport and London Victoria sales desks, online, or from the driver. Both operators sell tickets at the Onward Travel Centre just past Arrivals. Local Arriva and Stagecoach buses take contactless payment, and single fares are as low as £3.
Taxi scams & safety in London
Official taxis: the only rank is the one marked just beyond bus bay A, outside the terminal. The vehicles are Luton Borough Council-licensed hackney carriages on a meter. Before you set off on a long run, ask the driver for an estimate, because no fixed fare to London is published. Turn down anyone who offers a ride inside the terminal. Licensed private-hire cars cannot pick up unless you have booked them.
Pre-booked cars and lifts: the forecourt Drop Off and Pick Up Zone costs £7 for 10 minutes and then £1 a minute. Drivers usually pass this charge on, so ask whether your quote includes it. The free alternative is the Long Stay car park, which a free 24-hour shuttle bus links to the terminal about every 20 minutes.
Ticket traps: buying a train ticket from "Luton Airport Parkway" instead of "Luton Airport" leaves you £4.90 short at the DART barrier. Advance train and coach fares only cover the booked departure. On National Express Standard fares you can switch to a similar coach within 3 hours either side of your booked time.
Step-free access in London
The Luton DART is fully accessible and step-free between Luton Airport Parkway and the terminal entrance. Disability badge holders and older person's bus pass holders ride the DART free, but they must register first on the Luton DART concessions page and upload proof. Approval can take up to 72 hours.
- If you book assistance through your airline, the DART team will help with the connection between terminal and station.
- For help on the train, contact the Luton Airport Express (East Midlands Railway) or Thameslink assisted-travel teams directly.
- Scheduled coaches stop right outside the terminal, and all bus stops are 50–100 metres from the entrance. Check with the coach or bus operator that your service is accessible.
Getting from LTN to London Bridge
A through train to the river
For the City, Southwark or a meeting near the Shard, Luton is better connected than people expect. Southbound Thameslink trains from Luton Airport Parkway run straight through central London: St Pancras, Farringdon, City Thameslink, Blackfriars, then London Bridge. The airport gives an average of 49 minutes from Parkway to London Bridge. Add about four minutes on the DART and a few more for connections, and an hour from terminal to concourse is a realistic estimate.
Step by step at the airport
Follow the DART signs from Arrivals. The shuttle runs from the terminal front to Luton Airport Parkway, up to every four minutes at busy times. Your rail ticket should be to or from Luton Airport, because that includes the £4.90 DART. Contactless also works at the DART barriers. At Parkway, take any Thameslink train heading south towards Brighton, Gatwick, Three Bridges, Horsham or Rainham. The Luton Airport Express does not go to London Bridge. It terminates at St Pancras.
Check the departure board before boarding. Not every Thameslink train stops at every station, and some southbound services run via Elephant & Castle instead of London Bridge.
Price
Thameslink Advance fares start at £6.50 from Parkway, which comes to about £11.40 with the DART. For business travel, an Anytime or Off-Peak ticket is the sensible choice, because an Advance ticket is tied to one train and a delayed flight would make you buy again. On the Luton Airport Express, for example, Off-Peak tickets into London are valid on weekday trains arriving at or after 10:03, and all weekend. Thameslink has its own off-peak rules, so check them when you buy. If three or more of you are travelling together, Thameslink's group fare takes a third off for 3–9 adults.
The late-night gap
According to the airport's figures, trains between Parkway and London Bridge run from about 05:27 to 23:36. The same table shows Blackfriars served through the night but London Bridge not, so treat late-night London Bridge trains as unavailable unless the live timetable shows one. If you land late:
- take the night Thameslink to Blackfriars, then cross the river by night bus or taxi, or
- take a coach to Victoria (National Express A2 overnight, or Greenline 757) and continue from there.
Neither is elegant. A pre-booked car on that night is reasonable, especially if you are staying in Bermondsey or along the South Bank.
Coaches and London Bridge
No Luton coach goes to London Bridge. National Express and Greenline both use the west side of London (Baker Street, Marble Arch, Victoria). If you take the £7 coach, you then need about 20–30 minutes on the Tube across the centre. The coach only saves money if time doesn't matter to you.
A car
From the M1, the drive goes through the centre or around the North Circular, and at rush hour it is the slowest of all the options. A pre-booked sedan quoted at £75–£120 is still useful for groups, because the price is per car rather than per person: three colleagues with cabin bags and a fixed fare can get a predictable expense claim. Agree the price in advance and confirm whether it includes the airport pick-up zone charge. The metered cabs waiting past bus bay A have no fixed London fare and will probably cost more.
Tips
- Farringdon, three stops before London Bridge, connects to the Elizabeth line for Canary Wharf.
- Travelling back to Luton, any northbound Thameslink to Bedford, Luton or Peterborough that stops at Luton Airport Parkway will do. Check "Luton Airport Parkway" on the board before you board.
Back to the airport
Northbound, the airport's table lists the first Luton-bound train from London Bridge at about 05:27 and the last at about 23:36. Allow roughly 49 minutes to Luton Airport Parkway, then about four minutes on the DART. For an early flight before the first train, take any service from Blackfriars, a short walk across the river, where the table shows trains through the night. Buy a ticket to Luton Airport rather than Luton Airport Parkway so the DART is included.
LTN to London Bridge — FAQ
How far is Luton Airport from London Bridge?
Is there a direct train?
What is the cheapest way?
What is the fastest way?
How much is a taxi?
When is the last train to London Bridge?
I land after midnight. What are my options?
Sources
Fares and times on this page were last held against their official sources on 21 October 2026. Operators change prices without notice — if you spot a difference, the operator’s own page is the authority. How we check fares.
- London Luton Airport – trains to and from London (Thameslink/EMR table, 26 Mar 2026) · checked 2026-10-21
- London Luton Airport – Luton Airport Express (EMR) times and fares · checked 2026-10-21
- Luton DART – tickets and fares · checked 2026-10-21
- Luton DART – service summary (frequency, hours, contactless) · checked 2026-10-21
- London Luton Airport – coaches to central London (NX A1/A2/A31, Greenline 757, bays) · checked 2026-10-21
- National Express – Luton Airport to London · checked 2026-10-21
- MyTransfers – Luton Airport to London city centre (private sedan) · checked 2026-10-21
- City Airport Taxis – Luton Airport to London City Centre · checked 2026-10-21
Other destinations from London Luton Airport
