London City is London’s smallest airport, but it’s located very near Central London, in the Docklands area.
For most passengers, the Docklands Light Railway provides the best option, but read on for full details.
Docklands Light Railway (DLR)
The Docklands Light Railway (DLR) is a key part of East London’s travel infrastructure, and there’s a DLR station at the airport itself.
Taking the DLR is very easy – the automated trains run every 4 minutes. You can use Contactless payment as you would with any other regular transport in London.
In Central London, the DLR runs to Bank, where you can change for many other tube lines. However you may also wish to change at Canning Town (for the Jubilee Line) or Poplar (for other DLR trains to Canary Wharf and Stratford).
Read the detailed guide on how to take the DLR from London City here.
Bus
A number of regular London buses stop outside the terminal building. You need a contactless card or mobile device (such as Apple Pay or Google Pay) to ride the buses – simply board the bus at the front door and tap the reader. Anyone over 16 needs their own card or device, but under 16s travel free. The fare is £1.75.
Two buses that call at popular destinations are:
- 129 to North Greenwich (for the O2), Greenwich, Lewisham
- 473 to Stratford
To see full routes and timetables, use transit directions within Google/Apple Maps, or download the Citymapper app.
Taxi
As London City Airport is well within London itself, you can simply pick up a London taxi from the rank and ask the driver for any destination in London.
Alternatively, if you’d prefer to pre-book a taxi, you can use a car service such as Welcome Pickups, and the driver will be waiting for you at arrivals, holding a sign with your name on.