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Rail

Travel to over 120 train stations directly from London Gatwick, offering unrivalled connectivity into London and the South East

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The UK's best connected airport

London Gatwick has the best ​train ​connections of any airport in Britain​ as we connect passengers to 120 train stations directly and over 700 within just ​one ​change.

The ​train ​station ​can be found ​at the South Terminal, just a five minutes walk from both departures and arrivals. ​It​ is easily accessible from the North Terminal ​too with our​ free shuttle​ service taking just two minutes​.

Passenger checking in after taking the train to London Gatwick, saving time

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Train services to and from London Gatwick

We are served by four train operators ​that ​directly connect you to over 120 stations across the UK, tickets for all of which can be purchased in advance from the National Rail website.

  • Southern provides services across London and the South-East, including London Victoria, London Bridge, Clapham Junction, Brighton, Southampton, Eastbourne and Portsmouth, ​and​ many​ more​ local stations. 
  • Thameslink connects London Gatwick to the south coast ​​of Brighton​ and​ ​C​entral London through London Bridge, St. Pancras International and Farringdon. ​This train then terminates in​ Bedford. ​The ​Thameslink also provides a direct train to Luton Airport Parkway. 
  • Great Western Railway runs an hourly service between Gatwick and Reading via Redhill, Reigate and Guildford. 

Image showing iconic red phone box in front of Thames and Big Ben
  • The Gatwick Express provides a non-stop service direct to London Victoria. Departing twice an hour, it takes just 30 minutes.
  • You can save 10% if you book online in advance directly through the Gatwick Express Website.
  • They also offer a wide range of discounted tickets, for example, save 34% with a GroupSave ticket if you are travelling in a group of 3-9 adults.
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  • Save 10% on the Gatwick Express

Purchasing train tickets at London Gatwick

With a number of options available to you, travelling by train to and from London Gatwick couldn't be easier. Not only can you purchase tickets in advance directly via any one of the operators mentioned above, or by visiting the National Rail website, but you can also purchase on the day tickets in the ticket hall located in the South Terminal.

Perhaps the most convenient way of all though is to simply tap in or out using your Oyster or Contactless payment card at the ticket gates.

To secure the best rates however, we would always recommend you book your train tickets as far in advance of your journey as possible.

Rail disruption
Like the rest of the country's network, occasionally rail services in and out of London Gatwick may be affected by strike action or planned engineering works. We recommend regularly checking this page to ensure you remain well informed of any potential disruption to your journey.

December 2023

Your travel to and from London Gatwick via rail during December may be disrupted. We recommend you plan your journey well in advance and consider alternative transportation options on the below dates if you feel your journey is likely to be affected.


Industrial Action

During the national ASLEF train drivers’ strike and overtime ban, between Friday 1 and Saturday 9 December there will be changes to train services across the rail network with different train companies being impacted on different days.

On all days, services will be extremely busy, queuing systems will be in place, and you may not be able to board your chosen train, so please leave plenty of extra time for your journey. Depending on queue length, it may not be possible to board late evening trains. Please plan with this in mind.

The dedicated Gatwick Express non-stop service between Victoria and Gatwick will not operate throughout this period. However, the Airport will continue to be served by Southern and Thameslink trains, but with alterations to those services every day as a result of the rolling period of industrial action. Further details below on the day-by-day impacts can be found below:

  • Friday 1st December - an amended timetable with fewer services across the entire network will be in place. This will help customers plan and offer more certainty with fewer short notice on-the-day alterations.  
  • Saturday 2nd December - a reduced Southern and Thameslink service will operate with a later start and earlier finish times, with no trains before 7am and last departures well before 10pm.  
  • Sunday 3rd December - there will be no Thameslink services operating. An amended Southern service will continue to serve the Airport, however, there will be fewer trains, with a later start and earlier finish times, with no trains before 7am and last departures well before 10pm.
  • Monday 4th December - an amended timetable with fewer services across the entire network will be in place, with a later start to Thameslink services due to the knock-on effect of the strike the day before.
  • Tuesday 5th December - an amended timetable with fewer services across the entire network will be in place. This will help customers plan and offer more certainty with fewer short notice on-the-day alterations.
  • Wednesday 6th December - there will be no Southern services operating, except for a limited shuttle service that will run between 7am and 11pm calling at London Victoria and Gatwick Airport only. This will not stop at any other stations and has been designed primarily to serve Airport travellers. There will be a limited Thameslink service running through Gatwick Airport all day.
  • Thursday 7th December - an amended timetable with fewer services across the entire network will be in place. This will help customers plan and offer more certainty with fewer short notice on-the-day alterations.
  • Friday 8th December - an amended timetable with fewer services across the entire network will be in place. This will help customers plan and offer more certainty with fewer short notice on-the-day alterations.
  • Saturday 9th December - a reduced Southern and Thameslink service will operate with a later start and earlier finish times, with no trains before 7am and last departures well before 10pm. 

As other train operators are also affected by this industrial action, with strikes taking place on different days, please plan your whole journey ahead of time to ensure your onward connections are available on the day you are travelling.


Christmas Travel

  • Christmas Eve Sunday 24th December - we expect train services to run as usual, but ending a bit earlier than normal.
  • Christmas Day Monday 25th December - no train services will run on Christmas Day.
  • Boxing Day Tuesday 26th December - Gatwick Express and Thameslink services will not run on Boxing Day, there will however be a limited service running between London Victoria and London Gatwick for part of the day (08:30 - 21:00), operated by Southern.
  • New Year's Eve Sunday 31st December - there will be no Thameslink services to and from London Victoria due to planned engineering works. We expect all other train services to run as usual, but ending a bit earlier than normal.

January 2024

As well as the below, rail travel to and from London Gatwick may be disrupted due to adverse weather conditions and we recommend you plan your journey well in advance.


Industrial Action

We are not aware of any planned industrial action in January 2024, however we do expect some disruption caused by planned engineering works. We will update this page with more information as it becomes available.


New Years Travel

  • New Year's Day Monday 1st January - there will be no Thameslink services to / from London Victoria due to planned engineering works. We expect all other train services to run as usual.

Alternative transport methods

On days with disrupted rail services, you may find that alternative methods of transport to London Gatwick will be busier than usual and so it is always best to plan well ahead:

By car

Pre-book your airport parking in advance as our car parks will be very busy, although we usually have additional capacity to cope with disruption to the surrounding rail network.

Pre-book Official London Gatwick Airport Parking


By taxi

Gatwick Cars Ltd is our official taxi provider and can be found outside both the North and South Terminals. Expect queues on days with sever rail disruption and pre-book your taxi in advance

to avoid long delays and disappointment

Pre-book a taxi online or Call +44 (0)1293 550000


By bus and coach

Metrobus offer local bus services around the London Gatwick area, with single fares capped at £2. This includes services to Redhill, where you can catch TfL bus 405 to Croydon and connecting buses or trams to Wimbledon and the District Line. You can buy tickets on board and contactless payment is also widely available.

National Express and The Airline by the Oxford Bus Company offer coach services from both terminals to Oxford, London Victoria Coach Station, Brighton and other destinations across England and Wales. You can use either company’s services to reach London Heathrow T5, where you can catch the Piccadilly or Elizabeth Line into central London.

We highly recommend booking coach tickets in advance of days with disruption as services are likely to sell out quickly.

Find out more about local and national buses


Car hire

A range of car rental companies operate from both North and South Terminals.

Find out more about car hire here