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How-to

How to get to Luton Airport from central London

Thameslink + DART shuttle, East Midlands Railway, or Green Line coach — the options for getting to LTN, plus what changed when Luton DART opened.

5 min readPublished 9 Jun 2026

Thameslink + Luton DART

The most reliable route since the Luton DART automated shuttle opened in 2023. Take any Thameslink train to Luton Airport Parkway (St Pancras → ~25 min, Farringdon, Blackfriars, London Bridge), then the DART runs every few minutes and takes 3 minutes 40 seconds straight to the terminal. Combined journey ~45–55 minutes.

East Midlands Railway

Faster trains from St Pancras to Luton Airport Parkway (~22 minutes) — same DART connection. Usually pricier than Thameslink.

Green Line 757 coach

From Victoria Coach Station. ~1h 15m–1h 45m. Runs 24/7. From £10 booked ahead.

Taxi

£70–£110. M1 traffic makes this unpredictable.

Tip

The DART replaces the old slow shuttle bus. Your train ticket may include the DART fare if booked as a "Luton Airport" through-ticket — check before buying a separate DART ticket.