No public tour bus visits Heathrow!
OK, let’s get one thing clear first, the answer to the most common question from people on a layover at Heathrow Airport.
Currently, there are no sightseeing tours available that offer pick-up from Heathrow or its nearby hotels to take you on a tour of London, or any other location for that matter.
To enjoy a public tour of London, you’ll first need to take public transport to the city center. Once there, you can join a tour, or you have the option to set up your own private sightseeing experience.
Heathrow – Central London public transport options
Visit our Heathrow Airport to Central London transfer page for more information on transport options.
London Underground from Heathrow
Most travellers making their way between Heathrow and Central London for layover sightseeing prefer the London Underground. It’s not only the most affordable transportation option but also provides direct access to the attractions.
Heathrow’s underground trains depart approximately every 5 minutes during the day. Operating from around 5:30 am until midnight, with slightly reduced schedules on Sundays.
There are 3 stations at Heathrow covering all 5 passenger terminals.
Visit our Heathrow Airport’s London Underground page for more information.
Hop-on, hop-off sightseeing tours of London from Heathrow
The most popular way of seeing London’s sights in a short space of time are London’s Hop on, Hop Off sightseeing buses.
Sightseeing tours of London are dominated by London’s three hop-on, hop-off open top sightseeing operators:
- Tootbus
- Big Bus
- Golden Tours
Visit our Comparing London’s hop-on hop-off sightseeing buses page for more information.
Keep in mind that it takes a minimum of 3 hours to complete a full lap of the main sightseeing route on these buses, even if you don’t get on or off.
Currently, we recommend Tootbus as a great option for travellers coming from Heathrow.
From Heathrow the Piccadilly Line of the London Underground stops at Gloucester Road, Knightsbridge, Hyde Park Corner and Green Park Stations in a journey time of between 30 and 45 minutes. Furthermore, Tootbus stops outside all of these stations.
Tootbus Hop-On Bus & Guided Walking Tours
Tootbus London Discovery tickets + Vox City guided walking tours
- Choose from 24, 48 or 72-hr tickets
- Audio guide in 5 languages
- 2 professionally guided walking tours: The Wizard Walk – Harry Potter Walking Guided Tour and The Royals and Landmarks – Walking Guided Tour
Tours of London from Heathrow Terminals & Hotels by London black taxi (Maximum 5 People)
The least hassle and most straight forward way to get a good look at London’s iconic sights from Heathrow is to let one of London’s famous black taxi cabs and one of their equally famous cabbies show you around London.
The tour departs and returns to your hotel at Heathrow or passenger terminal and you decide where you would like to visit.
Alternatively let your cabbie suggest an itinerary for you. Luggage can be carried as well. For full details of this opportunity, visit our London sightseeing tours & tour transfers from Heathrow Airport page.
Windsor – an alternative to London as a stopover, closer & more convenient
If your priority is to just find something more pleasurable than killing time between flights in an airport terminal then Windsor is a great alternative to London, it is very close to Heathrow.
Public buses run from Terminal 5 frequently stopping outside Windsor Castle, but there is much more to Windsor and Eton than the castle.
If you have luggage we have a solution that takes care of that too.
Visit our Windsor late flight/Heathrow stopover page for more information.
Semi independent & guided tours from Heathrow for individuals or large groups
We can customise a day to remember reflecting your interests and time available. We can offer solutions for one or two people with a friendly driver right up to a formal coach tour for large groups requiring a formal tour with top grade guides and attraction tickets included.
Visit our Private tours & tour transfers page for more information.
Main Sightseeing Destinations From Heathrow
Approximate travelling time shown in minutes.
