# Getting from London City into London

The DLR station is joined to London City's terminal by a lift. Trains run direct to Bank, in the City of London, or to Canning Town for the Jubilee line to London Bridge, Waterloo and Westminster. A black cab waits outside.

- Web page: https://londonlayover.com/london-city/getting-to-the-city/
- Guide: [London City Layover](https://londonlayover.com/london-city/), an independent layover guide to London City Airport (LCY), part of City Layover
- Updated 7 November 2026; facts checked 7 November 2026

## What's the best way from London City into central London?

Take the DLR from London City: about 23 minutes direct to Bank, in the City of London, for £3.30 off-peak with a contactless card. For Westminster, London Bridge or Waterloo, change at Canning Town to the Jubilee line: 23 to 26 minutes to Westminster for the same fare. A black cab into the City costs about £21 to £42 by day on weekdays. Allow 30 minutes from landing to the train, and be back at the airport 2 hours before departure.

## At a glance

- **DLR to Bank**: About 23 min, £3.30 off-peak
- **DLR and Jubilee line**: 23 to 26 min to Westminster, £3.30
- **Black cab**: About £21 to £42 by day, 16 to 40 min
- **London Cable Car**: 11 to 13 min away, £7 one way
- **First train**: 5:25am (6:55am on Sundays)
- **Fast Track**: None at London City

## Getting through the border

Every international arrival at London City Airport (LCY) passes UK border control, connecting passengers included, because the airport has no transfer area. London City says it's 15 minutes from plane to train; this guide allows 30 minutes from landing to sitting on the DLR, since taxiing in and the queue at the border aren't timed.

- **eGates** are the quicker way through if you're 8 or older and at least 120 cm tall (8 to 17-year-olds with an adult), and British or Irish, or from the EU, Australia, Canada, Iceland, Japan, Liechtenstein, New Zealand, Norway, Singapore, South Korea, Switzerland or the US with a valid ETA, eVisa or digital record.
- **Everyone else** sees a Border Force officer.
- **Fast Track**: London City doesn't run one. Its FAQ puts security at about 5 minutes on average.
- **Bags**: on separate tickets, or if your bags aren't checked through, you'll collect them in the arrivals hall. There's no left luggage at the airport, so take them with you or store them in town.

## The options at a glance

| | DLR to Bank | DLR and Jubilee line | Black cab |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| To | Bank, for St Paul's and the City | Canning Town, then London Bridge, Waterloo, Westminster, Green Park | Anywhere |
| Time | About 23 min | 18 to 22 min to London Bridge, 23 to 26 to Westminster | About 16 to 40 min into the City |
| Single fare | £3.30 off-peak, £3.90 peak | £3.30 off-peak, £3.90 peak | About £21 to £42 by day on weekdays |
| Pay with | Contactless, Oyster | Contactless, Oyster | Card, contactless, cash |

## DLR: the quickest way into the City

- **From the terminal**: London City Airport station is on the Docklands Light Railway, with a lift from the platforms to the terminal and step-free trains. The airport says trains leave every 4 to 10 minutes depending on where they're going. On TfL's Journey Planner, the train to Bank runs every 10 minutes and another to Stratford International every 10 in between.
- **To Bank**: about 23 minutes, direct, on TfL's planner (London City says 21). From Bank it's a 10-minute walk to St Paul's Cathedral, and the Central line runs on to Holborn and Tottenham Court Road.
- **To the Tower**: Tower Gateway is 26 to 27 minutes away, with a change at Canning Town or Westferry, and 2 minutes on foot from Tower Hill.
- **To Greenwich**: Cutty Sark is 31 to 37 minutes away by DLR, with a change at Poplar, Canary Wharf or Westferry.
- **Fares**: the airport is in Zone 3. On TfL's single fares from 1 November 2026, central London (Zone 1) costs £3.30 off-peak and £3.90 at the peak, Monday to Friday from 6:30am to 9:30am; Cutty Sark £2.30 off-peak; a cash ticket £7.00. Tap a contactless card or phone in and out.

The first trains leave London City Airport at 5:25am from Monday to Saturday and 6:55am on Sundays. These are TfL's Journey Planner times for November 2026; each cell gives the last train or Tube back from that station that still reaches the airport the same night.

| Last trains back from | Monday to Friday | Saturday | Sunday |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Bank (DLR, direct) | 12:33am | 12:33am | 11:33pm |
| Tower Gateway | 12:30am | 12:30am | 11:19pm |
| Cutty Sark | 12:15am | 12:14am | 11:14pm |

Times after midnight are the early hours of the next day. The last DLR reaches the airport at about 12:56am, or 11:57pm on Sundays, but London City's terminal closes at 10pm (1pm on Saturdays), so in practice your flight sets the time, not the trains. Planned engineering works change these times, mostly at weekends, so check TfL on the day.

## DLR and Jubilee line: Westminster and the South Bank

- **The change**: ride the DLR 6 to 7 minutes to **Canning Town** and change to the Jubilee line, westbound for central London.
- **Times from the airport**: North Greenwich 10 to 13 minutes, London Bridge 18 to 22, Southwark 20 to 23, Waterloo 21 to 25, Westminster 23 to 26, Green Park 25 to 28 and Bond Street 27 to 30, on TfL's planner for a weekday in November 2026.
- **Fare**: the same as to Bank, £3.30 off-peak to Zone 1.

| Last trains back from | Monday to Friday | Saturday | Sunday |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| North Greenwich | 12:43am | 12:41am | 11:41pm |
| London Bridge | 12:34am | 12:33am | 11:32pm |
| Waterloo | 12:31am | 12:30am | 11:29pm |
| Westminster | 12:30am | 12:28am | 11:27pm |

Each is the Jubilee line to Canning Town, then the last DLR to the airport.

## Taxis, Uber and pre-booked cars

- **Black cabs** wait at the rank outside the terminal. They're metered: TfL's fare card from 25 April 2026 puts a 4-mile ride at £21 to £31 and 16 to 30 minutes on weekdays from 5am to 8pm, and a 6-mile ride at £33 to £42 and 28 to 40 minutes. London City says the City of London is 5 miles away, so expect something between the two, and more in the evening, at weekends and at night. There's no extra charge from the London City rank, but £6 is added for dropping off at the terminal forecourt on the way back. Every cab takes cards and contactless.
- **Uber and minicabs** collect from the pick-up area in the Short Stay car park, not the forecourt.
- **Pre-booked transfers** give a fixed price agreed in advance and a driver who meets you. GetYourGuide lists several London City transfers; check where the driver waits before you book.

A car beats the DLR mainly when you're a group or carrying bags you can't store; for one person into the City, the train is quicker in traffic and costs a fraction.

## The cable car and Greenwich, closer than the centre

The **London Cable Car** crosses the Thames from the Royal Docks to Greenwich Peninsula, and its terminal is a 3-minute walk from Royal Victoria DLR, 11 to 13 minutes from the airport with a change at Canning Town. TfL runs it from 8am to 9pm Monday to Thursday, 9am to 10pm on Friday, 9am to 11pm on Saturday and 9am to 9pm on Sundays and bank holidays, closed on Christmas Day. A crossing takes up to 10 minutes, and TfL's ticket shop listed a one-way adult ticket at £7 and a child's at £3.50 (seen November 2026). GetYourGuide sells London Cable Car tickets. Greenwich itself, with its free National Maritime Museum, is the DLR's other short trip: see our [itineraries](https://londonlayover.com/london-city/itineraries/).

## Storing bags

London City has no left-luggage service. The Tower of London refuses suitcases and has no left luggage, St Paul's refuses bags bigger than 45 x 30 x 25 cm and has no cloakroom, and Tate Modern turns away anything bigger than a cabin bag. The Tower and St Paul's both point visitors to Stasher's app-booked storage nearby, so drop a case before your first stop rather than carry it round.

## Timing your return

Be back at the airport **2 hours before departure**, with your onward boarding pass. At London City that's a generous margin: the airport puts entry to gate at about 20 minutes and asks passengers to arrive no more than 2 hours before their flight. Check-in desks open 2 hours before departure, and British Airways closes check-in 30 minutes before its London City flights. Coming back, you go through security only, as the UK has no exit passport control.

| Layover | Time in town |
|---|---|
| 4 hours | About 1 hour, on the cable car |
| 6 hours | About 2.5 hours |
| 8 hours | About 4.5 hours |
| 10 hours | About 6.5 hours |
| 12 hours | About 8.5 hours |

The times assume 30 minutes from landing to the train, about 30 minutes each way into central London by the DLR and the Jubilee line (about 20 to the cable car), and 2 hours back at the airport. Use our [layover length guide](https://londonlayover.com/london-city/) to see what fits.

## Questions people ask

### Is the DLR or a taxi better from London City?

The DLR, for most layovers. It reaches Bank in about 23 minutes for £3.30 off-peak, with trains every 10 minutes, and changes at Canning Town for the Jubilee line to Westminster. A black cab into the City takes about 16 to 40 minutes and costs about £21 to £42 by day on weekdays, so it suits a group or heavy bags.

### How long does it take to get out of London City after landing?

London City says 15 minutes from plane to train. This guide allows 30 minutes from landing, for taxiing in and any queue at the border, which the airport doesn't publish.

### Can I pay with a contactless card on the DLR?

Yes. Tap the same contactless card or phone in and out. The off-peak fare from London City to central London is £3.30; London City's DLR desk doesn't sell Oyster cards.

### How do I get from London City to the London Cable Car?

Take the DLR to Royal Victoria, changing at Canning Town: 11 to 13 minutes on TfL's planner, then a 3-minute walk to the Royal Docks terminal. A one-way ride costs £7 for adults on TfL's ticket shop (seen November 2026).

### Where do I get an Uber or a minicab at London City?

Pre-booked minicabs and private hire cars collect passengers from the pick-up area in the Short Stay car park, not the terminal forecourt. Black cabs wait at the rank outside the terminal.

### Can I use the eGates at London City with an ETA?

Usually, if you're 8 or older, at least 120 cm tall and a national of a listed country, including the EU, the US, Canada and Australia, with a valid ETA. Children aged 8 to 17 must be with an adult.

## Sources (checked 7 November 2026)

- [London City Airport: getting to and from (checked 7 Nov 2026)](https://www.londoncityairport.com/getting-to-and-from)
- [London City Airport: taxi rank (checked 7 Nov 2026)](https://www.londoncityairport.com/getting-to-and-from/taxi-rank)
- [London City Airport: FAQs (checked 7 Nov 2026)](https://www.londoncityairport.com/faqs)
- [London City Airport: opening hours (checked 7 Nov 2026)](https://www.londoncityairport.com/at-the-airport/need-to-know/opening-hours)
- [London City Airport: check-in and bag drop (checked 7 Nov 2026)](https://www.londoncityairport.com/at-the-airport/need-to-know/check-in-and-bag-drop)
- [British Airways: checking in (checked 7 Nov 2026)](https://www.britishairways.com/content/information/checking-in-and-boarding/checking-in)
- [GOV.UK: faster travel through the UK border (checked 7 Nov 2026)](https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/getting-through-the-uk-border-faster/faster-travel-through-the-uk-border)
- [TfL: Journey Planner (checked 7 Nov 2026)](https://tfl.gov.uk/plan-a-journey/)
- [TfL: single fare finder (checked 7 Nov 2026)](https://tfl.gov.uk/fares/find-fares/single-fare-finder)
- [TfL: taxi fare card from 25 April 2026 (PDF, checked 7 Nov 2026)](https://tfl.gov.uk/cdn/static/cms/documents/taxi-fare-card-2026.pdf)
- [TfL: London Cable Car opening hours (checked 7 Nov 2026)](https://tfl.gov.uk/modes/london-cable-car/opening-hours-frequency)
- [TfL: London Cable Car tickets (checked 7 Nov 2026)](https://cablecartickets.tfl.gov.uk/en/products)
- [Historic Royal Palaces: visiting the Tower of London (checked 7 Nov 2026)](https://www.hrp.org.uk/tower-of-london/visit/)
- [St Paul's Cathedral: visit us (checked 7 Nov 2026)](https://www.stpauls.co.uk/visit-us)
- [Tate Modern: visit (checked 7 Nov 2026)](https://www.tate.org.uk/visit/tate-modern)
- [GetYourGuide: London Cable Car](https://www.getyourguide.com/london-l57/london-ifs-cloud-cable-car-t786079/)