How to See London on a Layover in London Heathrow Airport

Do you have the option of doing a 10-hour layover, 12-hour layover, or even 14-hour layover in London? If so, and you’re wondering if it’s feasible to leave Heathrow Airport to explore London on a layover, the answer is YES … with some caveats.

I explored London during a long 10-hour layover so I have the first-hand experience to help you do the same. Here are my top tips for seeing London on a layover.

Some Questions to Ask Before Trying to See London on a Layover

What time will it be in London when the plane lands?

The earlier in the morning, the better. It will be quite a challenge to explore London on a layover at nighttime, especially when considering your sleep schedule.

How long is your first flight leg?

If your first flight leg is too long, you may be too tired to do a layover like this. Think about how you usually feel after a long flight. Could you handle a day out in London? If your first flight leg is too long, see if you could do it on your return flight instead (if it’s shorter).

For example, if you were flying from L.A. to London (10 hours) and then from London to Inverness (1.5 hours), like we were, I’d suggest doing the long layover on your return flight (after the 1.5 flight).

Can you get a layover that’s at least 10 hours long?

Going on a layover adventure works best with at least 10 hours. Anything less than that would be challenging to see much while still making it back in time for your next flight. Time goes super fast, so the more time the better.

Are you familiar with Heathrow Airport? Have you been here before?

This isn’t a deal breaker, but you will feel a lot more comfortable doing a long layover adventure from an airport you’re familiar with. Time is of the essence, and when you know where to go, you’ll be able to speed things up.

Will you have to go through international customs?

I don’t think I’ve ever spent more than 30 minutes going through customs at Heathrow Airport as they’re generally pretty efficient, depending on how crowded it is that day. The time it takes to go through customs, though, can definitely vary, especially depending on the country on your passport. Be sure to keep this in mind when considering a long layover excursion.

Ready to Explore London on a Layover?

If you’ve asked yourself all the above questions and feel like you can make this long layover in London work, let’s start talking details.

I think my long layover in London ended up a success because of careful planning. Here are my best tips for how your London layover adventure can be a success, too.

Tip 1: Decide Which Train To Take from Heathrow Airport to Central London

First things first: How do you even get to London from the airport? Which train do you take?

DO NOT TAKE THE TUBE. The Piccadilly tube takes over an hour to get to Kings Cross from London Heathrow Airport. You don’t have that kind of time.

My suggestion: Take the Heathrow Express. It’s a very nice, cushy ride, and it only takes 15 minutes to get to Paddington Station from London Heathrow Airport.

What about the Elizabeth Line? The Elizabeth Line takes a half hour to get to Paddington Station, and it could be the better option if your destination is past Paddington Station.

For example, we could have taken the Elizabeth Line straight to Liverpool Station without having to transfer at Paddington, shaving off about 10 minutes; however, we were more familiar with Heathrow Express, so we went with that. (Also, we got those 10 minutes back on the return ride.)

The decision is totally up to you and what your plans are for the day. Either could be a good choice. Here’s my breakdown below.

Elizabeth Line vs. Heathrow Express

Elizabeth Line

Discounts: Can use rail card; plus there’s a discount if you add a return.
Time: 30 minutes to Paddington Station; goes all the way to Abbey Wood (1 hour), passing through Liverpool Station (at the 40-minute mark) and Canary Wharf station (at the 50-minute mark).
How to Buy Tickets: Buy through the Trainline app; get an “Anytime Day Return” ticket so you don’t have to stick to a specific time.
How Often: A train arrives every 15 minutes.

Heathrow Express

Discounts: Can use rail card; plus there’s a significant discount if booked before 90 days (£5!); there’s also a discount if you add a return.
Time: 15-20 minutes to Paddington Station.
How to Buy Tickets: Buy through the Heathrow Express app; tickets are valid all day, anytime (don’t forget your return ticket!).
How Often: A train arrives every 15 minutes.

How to Fast-Track Your Train Travel from London Heathrow Airport

• Don’t take the Piccadilly tube from the airport.
• Book ahead of time so you don’t have to wait in line to get tickets at the airport. You want to just get on and go.
• Have everything ready, including the tickets (or screenshot of tickets) on your phone pulled up.
• Follow the signs to the train. Don’t stress. Heathrow Airport has a lot of signs so you won’t lose your way.

Tip 2: Do the Layover After Your Shortest Flight Leg

Try doing the layover after your shortest flight leg.

For example, we flew from Inverness to London (1.5 hours), did the long 10-hour layover in London, and then flew to Los Angeles (10 hours). We weren’t as jet lagged or drained during our layover adventure.

Perhaps you’re stopping in London before heading to another European destination or coming from Europe to the Americas. Do the long layover adventure after your shortest leg.

Tip 3: Check or Store Your Luggage

Figure out what to do with your bags: Either check them through to your final destination or store them.

If you want to store your luggage during your layover in London, there’s a convenient Left Luggage service at Heathrow Airport. There are also several around Paddington Train Station.

For us, we checked our bags so we wouldn’t have to deal with finding a luggage storage place in London (saving even more time). If you have carry-on size bags, most airlines will let you gate check the bags for free, especially if the flight is full.

There’s always a risk of your bags getting lost, but since we were on our way home, we weren’t too concerned. Luckily, they made it back with us to Los Angeles.

Tip 4: Plan Out What You Will Do in London on a Layover

Figure out a few things you want to do in London that are in the same area. London is HUGE. You don’t have time to be running all over the place. We tried to stay in just Central London, but we ended up having extra time so we took the tube to the Westminster area. We spent an hour getting from one section to the other (that’s how big London is — and how slow the Circle Line tube is).

Should You Do Activities That Require Tickets or Reservations?

Figure out if there are any activities you want to do that you will need to pay for or reserve in advance. We didn’t pay to do anything during our layover in London, opting for free activities and simple sightseeing. Keeping it simple helped us have a better experience as we didn’t have to worry about being at a certain place at a certain time.

That being said, if there’s a certain activity requiring tickets/reservations that you feel you must do, definitely go for it! Just be aware of the time and that you may have to cut out other activities.

What We Did for 10 Hours in London on a Layover

My mom and I have been to London once before, having stayed in the city for five nights last summer. But London is so big, and there were so many things we missed on our first visit. So when the opportunity arose for us to try a long layover in London, we jumped at the chance.

Spending a few extra hours in London definitely beats waiting around in the airport, any day.

We had a 10-hour layover, but we really only had 6 hours in London since we wanted to leave time to get to and from the airport in time. We ended up spending about half the time in central London and half in Westminster (as well as an hour getting from one area to the other). It was fast paced but fun.

Here’s what we got to do in London on a layover:

• Explored Leadenhall Market
• Had English breakfast at a pub
• Walked across Tower Bridge
• Visited the Thames River Beach
• Saw Big Ben
• Admired Westminster Abbey
• Strolled through Dean’s Yard
• Walked along old streets behind Westminster Abbey

How to Get Around London from Paddington Station

I’d suggest using London’s tube network to make your way around the city. Yes, it’s slow, but it goes nearly everywhere and is pretty easy to use.

Skip the ticket machines: You don’t even need tickets if you have a contactless credit card. Simply tap your contactless credit card before entering the station and then tap it again when you leave. You’ll be charged either for the day rate or for a single-fare rate, depending on how many times you used the tube that day (Be sure to use the same card all day).

*Be sure your contactless credit card doesn’t charge foreign transaction fees if you are from a country outside of the U.K.

Where do you want to start in exploring central London? Most people will probably want to start at the Tower of London and Tower Bridge, two highly iconic London landmarks. If that’s the case, you’ll just need to take the Circle Line from Paddington Station to Tower Hill Station (about 25 minutes).

We wanted to start at Leadenhall Market, so we took the Elizabeth Line from Paddington Station to Liverpool Street Station.

Where do you want to start in exploring Westminster? You’ll most likely need to take the Circle Line to Westminster Station.

You can map the best route for you via the tube using Apple Maps or Google Maps.

Map of Things to Do in London on a Layover

Things You Can Do in London on a Layover

London is a huge city. It takes a long time getting from one area to another, so I’d recommend focusing your time in one or two areas max. You run the risk of spreading yourself too thin if you try to go all around London in only a few hours.

Central London and Westminster are the two most popular tourist areas, so here are some examples of things you can do in each of them during your layover. (By central London, I mean the area known as the City of London as well as the main nearby tourist attractions, such as Tower Bridge.)

Note that I’m not suggesting to do ALL of these activities in one layover. Rather, I’m giving you ideas to pick and choose from to help you make the most of your time in London on a layover.

Things You Can Do in London on a Layover: Central London

Explore Leadenhall Market

Leadenhall Market is a gorgeous covered market that first opened in the 14th century. We noticed a lot of walking tour groups stop here; it’s definitely a tourist attraction.

Leadenhall Market was the first place we visited on our layover in London. You can spend anywhere from 10 minutes here to an hour, depending if you decide to shop or have a meal.

Have English Breakfast at a Pub

There are pubs on nearly every street in London, and I can almost guarantee you that they serve English breakfast. If you’re here in the morning or even in the afternoon, you have to try an English breakfast with tea.

We found The Lamb Tavern in Leadenhall Market, and surprisingly we were the only ones dining there.

Our breakfast at The Lamb Tavern ended up being the highlight of the day. The food was delicious, and the tea was served in the cutest teacups. Plus the view out the window of Leadenhall Market was stunning. A great start to our day.

See the Views from the Sky Garden

The Sky Garden is an inside garden on the top level of a skyscraper. I’ve been wanting to visit it for ages, but alas, tickets are very hard to come by.

Entry is free, but you need a ticket. They do let some people in the day-of, if they have room, but most of the time, they don’t.

Try to get advanced tickets as soon as you can for your dates.

Another option is to book a table at one of the restaurants on the top floor, near the Sky Garden. This gives you access without needing a ticket.

Visit St Dunstan-in-the-East

St Dunstan-in-the-East is the ruins of a church destroyed in World War II. It’s now a public garden and is free to visit.

A lot of people come here to take photos, so you’ll see professional photographers and models hanging around.

I’d estimate that you would only need to spend about 10 minutes here as it’s a small ruin and there’s not much to see. It is beautiful, don’t get me wrong, but it’s not something to take up much time.

Do a Double Decker Bus Tour

The double decker bus tours in London might seem cheesy, but it’s actually a rather efficient way to see the city in a short amount of time.

The buses go past all the popular attractions, basically everything mentioned here in this blog, and you can either stay on the whole ride, listening to the audio commentary, or hop off anytime to explore further.

Two of the most popular bus tours are Big Bus London and Tootbus. The cost is around £32-40 for an adult for the whole day.

Visit the Tower of London

The Tower of London is an historic castle near the Thames River and one of the main tourist attractions in London. This area is always crowded with people clamoring for views and photos of the castle and the nearby Tower Bridge.

Tickets often sell out, so if you’d like to tour the interior of the Tower of London, you’ll need advance tickets.

We toured the Tower of London on our first visit to London and got too overwhelmed by the crowds. There was a line to see and go in every room. We popped into two rooms and had enough after that, leaving early.

Since you’re limited on time, I wouldn’t put this attraction high on your list.

There are other, better things to see and do in London.

Walk across Tower Bridge

Walking across Tower Bridge is such a tourist thing to do, but it’s an essential London experience.

It doesn’t cost anything to simply walk across the bridge, but there is an entrance fee to Tower Bridge if you’d like to go inside the bridge or walk across the upper section. We opted not to get these tickets as they were timed, and we didn’t want to restrict ourselves.

Tower Bridge also ended up being extremely busy on the day we visited, the Good Friday bank holiday. Hordes of people were out. We were good with just walking across, for free. It’s a lovely bridge with beautiful views of the Thames River.

Visit the Thames River Beach

You can go down the Horselydown Old Stairs to a little Thames River beach. From there, you can see the Tower Bridge from a new angle.

Look for the “Shad Thames” sign and then the “Horselydown Old Stairs” sign. There’s a staircase that leads down to a small rocky beach.

Not many people were here, so it must not be as well known.

You can also find this location on Apple Maps or Google Maps if you need help locating it (it’s a bit hidden).

Visit Borough Market

Borough Market is an historic market with nearly 1,000 years of history in London. Today it’s a bustling marketplace with various stalls and shops selling produce, cheese, wine, bread, desserts, and many other types of food and drink.

It’s definitely worth a wander if you’re passing by this way.

See the Views from the Shard

The Shard is a skyscraper near the London Bridge that offers 360-degree views of the city from one of the highest viewing points.

From the top of the Shard, you’ll be able to see nearly all of London in one spot, or at least 40 miles of it in any direction.

It’s not free to visit, unfortunately. You’ll need a ticket to go to the top of the Shard, and at £28.50, it’s pricey.

Things You Can Do in London on a Layover: Westminster

See Big Ben

Parliament Square is one of the most tourist-y sections in London, so be prepared for crowds. You should definitely still go to say hi to Big Ben, which is perhaps what London is most famous for.

The quickest option is to simply take your essential picture with Big Ben and admire the Elizabeth Tower from the outside. I wrote a blog post about the two best spots to take photos of Big Ben — near a red phone booth as well as a secret location by Westminster Bridge, so be sure to check that out.

If you want to spend more time here, consider taking a 90-minute tour inside of Big Ben. These tours require advanced tickets and are £30 for adults. Tickets are released on the second Wednesday of every month at 10 a.m.

You can also tour the Palace of Westminster, which includes the House of Lords Chamber. (The Palace of Westminster is the elaborate building connected to Big Ben.) These tours also require advanced tickets and, though self-guided, can take about 90 minutes of your time.

See or Ride London Eye

The London Eye is the giant Ferris wheel in the middle of the London. It’s quite expensive to ride, so I wouldn’t blame you for just taking a photo of it from afar. You can save on the cost by purchasing tickets online, and there’s even a fast-track option, as I’ve heard that lines can get really long during peak times.

Admire Westminster Abbey

Westminster Abbey is just around the corner from Big Ben. You can admire the outside of this massive cathedral or even take a tour of the inside. It costs £29 to enter Westminster Abbey, which is open various times throughout the year.

Find Sanctuary at Dean’s Yard

Escape the crowds by slipping into Dean’s Yard, a grassy square on the other side of Westminster Abbey. It was peaceful over here with few people walking around.

In Dean’s Yard is also where you’ll find the entrance to the Cellarium Cafe, which serves afternoon tea as well as breakfast and lunch. You’ll need to book the afternoon tea in advance if you’d like to do that.

Walk Along Old Streets Behind Westminster Abbey

If you walk out the back of Dean’s Yard, down Great College Street, you’ll get to see views of Big Ben and Parliament peeking out over the walls. You’ll also pass beautiful old buildings on a lovely walk, crowd free.

Visit Buckingham Palace

Buckingham Palace is a bit of a walk from Westminster Abbey, about 3/4 of a mile. To tour Buckingham Palace, you’ll need to get advance tickets. But it’s only open for visitors from July to September.

Some go just to see the outside and pose near the royal gates.

Others go to watch the Changing of the Guard ceremony, which happens about 4 days a week, at 11 a.m. It’s free to watch the procession which spans three locations — Buckingham Palace, St James’s Palace and Wellington Barracks.

Nearby, if you have more time, you can also visit The King’s Gallery, art exhibitions from the Royal Collection, which is open year-round.

Things You Can Do in London on a Layover: Near Paddington Station

If you have to pass through Paddington Station, or make a connection here, consider stopping and venturing outside for an hour or two.

Kensington Gardens and Hyde Park is a short 1/2 mile walk from Paddington Station. Two large, historic green spaces, worth a quick stroll.

Kensington Palace is also nearby, in Kensington Gardens, but I wouldn’t recommend touring it. We found it to be quite disappointing. Not worth your precious time on a layover.

When Should You Start Heading Back to Heathrow Airport?

Try to get back to Heathrow Airport at least 2 hours before your flight.

We arrived back at the airport about three hours early, just in case. This was far too much time, in reality, as we still spent much of it waiting around in the airport lounge. (You can wait and eat free food in the London Heathrow Airport lounge too with the Capital One Venture X credit card!)

Things to Pack for Your Flight

• I really recommend these compression packing cubes. They’re very thick and durable and allow you to pack more than you expect.
• I also love this travel backpack that opens like a suitcase, fits almost as much as a carry-on, and has tons of pockets as well as a strap to attach to your luggage handle. It makes traveling so much easier and more organized. It also fits nicely under the airplane seats.
• I bring this AirFly receiver for AirPods with me on long-haul flights, so I can connect to the plane’s video screen with my own AirPods.
• I no longer hop on a flight without wearing my Sockwell compression socks because they really do help relieve/prevent leg cramps from sitting so long in one place. I have the lotus pattern, but there are other patterns to choose from, such as this cat pattern or this flower pattern. See all sock patterns in the Sockwell storefront.
• For Americans, I recommend getting the Capital One Venture X credit card to relax and eat free food in select airport lounges. I’ve had my Capital One Venture X credit card for a few years now, and accessing airport lounges is my absolute favorite perk of the card. Every lounge is different, but most have a buffet available where you can eat and drink to your heart’s content. The annual fee of this card is high, but it evens out with the $300 annual travel credit and 10,000 anniversary miles you get (on top of lounge access and free TSA PreCheck or Global Entry)!

Other Posts to Help You Plan Your Trip to England

Big Ben Photo Spots: Where to Take the Best Photos of Big Ben

The Best Library Afternoon Tea in London (with Views of Big Ben!)

Day Trip to Windsor Castle from London

Day Trip to Highclere Castle from London (Downton Abbey)

Day Trip from London to Jane Austen’s House in Chawton

Weekend in Bath England Itinerary: What to Do in Bath UK for 2 Days

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