London Dublin
London to Dublin is 75 minutes from any of four London airports. Flights leave every hour from Heathrow alone. Aer Lingus and BA both run heavy schedules, and Ryanair flies from Gatwick, Stansted, and Luton.
Book Aer Lingus from Heathrow. Fares match or beat BA, and Aer Lingus includes a cabin bag. BA is worth it if you have Avios or status. If you are south of the river, Ryanair from Gatwick saves you the trip to Heathrow for about the same flight time.
Ryanair from Stansted or Luton looks cheaper, but factor in the Stansted Express at around £20 each way. By the time you add that, an Aer Lingus fare from Heathrow with a bag included often costs the same.
If someone is picking you up in Dublin, tell them which terminal. Ryanair lands at Terminal 1, Aer Lingus and BA at Terminal 2. They are a 10-minute walk apart and driving between them at peak hours is slow. The Aircoach into the city stops at both.
Have a specific need? Use the decision guide below to filter by your airline, where you live, lounges, or where you're staying in Dublin.
Pick What Matters to You
Best pair by where you're coming from
Best pair by where you're staying in Dublin
Which pair your airline flies nonstop
| Airline | LHR–DUB | STN–DUB | LCY–DUB | LGW–DUB |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| SunExpress | — | ✓ | — | — |
| British Airways | ✓ | — | ✓ | — |
| Ryanair | — | ✓ | — | ✓ |
| Aer Lingus | ✓ | — | — | — |
Ranked by on-time performance
Lounge access by airport and terminal
Ranked by flights per week
Getting to the airport
Red-eye vs daytime departures
Premium cabin options
Connecting through London from a domestic flight
Four London airports fly direct to Dublin, with combined departures every half hour. Connecting through a third city would add hours to a trip that takes one hour in the air.
The one scenario where a connection works: if you are arriving in London from another city and continuing to Dublin, a Heathrow transfer on Aer Lingus or British Airways keeps the journey on a single ticket with baggage checked through.
London & Dublin Airport Profiles
Each airport has a personality. Terminal quality, transit access, lounge scene, and crowd levels vary dramatically — sometimes more than the flight itself.
London Metro
Heathrow has four active terminals and your airline determines which one you use. Terminal 5 is British Airways territory, the newest and most polished. Terminal 2, the Queen's Terminal, handles Star Alliance carriers. Terminal 3 has Virgin Atlantic and several US carriers. Terminal 4 is smaller and serves a mix of international airlines.
The terminals are not walkable between each other. Free inter-terminal transfers run on the Elizabeth Line or Heathrow Express between T2/T3 (which share a central area) and T5. T4 requires a separate bus. Build in 60 minutes if you need to change terminals for a connection.
Immigration at 6 to 8 AM is slow. The morning wave of transatlantic red-eyes all land in the same window, and queues back up. E-gates work for US passport holders, which helps, but the volume is real. The airport is well-signed and functional, not beautiful. Shopping is extensive if you clear customs early.
Gatwick has two terminals, North and South, connected by a free shuttle train that takes about two minutes. South Terminal is the larger of the two and handles most scheduled long-haul flights. North Terminal serves a mix of short-haul and charter carriers.
The airport is smaller than Heathrow and easier to navigate. Security queues are generally shorter except during summer holiday peaks. The walk from security to gates in South Terminal is short. The overall experience is less stressful than Heathrow, which is part of the appeal for budget travelers.
Gatwick sits 30 miles south of central London, roughly twice the distance of Heathrow. The Gatwick Express runs to Victoria in 30 minutes, which is competitive, but Victoria is not as well connected to east London as Paddington.
London City Airport is the smallest of London's six airports, sitting in the Royal Docks between Canary Wharf and the Thames Barrier. The terminal is compact: one security area leads to a small departures lounge with views of the runway. You can arrive 30 minutes before a domestic flight and make it comfortably.
The runway is short, which limits the airport to smaller aircraft types. The approach is steep, which some passengers notice on landing. The upside of the small scale: no long walks to gates, no terminal train, no maze of corridors. A small selection of restaurants and shops sits airside.
Stansted is a single-terminal airport designed by Norman Foster, and the building itself is worth noticing. The roof structure is a clean white canopy held up by trees of steel columns. It opened in 1991 and still looks modern. The terminal is compact and navigation is straightforward.
Stansted is a budget carrier hub. Ryanair dominates the departure boards. Long-haul service is limited. Most traffic is European short-haul on budget carriers. The airport does one thing well: move large numbers of passengers through a simple layout with short walking distances.
It sits 40 miles northeast of central London, the farthest of the four London airports from the city. The Stansted Express runs to Liverpool Street in 47 minutes, which is reasonable, but you are starting from much farther out.
Luton is a single-terminal airport 35 miles north of central London that has been undergoing expansion. The DART people-mover opened in 2023, replacing the old shuttle bus from the Luton Airport Parkway rail station. That shuttle bus was always the weakest link in getting to central London from Luton, and the DART fixes it.
The terminal is compact and functional. It serves mostly budget carriers on European routes. Any transatlantic service from New York is rare and seasonal. The airport handles fewer passengers than Heathrow, Gatwick, or Stansted, and it shows in the smaller food and retail options.
Luton works well for travelers headed to the north side of London, Bedfordshire, or the Midlands. For everyone else, the distance to central London and the limited flight options make it primarily a budget carrier airport.
Dublin Metro
Dublin Airport has two terminals connected by a covered walkway. Terminal 2 is the newer building, purpose-built for Aer Lingus and their long-haul operation. Terminal 1 handles most other carriers. The airport sits six miles north of the city center, close enough that even in traffic the taxi ride stays around 30 minutes.
The US Preclearance facility is the defining feature for passengers headed to the United States. You walk through a CBP checkpoint after security and before your gate. It adds time on the Dublin end but eliminates immigration when you land. Few airports outside the United States offer this.
Both terminals are compact. Gate-to-gate walks stay under ten minutes. Duty-free is extensive by European airport standards, and food options are stronger in Terminal 2. Security can back up during the morning rush when the departures hall fills, so build extra time into early flights.
Which Airlines Fly Which Pairs
British Airways serve both LHR and LCY to DUB — airport flexibility on the London side.
Not all planes are the same size. The aircraft type below each checkmark tells you whether you are getting a widebody (777, 787, A350) with wider seats and a quieter ride, or a narrowbody (737, A321) with a single aisle. On flights over five hours, the difference is significant.
A319, A320
E190
A319, A320
737-800, 737 MAX 8
737-800, 737 MAX 8