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Heathrow Express makes it easier to book £10 tickets – and offers 25x Heathrow Rewards points

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Whilst Heathrow Express has a reputation for being expensive, it can be great value if you book a £10 one-way advance ticket.

You are not tied to a particular train, only a set day. Even better, children go free.

However, one snag when booking an Advance Discounted Single ticket was that the booking window closed 45 days before travel.

Heathrow Express makes it easier to book £10 tickets

This has now changed.

Effective immediately, you can book a £10 one-way Advance Discounted Single ticket up to 30 days before travel.

At £10, you are paying less than the cost of the Elizabeth Line. The Elizabeth Line currently costs £12.80 one-way between Heathrow and Paddington, or £13.90 if you travel onwards into Central London.

British Airways Gold Guest List members, Star Alliance Gold cardholders, JetBlue Mint & Mosaic cardholders and SAS Eurobonus Diamond and Gold cardholders also get a free upgrade to Business First Class. This benefit is valid on all ticket types, including £10 Advance Discounted Single tickets.

Earn bonus Heathrow Rewards points on flexible tickets

If you are travelling in September, Heathrow Express has a generous bonus points deal with Heathrow Rewards.

Normally, you receive 1 Heathrow Rewards point for every £1 you spend with Heathrow Express.

Until 30th September, Heathrow Express is increasing this to a whopping 25 points per £1.

25 Heathrow Rewards points is the equivalent of, when transferred:

  • 25p of Heathrow shopping vouchers (so you’re getting an effective 25% return on your spending)
  • 25 Avios, Virgin Points or other airline partner miles
  • 50p of Official Heathrow Parking vouchers

You need to book and travel by 30th September 2025. You will not get the bonus if you book an Advance Discounted Single ticket for October or later during September.

Heathrow Express makes it easier to book £10 tickets - and offers 25x Heathrow Rewards points

Only tickets bought online or in the app will qualify for the bonus. You will not receive the bonus points if you use an in-station ticket machine or tap in and out with your Oyster or contactless card.

The following ticket types are included:

  • Standard Single
  • Business First Single
  • Standard Return
  • Business First Return
  • Standard Same Day Return
  • Business First Same Day Return
  • Standard Carnet 6 tickets
  • Business First Carnet 6 tickets
  • Standard Carnet 12 tickets
  • Business First Carnet 12 tickets
  • Standard Advance

There is a cap of 5,000 bonus points, which would require purchasing £200 of tickets, per Heathrow Rewards account.

Points will be credited after travel is completed which means – for a return ticket – after the return element has been used.

You can see the full terms and conditions on the Heathrow website here (log-in required, click the ‘Offers’ tab).

You can book on the Heathrow Express website here. Remember that only tickets bought online qualify for 25 Heathrow Rewards points per £1 spent.

Category

Heathrow Rewards

Comments (80)

  • Doug says:
    5 Sep5 September 08:20

    “and offers 25x Heathrow Rewards points”
    In my experience, the linkage to heathrow rewards simoply does not work. Despite having linked my Rewards account with the Heathrow Express App and subsequently made numerous trips on Heathrow Express, no points have ever appeared on my Rewards account.

    Reply
  • Luke says:
    5 Sep5 September 08:41

    Fundamentally any benefits of the Heathrow Express relate to journeys which start or end at Paddington.

    Unfortunately this is a tiny minority and I can see its decline continuing.

    Reply
    • Willie says:
      5 Sep5 September 08:49

      Strongly disagree – I usually have time to have a leisurely change at Paddington, buy a coffee, have a much more pleasant train and fellow passengers, and still overtake the Liz I would’ve otherwise been on.

      Reply
      • Luke says:
        5 Sep5 September 09:08

        Given that the Heathrow Express is only 12 minutes quicker than the Elizabeth line, and adding the time required to change trains rather than stay on the Elizabeth line train, you must really gulp down your coffee!

        Reply
        • Larry says:
          5 Sep5 September 09:32

          if you’re going to/from T5 on the elizabeth line, there’s one train every 30 (!) minutes, so you’d have to change anyway

          Reply
          • BA Flyer IHG Stayer says:
            5 Sep5 September 09:38

            At one point HAL didn’t even want those two trains.

            Adding 2 Lizzie Line trains to T5 was a relatively late part of the Lizzie line programme. HAL didn’t want it.

            I think some deal was done re opening up the use of contactless gates and payment to HEX in return for access to T5. IIRC the announcements were very close together …

      • BA Flyer IHG Stayer says:
        5 Sep5 September 09:23

        lol not the greatest advert for HEX

        “Travel with us as we have more pleasant passengers”

        How awful that you then have to mix with the Lizzie lines not so pleasant users on the plane.

        Reply
    • Paul says:
      5 Sep5 September 09:30

      Not necessarily, I travel to Heathrow from South London where the journey to get to the Elizabeth Line takes me in the opposite direction than if I travel to Paddington, meaning it’s considerably quicker and slightly cheaper to use the Heathrow Express when booked in advance than to travel to the Elizabeth Line. I would imagine the same is true for most people who don’t live close-ish to the Elizabeth Line.

      Also, for some reason, every time I catch the Heathrow Express it seems to be getting busier and busier rather than declining in popularity.

      Reply
  • Novice says:
    5 Sep5 September 08:49

    As you all know I am a Northerner. From Kings Cross station, what is the easiest and smoothest route to Heathrow? I have only ever been to Heathrow in the car but would like to try using trains.

    Reply
    • Rob says:
      5 Sep5 September 08:54

      Piccadilly Line!

      Reply
      • Bombay Bad Boy says:
        5 Sep5 September 09:17

        My vote would go to KGX-PAD-LHR using Heathrow Express to save about 20 minutes.

        Reply
        • BA Flyer IHG Stayer says:
          5 Sep5 September 09:25

          But with extra baggage lugging.

          I’d just take the Piccadilly line.

          Reply
          • Matthew Brown says:
            5 Sep5 September 12:19

            About £15 in a black cab from Kings Cross to Paddington for a family of four it works for us 🙂

      • HampshireHog says:
        5 Sep5 September 09:21

        One option I have used from oop north is changing at Stevenage to a Thameslink train to Farringdon then Elizabeth line to the airport

        Reply
    • Nick Burch says:
      5 Sep5 September 09:26

      Walk across the road to St Pancras, Thameslink down to Farringdon, then Elizabeth Line to Heathrow isn’t bad.

      Otherwise it’s step-free with nice big trains on the tube line (Circle / Hammersmith) from Kings Cross round to Paddington for either Heathrow Express or Elizabeth Line

      Reply
    • BuiltInYorkshire says:
      5 Sep5 September 10:15

      I tried using HEX last year but it was a lot more hassle (and more expensive of course!) than just heading to the tube and using the Picadilly line.

      Or just fly from Manchester!

      Reply
    • Inman says:
      5 Sep5 September 11:08

      If you got trains to Reading from where you live, it might just be easier for you to change to the Rail air bus at Reading or take the Lizzie line and change at Hayes and Harlington. As a northerner, I’m sure you might wish to avoid London altogether 🙂

      Reply
      • Novice says:
        5 Sep5 September 14:32

        Thanks for all of the helpful answers. Sometimes, Man doesn’t have the award availability that Heathrow does so then I usually have to go down to London despite not being keen on the hrs added. At least there’s more lounge options down in LHR.

        Reply
    • yorkshireRich says:
      5 Sep5 September 21:14

      If you don’t have too much luggage, I would go to Barbican, and then use the “secret lift”. This will then take you to Farringdon where you catch the Elizabeth Line. It does require steps when you get off at Barbican, but you can take it nice and steady.

      Otherwise, as Rob says, Piccadilly line,

      Reply
  • David Cohen says:
    5 Sep5 September 08:59

    Sounds like a desperate promotion from a pointless service, taking up precious capacity on the GWML.

    The DfT should fold some paths into additional Elizabeth line services, and the rest open up for more GWR capacity.

    Reply
    • Andy S says:
      5 Sep5 September 09:28

      I agree, they should now get rid of the Heathrow Express and give the paths to the Elizabeth Line and GWR.

      Reply
      • BA Flyer IHG Stayer says:
        5 Sep5 September 09:32

        HEX contactually has the train paths until 2028.

        Which is also when the HEX general concession to operate ends.

        And when GWRs contract to operate the service also ends.

        Reply
    • BA Flyer IHG Stayer says:
      5 Sep5 September 09:29

      They only get the train paths as an open access operator because GWR doesn’t want them.

      And they only have 4 paths an hour.

      Reply
  • Colin MacKinnon says:
    5 Sep5 September 09:22

    We like to go to Heathrow from Edinburgh the night before our long-haul flights (staying in the Premier Inn T4).

    If we go down late in the day, and have an afternoon long-haul, the Heathrow Express is a good way to go to the canal at Paddington ( and see if my old narrow boat is still afloat 35 years after I sold it).

    Stretches the legs, nice brunch and gets a bit of daylight!

    Reply
  • Mr. AC says:
    5 Sep5 September 09:27

    Man, what a confusing promo.
    If I buy a carnet of 12 tickets and want to get 25x points, do I need to:
    1. Travel once until Sep 30th
    2. Use one return element (so use 2 tickets) until Sep 30
    3. Fully use up all 12 tickets before Sep 30th!?

    Reply
    • Mr. AC says:
      5 Sep5 September 10:11

      After reading the T&S more closely I think it’s actually another 4th option.
      4. If you buy a carnet, you’ll earn 25x point on the cost of each carnet ticket used during September, but you won’t get anything for travel beyond September.

      Reply
    • Mr. AC says:
      5 Sep5 September 10:11

      After reading the T&S more closely I think it’s actually another 4th option.
      4. If you buy a carnet, you’ll earn 25x point on the cost of each carnet ticket used during September, but you won’t get anything for travel beyond September.

      Reply
    • daveinitalia says:
      5 Sep5 September 10:11

      It’ll be either 1 or 3, 2 only applies to return tickets, it makes no sense for carnets (there’s nothing stopping you using all 10 in the same direction).

      My guess is 1 because it says the ticket can only be refunded if it’s not been used at all. The reason for other tickets you have to wait until you travel is in case you try and claim a refund

      Reply
  • daveinitalia says:
    5 Sep5 September 10:12

    £10 seems about the right price for the HEX, slightly cheaper than the Elizabeth line to make up for the hassle of having to change trains at Paddington

    Reply
  • frank says:
    5 Sep5 September 11:36

    unless you have to go via Paddington just take the piccadilly line. Zone 1 to the terminals can be as low as £3.90 if you know what you’re doing

    Reply
    • Lumma says:
      5 Sep5 September 12:10

      Go in and out of the barriers at Hatton Cross?

      IIRC London to Gatwick is a lot cheaper if you go though the barriers and back at East Croydon. There’s also a small quirk if you start at Whitechapel station and change at Farringdon to Thameslink, the system assumes you’ve not went through Zone 1. It will also work if you tap the pink readers at Whitechapel but starting from somewhere else further east

      Reply

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