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Manchester city centretoManchester airport

City to airport · One way · All prices are totals for 1 adult · All service hours

3 ways to the airport

Manchester recommends being at the airport at least two hours before your flight. It does not publish a separate check-in or bag-drop closing time. First departures

Recommended

53 minutes quicker than the Bus 43, for £4.20 more.

Train to Piccadilly

Train · Northern, TransPennine Express and Transport for Wales
13–20 min rideEvery 10 min05:03–00:02
Manchester PiccadillyThe Station
£6.20total for 1 adult£6.20 eachBuy ticketOn Northern, TransPennine Express and Transport for Wales
Pickup, hours & luggage

Boards at. Manchester Piccadilly, any platform — check the departure boards

The Anytime Day Single is £6.20, valid on any train of any operator at any hour on the day shown, bought online in advance, at a ticket office, at a machine, or immediately before travel. An Off-Peak Day Single is £5.20 when off-peak hours apply; check before you travel. Children aged 5 to 15 pay half on most tickets, under-fives travel free on most journeys. Advance Singles from £3.40 exist for one booked train only, valid on booked TfW services only.

Hours. Up to six an hour by day. After 00:02 it keeps running, sparsely: 00:04, 00:13, 00:45, 00:58, then 02:00, 02:55, 03:44, 04:00 and 04:47 before the day pattern above resumes at 05:03.

Price for every party size · Fare source

Tram

Metrolink tram

Metrolink · Transport for Greater Manchester (Bee Network)
49–60 min rideEvery 15 min06:00–23:15
St Peter's SquareManchester Airport
£4.60total for 1 adult£4.60 eachBuy ticketOn Transport for Greater Manchester
Pickup, hours & luggage

Boards at. St Peter's Square, on the Metrolink platform

The single for all four zones is £4.60, to be finished within two hours; under-16s pay half. Tap in at the platform and out at your stop for the same £4.60. One zone is £1.40, rising with each zone crossed; the city center is zone 1. The day cap on the same card is £4.90 off-peak or £7.10 if you tap in between 07:00 and 09:30 on a weekday, and £31.00 for a week.

Hours. Every 15 minutes. First train 07:00 on Sundays; last 00:15 on Friday and Saturday nights, 23:00 on Sundays.

Price for every party size · Fare source

Bus

Bus 43

43 · Bee Network
48–82 min rideEvery 10 minRuns all night
Piccadilly GardensThe Station
24-hour service
£2total for 1 adult£2 eachBuy ticketOn Bee Network
Pickup, hours & luggage

Boards at. Piccadilly Gardens, the square

The single "hopper" ticket is £2.00 adult, £1.00 child; under-fives travel free. Tap a contactless card or phone at the door for the same £2.00, with further Bee Network buses free within an hour and a £5.00 daily cap on the same card. A 1-day Bee Bus ticket is £5.00 (£2.50 child), valid until 03:59 the next morning; a 1-day family ticket is £9.00 for one or two adults with one to three children, off-peak only. Cash is accepted on board.

Price for every party size · Fare source

Fares are the same ticket ridden the other way; the boarding points, hours and, where a ride differs by direction, the ride time are read for this direction. Also runs to the airport, boarding point and hours in town not recorded yet: Pre-booked private transfer, Private transfer to Liverpool. Every way from Manchester airport into Manchester

How do I get from Manchester city centre to Manchester airport?

For one traveler the Train to Piccadilly is the way we recommend: £6.20 in total, 13–20 min, boarding at Manchester Piccadilly. The first one leaves at 05:03 and is at the airport by about 05:19; the last leaves at 00:02. Manchester recommends being at the airport at least two hours before your flight. It does not publish a separate check-in or bag-drop closing time.

First departures

Earliest at the airport first
Bus 43

Any hour.

Train to Piccadilly

First 05:03 from Manchester Piccadilly, at the airport by about 05:19.

Metrolink tram

First 06:00 from St Peter's Square, at the airport by about 06:52.

Arrival times add the recorded ride time to the first departure; no walking or waiting is added.

Early flight?

Trains towards the airport run almost through the night, sparsely: after the evening pattern there are still departures at 00:04, 00:45, 02:00, 02:55, 03:44 and 04:00 from Piccadilly before the regular service resumes at 05:03. Bus 43 covers every hour on the same ticket.

Before you leave for Manchester Airport

From the centre to each way out
How early to be there

Manchester recommends being at the airport at least two hours before your flight. It does not publish a separate check-in or bag-drop closing time.

Early flights

Trains towards the airport run almost through the night, sparsely: after the evening pattern there are still departures at 00:04, 00:45, 02:00, 02:55, 03:44 and 04:00 from Piccadilly before the regular service resumes at 05:03. Bus 43 covers every hour on the same ticket.

Where the bus leaves from

Bus 43 towards the airport leaves from Piccadilly Gardens, the square — not the railway station's forecourt. Check the board there for the next departure.

Tickets

Buy your train ticket first, at Piccadilly's machines or ticket office — the Bee Network card that works on the tram and bus 43 does not cover the train. Tap that same card at the tram platform reader or on the bus instead.

Questions

When is the first Train to Piccadilly from Manchester Piccadilly?

05:03. It reaches the airport at about 05:19.

How early should I be at Manchester airport?

Manchester recommends being at the airport at least two hours before your flight. It does not publish a separate check-in or bag-drop closing time.

Where does the Bus 43 leave from in Manchester?

Piccadilly Gardens, the square.

My flight is early. What runs before the first train?

Trains towards the airport run almost through the night, sparsely: after the evening pattern there are still departures at 00:04, 00:45, 02:00, 02:55, 03:44 and 04:00 from Piccadilly before the regular service resumes at 05:03. Bus 43 covers every hour on the same ticket.

Arriving instead? Every way from Manchester airport into Manchester
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