From Toronto airport to the centre
2 stopsUpdated July 2026
If you land at Terminal 3, the airport train doesn’t leave from your terminal. The UP Express goes from Terminal 1, so from T3 you first take the LINK Train, a free automated shuttle connecting the two, and then the real one. It isn’t complicated and it’s a few minutes, but it’s worth knowing before you’re hunting for platforms with a suitcase.
With that sorted, this is one of the easiest transfers in North America: twenty-five minutes to Union Station, the main terminus, every quarter of an hour, every day. And there’s a considerably cheaper alternative for anyone not in a hurry, which is the city bus to the end of the subway.
The route, stop by stop
2 STOPS- 01
The UP Express
The Union Pearson Express runs from the airport to Union Station in twenty-five minutes, leaving every quarter of an hour, every day of the year, with only two stops on the way. It’s comfortable, it has luggage space and wifi, and it drops you at the main terminus, where the subway, the commuter trains and the long-distance trains connect.
The one thing to know is the platform: it leaves from Terminal 1. If your flight arrives at Terminal 3, and many international flights do, you first have to take the LINK Train, a free elevated automated shuttle joining the two terminals in a few minutes that runs constantly.
Follow the signs for “Terminal 1 / UP Express”. Nobody warns you, and it’s the first thing you need to know getting off the plane.
- 02
Bus 900 and the subway
The transit alternative: the 900 Airport Express leaves from both terminals, 1 and 3, and runs in twenty to twenty-five minutes to Kipling, the western end of subway Line 2. From there, the subway into town. It runs roughly from half five in the morning to two in the morning.
The advantage is price: it’s an ordinary transit fare, with the transfer to the subway included, so it comes to a fraction of the train. The disadvantage is time, because adding the bus, the change and the subway it’s nearly double, and it’s a city bus with suitcases.
It’s the sensible option on a budget, if you’re sleeping in the west, or if your flight lands at an hour when the train’s price stings.
Frequently asked
How do you get from Toronto airport to downtown?
On the UP Express, which reaches Union Station in 25 minutes every quarter-hour. Careful: it leaves from Terminal 1, so if you land at T3 you first take the free LINK Train joining the two terminals. The cheap alternative is bus 900 to Kipling and subway Line 2.
What is the Toronto LINK Train?
A free elevated automated shuttle joining the airport terminals. You need it if you land at Terminal 3, because the UP Express downtown only leaves from Terminal 1. It runs constantly and takes a few minutes: follow the signs for “Terminal 1 / UP Express”.