Best Airport Transfers Guide & Ride Share Options

Ride Share Apps

App-based rides are increasingly becoming the most popular airport transfer option. They are a reliable service, but you will need cell service at your location. Uber is available in many countries around the world, but not all. Lyft is only in the USA. Check whether there is a reliable service at your destination.

Examples:

• Uber
• Lyft
• Local apps that depend on the country. Need to do your research before we go. In some locations, the ride-share service may be a taxi.

Pros

• Easy payment through the app
• GPS tracking
• Good for couples splitting fares
• Convenience booking system
• Door-to-door service
• Competitive rates, usually cheaper than taxis in many cities
• Reliable rides

Cons

• Airport pickup areas can be confusing. We recently used rideshare at LAX, and it was difficult to find the pickup location.
• Surge pricing can result in additional charges.
• Some countries/cities restrict them, less so today
• Moderate luggage, unless you can order a larger vehicle
• Ride-share apps need to be loaded with payment options and ready to go.

Traditional Taxis

Usually lined up outside arrivals. Always use official taxi stands.

Best for

• Simplicity
• No app needed
• Countries where taxis are highly regulated

Pros

• Immediate
• Drivers often know hotels well
• Good after long-haul flights

Cons

• Can be expensive
• Tourist scams in some destinations
• Need local currency occasionally
• long taxi queues

Hotel Airport Shuttle

Many airport hotels and resorts offer these types of free shuttle services. However, this is usually the case when the hotel is close to the airport and the service is limited to certain times of the day.

Best for

• Convenience
• Jet-lagged arrivals
• Resort destinations

Pros

• Often free
• No navigation stress
• Safe and predictable

Cons

• Limited schedules
• May stop at multiple hotels
• Sometimes requires advance reservation

Specific Suggestions for Transferring to Hilton Hotels

Private Car Service

A Private airport transfer is normally one of your safest choices, as you will most often get professional drivers with excellent credentials and a good safety record. Private airport services are the most expensive alternative, and offer a higher level of service. As a premium high class travel experience,  private airport transportation is often the most convenient and safest. Airport limousine services are available at an additional cost.

Examples:

• Pre-booked professional chauffeurs
• Luxury transfer companies
• Cruise line transfers

Here is our best choice for transfers in New York City from JFK Airport,

From other locations, we suggest you check out Welcome Pickups.

Best for

• Luxury travel, comfortable rides
• Families
• Business meetings
• International flights

Pros

• Usually, a black car service or premium sedan
• Meet-and-greet service in the arrivals hall after baggage claim
• Driver waiting with a sign
• No stress after customs, timely pickups.
• Often, a professionally trained chauffeur
• Premium limousine vehicles are an excellent choice for families or large groups

Cons

• Most expensive option
• Confusion if the driver isn't present with the sign in the Arrivals Hall. Recently happened to us in Manila. We needed to take a taxi. The company reimbursed our fee,

This is especially popular for:

• Italy
• Greece
• Japan
• Cruise ports
• Complex arrivals and perks of the business class 

Public Transportation

In many places, particularly in large European cities, this option is affordable transportation for airport transfers. Public transport could include:

• Metro/subway
• Train
• Bus
• Airport express

Traveling by train can often be much easier, faster, and less expensive than flying. This is particularly true in Europe, where trains are often the best way to travel between two cities. Tickets can often be purchased a month or more in advance. When traveling in Europe, we've been very pleased to use the Rail Europe service to make our train reservations and purchase our tickets. 

Best for

• Budget travelers
• Light packers
• Major cities

Pros

• Cheapest
• Often fastest in traffic-heavy cities
• Good cultural immersion

Cons

• Hard with luggage
• Crowded
• Challenging after long flights
• May need to arrange additional transportation from the nearest stop to the hotel.

Examples of Excellent Airport Transfers via Public Transit:

• London Underground
• Shinkansen connections
• Hong Kong MTR
• Caltrain connections from the SFO area

Whenever we visit a city with a good public transportation system, we usually use it if it is easy to understand and safe. We have recently traveled to the following cities, where we found good public transportation:

• Amsterdam, Netherlands
• Adelaide, Australia
• Las Vegas, Nevada - good, but limited public transportation
• London, England
• Melbourne, Australia
• New York City, New York
• Nice, France
• Paris, France
• San Francisco, California
• Sydney, Australia

We also recently traveled to the following cities, where we were not comfortable using their public transportation system. Instead, we relied on taxis or ride sharing to get around:

• Barcelona, Spain
• Buenos Aires, Argentina
• Milan, Italy
• Madrid, Spain
• Naples, Italy
• Papette, French Polynesia
• Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
• Rome, Italy

Airport Express Trains

A special category because many are outstanding. Our favorite is the Heathrow Express.

Best for

• Large international cities

Pros

• Very fast
• Comfortable
• Reliable
• Often easier than roads

Cons

• You may still require a taxi to the hotel afterward

Excellent Examples of Airport Express Trains

• Heathrow Express
• Narita Express
• Leonardo Express in Rome

Rental Cars

Daily car rental charges have gotten expensive. During the COVID pandemic, it was horrible: some places, like Hawaii, which was short on cars, were charging outrageous car rental prices, and even today, many places are still charging premium prices. Therefore, it pays to shop around for a good rental deal.

Best for

• Road trips
• Rural destinations
• Hawaii
• National parks

Pros

• Freedom
• Easy luggage handling
• Flexible

Cons

• Parking costs
• Driving fatigue
• Navigation stress
• Insurance issues abroad

Rules for Renting Cars

However, we have a few rules for renting cars. First, we generally only rent a car when public transit options don't work. For example, if we are just staying in a major city with a good, safe mass transit system, then why do we need a rental car? Second, when renting, we want to rent from the better-known rental car companies. We are not just looking for the least expensive rental. Both Robin and I are tall, and small economy cars are just not for us. In addition, when we book a rental car in countries other than the United States, most cars available for rent have a manual transmission. While we both learned to drive on manual transmissions, that was a long time ago, and now we clearly prefer rental cars with automatic transmissions, even though that costs a little more.

Rental Car Companies

There are many rental car companies, and we have not found loyalty to be all that important, with two exceptions. First, you can occasionally get a free day discount after you have made a fairly large number of rentals with a single company. Second, if you can get into a company's VIP programs, then you will usually get better service. The companies we prefer are National and Europcar. We have also used Avis, Hertz, Enterprise, and Budget. It is important for us to rent from a company that can deliver our car quickly. We find that all of the previously mentioned car rental companies can do that, especially if we are in their preferred rental programs. However, we have noticed that in some countries, Mexico in particular, there is so much paperwork involved in renting a car that no company will get you out quickly.

Round-Trip or One-Way

We will primarily rent a car for a round-trip, returning it to the original location where we picked it up. However, there are situations when a one-way rental makes sense, though you often pay a premium. We recently did a one-way rental with Europcar from Munich, Germany, to Genoa, Italy, when the airline canceled our flight due to a strike, and the trains were already full. It would have cost us a lot more for the rental, except that the car they rented was Italian, and they didn't charge us extra since we were returning it to them. We were so pleased with their service, including helping us at the drop-off site, that we now book all our rentals in Europe with Europcar. For more information about Europcar, please visit europcar.com.

Figuring out which rental car companies offer the best deals can be challenging. We recommend using a rental car aggregator, either Rentalcars.com or a more general online travel agency. 

See our Reservations post for more information. We have also used Costco to book some of our rental cars, as they can have good rates (see costco.com). Finally, if you want to use an American rental car company, that's a great idea. We recommend National Car Rental or Enterprise. We have had good service from both of them, and National lets you select your car. Enterprise serves some remote locations, including many train stations, and offers hybrid vehicles,

If you are renting a car in Hawaii, click the following link for excellent service and a good price: Discount Hawaii Rental Cars. Discount Hawaii Car Rental is a highly reputable, legitimate third-party booking site offering some of the lowest rates in Hawaii, often 25-40% below standard prices. Users consistently praise their excellent customer service and free cancellation, though it is important to remember they act as a broker for major rental brands.

Shared Shuttle Vans

Still common in resort and cruise destinations.

Best for

• Budget-conscious travelers

Pros

• Cheaper than private transfers

Cons

• Multiple stops
• Slow
• Crowded

Walking

Surprisingly common in:

• European cities
• Airport hotels
• Connected terminals

A few places we have walked to from our hotel include some of the following hotels attached to the airport.

Major Airports with Attached or Directly Connected Hotels

These are especially useful for:

• overnight layovers,
• late arrivals,
• early departures,
• cruise pre-stays,
• and long international itineraries.

Many seasoned travelers consider them worth the premium for convenience alone.

Asia

Singapore — Crowne Plaza Changi Airport

Directly connected to Singapore Changi Airport, often ranked among the world’s best airport hotels. The Jewel waterfall at the airport is also unique and quite special.

Singapore's Airport Hotel is known for:

• elegant design,
• pool,
• quiet rooms,
• easy access to Jewel.

Tokyo — Haneda Excel Hotel Tokyu

Actually, inside the terminal area at Haneda Airport.

Wonderful for:

• late Tokyo arrivals,
• Japan stopovers,
• avoiding long city transfers.

Seoul — Grand Hyatt Incheon

Minutes from Incheon International Airport with shuttle service.

Very popular for long-haul connections.

Europe

London — Sofitel London Heathrow

Connected directly to Heathrow Airport Terminal 5 via covered walkway.

A favorite for:

• transatlantic travelers,
• overnight Heathrow stays.

Amsterdam — Hilton Amsterdam Airport Schiphol

Connected directly to Amsterdam Airport Schiphol.

Beautiful contemporary architecture and incredibly easy train access into Amsterdam.

Munich — Hilton Munich Airport

Located between terminals at Munich Airport.

Known for:

• dramatic glass atrium,
• spa,
• convenience for European connections.

Zurich — Radisson Blu Hotel Zurich Airport

Attached directly to Zurich Airport.

Very Swiss:

• sleek,
• efficient,
• walkable in minutes.

North America

JFK -- TWA Hotel

Attached to John F. Kennedy International Airport at the iconic former TWA Flight Center, designed by famed architect Eero Saarinen.

This is one of the world’s most iconic airport hotels and a destination in itself.

Known for:

• spectacular 1960s jet-age architecture,
• vintage TWA branding,
• rooftop infinity pool overlooking runways,
• Connie cocktail lounge inside a restored Lockheed Constellation aircraft,

Boston — Hilton Boston Logan Airport

Directly connected by an enclosed skybridge to Logan International Airport.

Particularly good for:

• winter travel,
• cruise pre-stays,
• early departures,
• and international arrivals.

Dallas — Grand Hyatt DFW

Actually, inside Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport.

Excellent for:

• international layovers,
• business travel.

Orlando — Hyatt Regency Orlando International Airport

Inside the main terminal of Orlando Airport.

Very convenient before cruises, Walt Disney World, or Universal Studios trips.

Vancouver — Fairmont Vancouver Airport

One of the best luxury airport hotels anywhere.

Attached to Vancouver International Airport with runway views and surprisingly quiet rooms.

Denver — The Westin Denver International Airport

Attached to the Denver International Airport and the train station.

Iconic architecture that mirrors the airport roofline.

Middle East

Doha — Oryx Airport Hotel

Actually, inside Hamad International Airport.

Ideal for:

• long Qatar Airways connections,
• sleeping between flights.

Dubai — Dubai International Hotel

Located within the Dubai International Airport transit area.

Perfect for ultra-long-haul travelers.

Best for

• Overnight airport hotels
• Light luggage

Hotel-arranged WhatsApp Drivers

Very common now in:

• Mexico
• Greece
• Southeast Asia

Your hotel arranges:

• Driver name
• Car photo
• WhatsApp communication

Very convenient internationally.

Cruise Transfers

Okay, cruise transfers are from a cruise port, not an airport, but the same challenge remains: how to get to your hotel or the airport if you are flying out the day you arrive at your destination. Cruise lines we like that offer airport-to-ship/hotel transportation include:

Celebrity Cruises

Princess Cruises

Hop-on Hop-off Buses are Not an Option for Airport Transfers

We find Hop-on Hop-off Buses to be a good way to gain an overview of a new city when you first visit. However, it is not an option for an Airport Transfer.  We just mentioned this transportation alternative here because we like to use it. Our favorite is the Big Bus. However, we often use GetYourGuide to find the best options for hop-On, Hop-Off buses. The following cities that we have visited have very good Hop-on Hop-off services: Although Cos knows Manhattan like the back of his hand (he lived there for most of his life), we still found that taking the Big Bus in New York was the most helpful way to get an overview of the city's tourist sites. Our favorite Hop-on Hop-Off service is Big Bus. We have used them in many cities.