Getting to Birmingham Airport by Train
Birmingham Airport is perfectly connected to Britain’s rail network. You can seamlessly connect between train and plane by using Birmingham International station! Here’s our guide getting to Birmingham Airport by train. We’ll show you which trains go there, and how you can make the connection when you’re jetting off to somewhere new.
How do I get to Birmingham Airport by train?
If you’re heading to Birmingham Airport by train, then the train will take you to Birmingham International station. This is on the West Coast Main Line route, so it gets direct trains from all over the country. Here’s a summary of where the trains go and how often they run:
Avanti West Coast
- Coventry, Rugby*, Milton Keynes Central* Watford Junction* and London Euston (2 per hour)
- Birmingham New Street only (1 or 2 per hour)
- Birmingham New Street, Wolverhampton, Crewe, Preston, Carlisle, Edinburgh (1 every 2 hours).
Limited services also run to Glasgow via Preston (typically four per day) which gives a broadly hourly train to Carlisle (with a couple of gaps).
*Only 1 train per hour stops at these stations.
CrossCountry
- Coventry, Leamington Spa, Banbury, Oxford, Reading, Southampton and Bournemouth (1 per hour)
- Birmingham New Street, Wolverhampton, Stafford, Stoke-on-Trent and Manchester (1 per hour).
Transport for Wales
- Birmingham New Street, Shrewsbury, Machynlleth and Aberystwyth/Pwllheli (1 every 2 hours)
- Birmingham New Street, Shrewsbury, Chester, Llandudno Junction and Holyhead (1 every 2 hours).
West Midlands Trains
- All stations to Birmingham New Street, then Walsall and Rugeley Trent Valley (2 per hour)
- Birmingham New Street only (2 per hour)
- Coventry, Rugby, Northampton, Milton Keynes Central and London Euston (2 per hour).
All in all, you can expect to have around eight trains to Birmingham every hour (seven on Sundays). The journey time is as little as 10 minutes, too.
We’ve simplified this guide, so we haven’t shown you every single station where trains stop. When you book a ticket with Railsmartr, we’ll show you all of your options, including direct trains, even if they’re a little slower.
Is it easy to connect between plane and train?
So, this is the biggest question you might have. Getting to Birmingham Airport by train is easy, because there’s a free automated Air-Rail Link that’ll take you straight to the terminal. It runs from 3:30am til 12:30am every few minutes, so you’re unlikely to need to wait very long:
When you get off the train, just head upstairs. There’ll be plenty of signs directing you towards the terminal. We’d recommend allowing an extra 10 to 15 minutes compared to the time that your train arrives at Birmingham International station.
Can you walk from Birmingham International to the Airport?
It’s possible, though you’re unlikely to need to, seeing as there’s the free automated shuttle that you can use for most of the day. If you’re arriving between 12:30am and 3:30am (when the shuttle doesn’t run), then you can walk to the entrance instead.
When you leave the station, simply turn right and go straight ahead. You’ll head under a main road (Bickenhill Lane) first. Once you’re under there, turn right and head down Vanguard Road until you can see the terminal. It should take around 10 to 15 minutes, depending on how much luggage you need to pull along!
When are the first and last trains to/from Birmingham Airport?
This very much depends on where you’re going from and to, but here are some key destinations and their first trains to the Airport and the last trains back. These are for weekdays only (final departure/arrival times from the Airport after midnight are for Tuesday to Saturday mornings) so check ahead if you want to travel on a weekend:
| Station | First Arrival at the Airport | Final Departure from the Airport |
| Birmingham New Street | 05:39 (dep. 05:30) | 01:21 (arr. 01:32) |
| Coventry | 05:42 (dep. 05:33) | 00:55 (arr. 01:12) |
| Northampton | 06:05 (dep. 05:15) | 23:08/23:22 (arr. 23:59/00:08)* |
| Crewe | 07:12 (dep. 05:46) | 22:49 (arr. 00:24)** |
| Shrewsbury | 06:58 (dep. 05:18) | 23:07 (arr. 00:55) |
*The 23:22 service is operated by Avanti West Coast and is regularly altered to skip Northampton where needed. We’d recommend aiming for the earlier 23:08 train if you can.
**You’ll need to change at Birmingham New Street or Wolverhampton for Crewe. The last direct train is at 20:46.
Remember that early-morning and late-night trains are liable to alterations for engineering works. When you book your train tickets with Railsmartr, we’ll let you know if anything changes after you book. How does that work? We send you an email automatically as soon as the train company lets us know!
Is there anything else I should know?
The final thing we’d recommend is using the Railsmartr website to book your tickets when you want to get to Birmingham Airport by train. We’re completely independent, so we’re happy to ‘tell you like it is’ when it comes to rail fares. Not only that, but we’ll show you the slower, but cheaper options that some websites won’t.
Don’t forget that we don’t charge any fees, either. That includes if you change your mind and want to travel on a different day. If your ticket is refundable, we’ll refund it fee-free, too!
All information is issued in good faith and was correct at 18/07/2023. It’s subject to change at any time and Railsmartr are not responsible for any loss or disappointment incurred as a result of the information provided.