From the airport to Toronto takes 25 to 45 minutes by car from Pearson (about 27 km to downtown), 25 minutes on the UP Express train to Union Station, or a few minutes from Billy Bishop on the island. A pre-booked car to downtown is a planning figure of $130–160 all-in plus HST; the train is cheaper for one person with light bags.
Airport to Toronto: first, which airport?
Most people searching "airport to Toronto" have landed, or will land, at Toronto Pearson (YYZ) in Mississauga, the country's busiest airport. A smaller number arrive at Billy Bishop (YTZ) on the Toronto Island, a short hop from downtown; a few land at Hamilton (YHM), about an hour away. The answers are completely different for each, so check your ticket before reading further. This guide is written for a first arrival at Pearson, with notes for the other two. The formal part, the customs hall, is covered in detail by our arriving in Canada at Pearson guide; here we deal with everything before and after it, in the order a first-timer meets it.
Step 1: before you fly, decide how you will get into the city
The worst time to choose transport is at 11 p.m. after a long flight, standing in an arrivals hall with a dead phone. Decide at home. Four questions settle it: where exactly you are going (downtown hotel, suburban family home, a university residence), how many bags you have, whether anyone in your group has mobility needs or small children, and what time you land. A solo traveller with a backpack heading to a hotel near Union Station is a UP Express customer. A family of four with six suitcases going to Vaughan is not. If you book a car, do it now; the booking page shows a fixed fare before you pay.
Step 2: landing and the walk to the customs hall
Pearson has two passenger terminals, Terminal 1 and Terminal 3, linked by the free Terminal Link train. Your airline decides which one; Air Canada and most Star Alliance flights use Terminal 1, WestJet and Porter and many others Terminal 3, but check with the terminal finder. From the gate, the walk to the customs hall can be ten minutes or more. Switch off airplane mode as you walk: Pearson has free Wi-Fi, and this is the moment to message whoever is meeting you. If you booked a car, the chauffeur already knows your landing time through flight tracking; a short "landed" message is still welcome.
Step 3: customs and baggage, in round numbers
Visitors from abroad go through kiosks or eGates, then a border services officer, then baggage claim. Travellers on domestic flights skip the border entirely and go straight to the bags. Rough timings on a normal day:
| Arriving from | Landing to curb, typical | Busy periods |
|---|---|---|
| Within Canada | 20–35 min | 45 min |
| United States | 40–60 min | 75 min |
| Overseas, visitor | 45–75 min | 90–120 min |
| Overseas, new study or work permit | 75–120 min | 2 h + |
Those are planning ranges, not promises. The Pearson airport website posts current information, and the CBSA explains what to declare.
Step 4: choose your ride, honestly
There are five realistic ways from Pearson into Toronto. The UP Express train runs from Terminal 1 to Union Station in about 25 minutes, roughly every 15 minutes; Terminal 3 passengers ride the free Terminal Link to reach it. The TTC 900 Airport Express bus runs to Kipling subway station, the cheapest option, slow with bags. A rideshare picks up from designated zones at the terminal doors, at a price that moves with demand. A Pearson taxi or limousine from the stand charges a zone-based flat rate. A pre-booked car like ours meets you at the commercial pickup area at a fixed, prepaid fare. Our comparison of limo, Uber, taxi and UP Express sets them side by side.
What does each option cost to downtown Toronto?
| Option | Price to downtown | Time to a downtown hotel | Best for |
|---|---|---|---|
| UP Express + walk or short cab | check the fare on the UP site | 35–50 min door to door | Solo, light bags, near Union |
| TTC 900 bus + subway | one transit fare | 60–75 min | Budget, very light bags |
| Rideshare | varies with demand | 25–50 min | Spontaneous, flexible budget |
| Pearson taxi or limo stand | zone-based flat rate | 25–50 min | No booking, short queue |
| Pre-booked business sedan | $130–160 planning figure, all-in + HST | 25–50 min | Fixed price, families, late nights |
We do not quote UP Express or TTC fares because they change; the UP Express and TTC sites carry the current prices.
Step 5: finding your ride at the terminal
Each option has its own spot, and first-timers often go to the wrong one. The UP Express platform is at Terminal 1, signposted from the arrivals level; from Terminal 3, follow the Terminal Link signs first. Rideshare zones are marked at the terminal doors. The taxi and limousine stand is outside arrivals with a dispatcher. Our chauffeurs meet at the terminal's pre-arranged commercial pickup area; once you have your bags, message the chauffeur, who tells you the exact door. With meet and greet (planning figure $25–35), the chauffeur waits inside the arrivals hall with a name board instead, which is worth it on a first visit or with a parent who does not speak English.
Step 6: the drive into the city
The chauffeur usually takes Highway 427 south to the Gardiner Expressway and follows it east along the lake to downtown; the CN Tower appears on the right-hand horizon about ten minutes in. For midtown or North York addresses, the 401 east is more direct. Off-peak, downtown is 25 to 35 minutes away; in weekday rush hour, 7 to 9:30 a.m. inbound and 3:30 to 6:30 p.m. generally, allow 45 to 60 minutes. Our Pearson to downtown Toronto route page covers the roads, times of day and pickup points in detail.
Arriving late at night
Flights land at Pearson around the clock, and after midnight the options narrow. The UP Express stops for a few hours overnight and the TTC switches to its overnight network, so check the last departure on the UP Express site before you rely on it. Rideshare prices tend to rise after the bars close downtown, and the taxi stand can be busy when two or three long-haul flights arrive together. A pre-booked car costs the same at 1 a.m. as at noon: the fare shown at booking is the fare, with no night surcharge added at the curb. For a first arrival after 11 p.m., especially with children or heavy bags, that certainty is usually worth more than the few dollars a shared option might save.
Arriving with reduced mobility
Request airline wheelchair assistance when you book the flight, not at the gate; the airline agent then brings you through customs and baggage to the exit. Tell us about it at booking, and the chauffeur coordinates with the agent at the door. Folding wheelchairs and walkers travel in the trunk of every vehicle class. For a traveller who stays seated in a power chair, a ramp-equipped vehicle is needed, which our wheelchair accessible transfers page explains; those trips are planned separately and need more notice. Pearson publishes its own accessibility services on the airport website, including quiet spaces and assistance points.
If you landed at Billy Bishop instead
Billy Bishop is on the Toronto Island, reached from the mainland by a 260-metre pedestrian tunnel with moving walkways or a very short ferry. Walk through the tunnel to the mainland terminal on Eireann Quay, at the foot of Bathurst Street, where cars and taxis wait. Most downtown hotels are ten to fifteen minutes away by car. A car from Billy Bishop to Pearson is a planning figure of $145–175. See our Billy Bishop guide and the airport's own site for the details.
If you landed at Hamilton
Hamilton's John C. Munro airport (YHM) is about 70 km from downtown Toronto. There is no train from the terminal; the options are a pre-booked car, a taxi into Hamilton and a GO train or bus onward, or a rental car. A car from Hamilton airport to Pearson is a planning figure of $195–240, and downtown Toronto sits in a similar range, depending on the address. Our Hamilton airport page covers the pickup point and timings.
Three first arrivals, three right answers
- A consultant landing at 3 p.m. on a Tuesday, staying at a hotel beside Union Station, one carry-on. UP Express. It is quick, predictable and cheap for one person.
- A couple with two big suitcases landing at 11:40 p.m., staying in Yorkville. A pre-booked car. At that hour the UP Express frequency drops, and the walk from Union with suitcases is not appealing. Planning figure $130–160.
- A family of five from London with car seats, going to Oakville. A luxury van booked in advance with two seats installed. Planning figure about $150–195, fixed, and nobody standing in a taxi queue with tired children.
What first-timers get wrong
- Booking the smallest car for the most bags. Three large suitcases is the sedan limit.
- Walking out of the terminal to "find the driver" before messaging them, then standing at the wrong door.
- Accepting a ride from someone approaching them in the arrivals hall. Use the official stand, a rideshare app, or a pre-booked chauffeur.
- Forgetting that Terminal 3 has no UP Express platform; you ride the Terminal Link to Terminal 1 first.
- Arriving in January with the winter coat packed in the checked bag.
Your first evening in Toronto
Get outside in daylight if you can, eat something light, and stay up until at least 9 p.m. local time. Downtown is walkable, and a tap of a credit card or a PRESTO card works on the TTC. Our companion post, your first hour in Toronto, picks up where this guide stops, at the hotel door. For everything else about the city, from neighbourhoods to weather, the first-time visitor guide is the place to start.
Booking, waiting time and cancellation
A pre-booked pickup includes 60 minutes of waiting after an international landing and 30 minutes after a Canadian or US one, counted from the actual landing time; after that, waiting is billed in 15-minute blocks, and we tell you first. There is no charge to cancel more than 72 hours before pickup; inside 72 hours the charge is 10 %, inside 48 hours 50 %, and inside 24 hours or for a no-show, the full fare. Flight delays are not cancellations: the car simply moves with the aircraft.
