London to Pearson & the airports · 2026-09-21 · 8-minute read
Buffalo airport from London, Ontario is a 245-kilometre run of about two and three-quarter hours plus the border: the 401 to Woodstock, the 403 through Brantford and Hamilton, the QEW around the lake to Fort Erie and the Peace Bridge - or the 405 to the Queenston-Lewiston bridge - and I-190 to Buffalo Niagara International (BUF) at Cheektowaga on the city's east side, at a LondonLimo.net planning figure of $460-560 plus HST for a business sedan and $520-620 for an executive SUV. BUF is a single terminal with two concourses where Southwest, JetBlue, Delta, American and United fly the cheap US routes - New York, Florida, Las Vegas, the Carolinas - at fares that are sometimes half of Pearson's; every passenger needs a passport or NEXUS, and the cross-border page has the documents. The Buffalo airport page has the terminal; this article is the run and the arithmetic.
The run, stage by stage
The 401 east to Woodstock and the 403 through Brantford and Hamilton - the same road as the Hamilton airport run - then the QEW around the head of Lake Ontario past St. Catharines toward Fort Erie and the Peace Bridge, or the 405 off the QEW at Niagara-on-the-Lake to the Queenston-Lewiston bridge; the US booth; and I-190 through Buffalo's north side to the airport at the Genesee Street exit. Two and three-quarter hours on a clear day; three and a half on a summer Friday with a bridge queue.
| Stage | From London | Time | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| London to Hamilton, the 401 and the 403 | 120 km | 1 h 20 | The Woodstock and Brantford snow belt in winter |
| The QEW to Fort Erie or the 405 to Queenston | 100 km | 1 h 00 | The chauffeur chooses the bridge by the wait times |
| The Peace Bridge or the Queenston-Lewiston bridge, and the CBP booth | - | 10-60 min | Passports or NEXUS |
| I-190 to BUF | 25 km | 25 min | Single terminal, two concourses |
| Total, door to terminal | 245 km | 2 h 45 - 3 h 30 | Sedan $460-560; SUV $520-620; Sprinter $780-920 |
LondonLimo.net planning ranges before HST, one way.
What flies from Buffalo, and why it is cheap
Southwest's and JetBlue's networks - New York, Boston, Florida, Las Vegas, the Carolinas - and Delta's, American's and United's hubs, at US domestic fares in US dollars that are structurally below the Canadian carriers' for the same routes; a Buffalo-to-Fort Lauderdale fare in February is routinely a third of Pearson-to-Fort Lauderdale's. The airport's site has the map; the airports comparison article sets Buffalo beside the others.
The two bridges
The Peace Bridge at Fort Erie is the direct road to Buffalo's downtown and the airport, and the busier crossing; the Queenston-Lewiston bridge is fifteen minutes further north with a shorter queue on many days and a run down I-190 past Niagara Falls, New York; the chauffeur reads the bridge authorities' published wait times an hour out and chooses. The CBP's booths at both ask the same questions, and NEXUS lanes at both save ten to thirty minutes for passengers who hold the card.
The arithmetic: when Buffalo wins
For a Florida, a New York or a Las Vegas trip where the Buffalo fare is $300 or more a head below Pearson's, the run's extra $165-215 each way for a sedan and forty-five extra minutes plus the border are paid for twice over on a couple and four times on a family; the travel desk runs the door-to-door figure before the flight is booked. Buffalo loses when the fare difference is small, when the trip is long enough that Pearson's direct flight to the destination exists, and when a passenger's documents are in doubt.
The timing rule with the border
Three hours before a US domestic flight, plus the two-and-three-quarter-hour run, plus the bridge's current wait, plus a winter margin: a 9 a.m. Southwest flight to Fort Lauderdale is a 2:45 a.m. pickup from London on a normal day and 2:15 on a Friday or in a squall. The cross-border page has the rule.
The return: Canadian customs, and the run home
A passenger returning to BUF is met at baggage claim on the lower level with a name board, driven to the bridge, and declares to the CBSA officer at the Canadian booth from the rear seat - passports forward, purchases declared - and then the QEW and the 403 home, two and a half hours from the bridge to a London driveway. A Niagara Falls night on the way home, at Fallsview or the Shaw, is the travel desk's addition and a common one.
Winter on the 403 and the QEW
The 401 and the 403 through Woodstock and Brantford are the snow belt; the QEW around the lake takes the lake-effect off Lake Ontario at Grimsby and St. Catharines; the chauffeur reads the Ontario 511 cameras at both and the desk leaves earlier by rule on winter tires. The winter article covers the discipline.
Three Buffalo runs, as they went
A couple to Fort Lauderdale, February, Southwest at 8:20 a.m. A sedan from Old South at 2:30 a.m.; the Peace Bridge at 5:10 with no queue; the terminal at 5:40; the fares were $380 a head below Pearson's.
A family of five to Orlando, March break, JetBlue at 7 a.m. A van from Sunningdale at 1:45 a.m. in a squall through Woodstock; the Queenston bridge at 4:40; the terminal at 5:15.
A student home from New York, Sunday 9:50 p.m. Met at baggage claim; the Peace Bridge queue was twenty minutes; the CBSA booth five; Western's residence at 1:20 a.m.
Booking it
Enter Buffalo airport on the reservation engine with the flight number and every passenger's citizenship in the notes; the fixed rate from any London address appears, and the Buffalo airport page has the terminal.
Three questions the desk is asked about Buffalo
Why is Buffalo so much cheaper than Pearson? US domestic fares are priced for the US market in US dollars, Buffalo is a competitive airport with Southwest and JetBlue, and Pearson's fees and Canadian carriers' fares sit above them; the difference is structural and the airports comparison article has the table. Is the run too long for a family? Two and three-quarter hours plus the border is long, and the desk says so; a family that leaves at 2 a.m. with the children asleep finds it easier than it sounds, and a Niagara night on the way is the travel desk's usual softening. Can a Toronto family use the same run? Yes - Buffalo from Toronto is two hours, and the Toronto page covers the region's runs.
The Niagara stop, in both directions
A night at Fallsview or Niagara-on-the-Lake before an early Buffalo flight, driven down the evening before with the crossing the next morning fifteen minutes from the hotel; a winery lunch on the way home from a Buffalo arrival; a Shaw Festival matinee before a 7 p.m. flight: the Niagara Falls page prices each, and the wine tour page covers the Niagara wineries.
The US booth at the bridge
Citizenship, purpose, length of stay, what is being brought in, whether everyone is travelling together; the passports forward; the chauffeur declaring the vehicle as a commercial passenger vehicle with a manifest; NEXUS lanes at both bridges for cardholders. The CBP's rules are the ones applied, and a passenger sent to secondary walks in with the officer while the chauffeur waits.
The Buffalo terminal
A single terminal with two concourses, the airlines' counters along the check-in hall, one security checkpoint, and baggage claim on the lower level where the chauffeur meets an arrival; the curb is close, the lots beside the terminal, and the Buffalo airport page has the layout. Three hours before a US domestic flight is the desk's rule, with the run and the bridge added.
The fare, and what it includes
A planning figure of $460-560 for a sedan, $520-620 for an SUV and $780-920 for a Sprinter, one way, with the chauffeur's time both ways, fuel, the bridge toll, the crossing's normal wait, the meet, the international wait on the return and the gratuity inside; the rates page has every class and the terms the border fees where they apply.
Booking checklist for a Buffalo run
The flight number; the London address; every passenger's name, citizenship and documents; the bags; a car seat; a Niagara stop or night; the return flight; the account or the card; and a US-capable phone number. The reservation engine takes Buffalo airport as an address.
The Toronto and Hamilton alternatives on the same road
The 403 passes Hamilton airport and the QEW passes the turn for Pearson via the 427; a family choosing between Buffalo's fare and Hamilton's for a Florida flight has both on the same road, and the desk prices the two door to door; the Hamilton airport article has the Hamilton case.
What the airport publishes
Buffalo Niagara International's site has the airlines, the destinations, the parking and the boards; the desk reads the boards for every meet and the bridge authorities' wait times for every crossing, and the airport's own arrival advice is the floor the desk's rule sits on.
A worked example: a couple to Fort Lauderdale
Pearson's direct at $640 a head in February; Southwest's from Buffalo at $180 a head; the difference, $920 on the couple; the run's extra cost, $165 each way for the sedan against Pearson's; the couple saved $590 and had a Niagara-on-the-Lake dinner on the way home. The travel desk ran the numbers and the Niagara Falls page had the dinner.
The run's stages, briefly
The 401 and the 403 to Hamilton, an hour and twenty; the QEW to Fort Erie, fifty minutes; the Peace Bridge and the booth, ten to sixty; I-190 to the airport, twenty-five. The hour-by-hour article does the same for Pearson, and the cross-border page has the crossing in detail.
The desk's rule of thumb for Buffalo
Buffalo for a US domestic route with a fare difference of $250 a head or more, passports in hand, and a departure after 7 a.m.; Pearson for the direct international flights and the small fare differences; Detroit when the route is Delta's and the west; and the travel desk to run the numbers before the ticket is bought. A Buffalo booking on the reservation engine takes the citizenships in the notes, and the cross-border page has the document checklist that the chauffeur will check at the door before the run begins - a passenger without a passport is not driven to the bridge.
Booking it, in one line
The reservation engine prices Buffalo airport from any London address with the citizenships in the notes; the desk checks the documents and the travel desk the fare against Pearson's before the ticket is bought.
The Sprinter to Buffalo
A hockey team, a wedding's guests or a company's group flying Southwest from Buffalo together book the Sprinter at $780-920 for fourteen - $56-66 a head - with the bags in the bays and one crossing at the bridge with the manifest handed to the officer; the group transportation page covers the manifest.
