Trains to Brighton

Located only a short walk from the city’s iconic seafront, Brighton Train Station is a charming station that merges old-school English seaside town chic with a contemporary pizazz.

In fact, the station is a great emblem for Brighton itself. The city latches onto its reputation as a traditional British seaside resort, replete with fish and chips shops, retro arcades, and ice cream stands. Yet it is complemented by leagues of trendy record stores, independent boutiques, cafes, and a bursting nightlife scene kept alive by students, artists, and musicians, much like the station itself, which ferries all kinds of passengers – traditional holidaymakers, students, and commuters around the south coast.

Brighton has been a popular seaside resort since at least the 1730s, when tourists bathed or ‘took the cure’ to use the original 18th-century parlance, in the sea at Brighton beach. But after the railway line from London opened in 1841, the town received a massive uptick in the number of visitors, and its reputation as a tourist hotspot began to boom, continuing to this day.

Brighton Train Station offers several amenities, including:

• A ticket office (opening times: Monday to Sunday: 3.45am – 1.45am). You can book train tickets as well as monthly and annual season tickets at the ticket office.
• Self-service ticket machines and accessible ticket machines. Plus, you can collect tickets you have bought online from the self-service machines.
• Step-free access to all platforms.
• Boards to check the real-time train timetable.
• ATMs, shops, and hospitality.
• Public telephones and post boxes.
• 740 bicycle storage stands and lockers—a cycle hub by the car park and a bicycle storage at the station’s entrance.

Brighton Train Station can be found near the seaside resort’s famous beach, which is only a ten-to-fifteen-minute walk away.

Taxis are available at the rear of the station, near platform eight, and they can also drop you off at the station’s entrance. Local buses can be found just across from the station on Trafalgar Street.

Brighton has five railway stations: Brighton Train Station, Preston Park, London Road, Moulsecoomb, and Falmer, which is great if you have ongoing connections or need to get to Brighton Station from the wider local area.

Brighton Train Station is the city's central railway station, connecting the city to London and the wider south coast. It is the southern terminus of the Brighton Main Line from London Victoria and London Bridge, the western terminus of the East Coastway Line, and the eastern terminus of the West Coastway Line.

London to Brighton

It takes approximately one hour to fifteen minutes to get from London to Brighton. You can reach Brighton from either London Bridge with Thameslink or the Gatwick Express, or from London Victoria with Southern.

Gatwick Airport to Brighton

The journey from Gatwick Airport to Brighton is convenient. Getting between the two destinations takes only twenty-six minutes to half an hour when travelling with either the Gatwick Express or Thameslink.

Portsmouth to Brighton

There are fifty-two trains between Portsmouth and Brighton. The journey takes around one hour and twenty minutes when travelling with Southern.

Southampton to Brighton

Getting from Southampton to Brighton takes one hour and forty-five minutes, whether travelling from Southampton Airport Parkway or Southampton Central. There are, on average, forty-two trains per day between the two cities.

Thameslink, Gatwick Express, and Southern are Brighton's leading train operators.

Southern services destinations both east and west of Brighton to Southampton, Portsmouth, Seaford, and Eastbourne. Meanwhile, Thameslink runs services to places like Gatwick Airport and London Bridge, alongside Cambridge and Stevenage.

The Gatwick Express runs services to London Victoria via Gatwick Airport.

Brighton may be one of the UK’s most popular domestic tourist hotspots, yet the city isn’t a huge metropolis like London or has the hustle and bustle of places like Manchester or Glasgow. Instead, Brighton is relatively small in comparison– let’s say fun-sized, and easy to get around. You’re never far from amazing things to see and do.

Obviously, the famous Brighton beach and pier are at the top of the must-see things to do. Enjoy some good old-fashioned fun with the traditional arcades, chippie chips, and the gorgeous beachfront. If you’re lucky, you may catch the spectacular starling murmurations. Watch thousands of birds swirl in perfect unison as the starlings begin to migrate home. The best place to view the starlings is between the Palace Pier and the West Pier, arguably one of the UK’s most famous murmurations, typically between November and March each year.

Brighton has huge quantities of interesting shops, cool cafes, and exciting restaurants, pubs, bars and nightclubs. If you’re into culture, try Brighton Museum & Art Gallery, or Brighton Dome for gigs and concerts. If you’re a nature-lover, then SEA LIFE Brighton is the ideal place for you.

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What is the main station in Brighton called?

Brighton Train Station is the main station in Brighton.

How far is Brighton City Centre from the train station?

It’s only a ten-to-fifteen-minute walk from the station to the city centre and beachfront.

Can you use your Oyster card to go to Brighton?

Brighton is outside London Transport zones. So, Oyster cards are not valid on railway services in Brighton.

*Information is subject to change. Please check the latest train timetable before your trip.