Waterloo Station: A Guide

Published 28 September 2026 · By the Guide to London editorial team · Editor: Terje Moy

Waterloo has 24 platforms under one long roof on the south bank of the Thames, and it is the biggest terminus in London by platform count. It is no longer the busiest station in Britain: Network Rail now gives that title to Liverpool Street. What it is, for anyone arriving with a case, is the station where the choice of exit decides your afternoon. Leave through the Victory Arch and you are five minutes from the London Eye. Leave at the Waterloo Road end and you are among bus stops, a roundabout and a subway. Nothing on the concourse tells you that, so this page does. There is also a separate station called Waterloo East that is not on the main departure board.

The good news for anyone standing there with a suitcase is that Waterloo is one of the easiest big stations to use. One concourse, one departure board, every platform level with the floor you are standing on, and staff at an information point in the middle. It is rated category A for step-free access by Network Rail, meaning no stairs to any platform. Which trains go where from London is covered in our guide to London's main terminals, and the station that has taken the busiest title is the subject of our Liverpool Street station guide.

All the exits, and what is on the other side of each

Waterloo's exits fan out along the front of the station and round the side. From west to east:

• The Victory Arch, on to York Road. The grand exit, up and over through a stone arch built as a war memorial, then down to the road. This is the one you want for the river: cross York Road, walk through Jubilee Gardens, and the Sea Life London Aquarium and the wheel are about five minutes away. York Road is also where the Leake Street graffiti tunnel runs under the platforms.
• Tenison Way. The middle of the front of the station, on to the elevated road, with bus stops for central and north London. Convenient, and the least pleasant place to stand.
• Station Approach. Also at the front, with the bus stops for central and south-east London and access to the taxi rank.
• Waterloo Road. At the eastern end, with a lift down to street level and lift access to the Jubilee line. This is the exit for the Old Vic, the IMAX roundabout and Lower Marsh market, and the sensible one if you are heading south rather than to the river.
• Westminster Bridge Road. Round the south-east corner, the exit for St Thomas' Hospital, Lambeth North and the walk towards Westminster Bridge.

The Underground, which is three separate descents

Four Underground lines serve Waterloo, and they are not reached from one place.

• The Jubilee line has its own ticket hall towards the Waterloo Road end of the station, with escalators and lifts, and it is fully step-free in both directions. It is also the fastest way to Westminster, London Bridge and Canary Wharf.
• The Northern and Bakerloo lines are reached from the subway below the main concourse, down the staircases signed "Underground" near the middle of the platforms. Neither is step-free at Waterloo except the southbound Bakerloo platform.
• The Waterloo & City line, one stop to Bank, runs from the same lower level. TfL's timetable holds a Monday to Friday schedule for it and nothing else: there is no Saturday or Sunday service at all. On weekdays it runs from about 06:00 until just after midnight.

For the main-line platforms the Jubilee line is the entrance to aim for; our Jubilee line guide explains why it is the most accessible deep line on the network, and the Bakerloo line guide covers the one-direction lift here.

Waterloo East is not part of Waterloo

Waterloo East, with platforms A to E, sits at right angles to the main station and serves Charing Cross, London Bridge and Kent. You reach it by walking up to the balcony level at the eastern end of the main concourse and along an enclosed walkway, which takes three or four minutes and involves a ticket barrier at each end.

Trains from Waterloo East do not appear on the main Waterloo departure board, and a ticket to "London Waterloo" is generally valid at both, but check yours. If you are changing between the two, allow ten minutes rather than four.

Where the platform appears, and where to stand

Waterloo is better than most about this. The departure board runs the width of the concourse, most trains are platformed several minutes before departure, and because every platform is on the same level you can walk to any of them in under three minutes from the middle of the concourse. Platforms 1 to 4 are at the eastern, Waterloo Road end; 20 to 24, in the former Eurostar terminal, are at the western end past the ticket office.

The exception is the peak. Between 17:00 and 18:30 the concourse fills with several thousand people standing still and watching the board, and the surge towards a platform when it is announced is genuine. If you have a choice, travel before 16:30 or after 19:00; our page on avoiding the London rush hour has the pattern for the rest of the network.

Left luggage, toilets and where to sit down

The left luggage office is run by the Excess Baggage Company and open every day from 07:00 to 23:00. It costs from £10.00 per item for up to three hours and £15.00 for up to 24 hours, and bags are screened. Cheaper storage in shops and hotels near the station, booked through an app, is compared in our guide to left luggage at London's stations.

The toilets are free and outside the ticket barriers, with an accessible unisex toilet and baby changing. Lost property here is handled by the train operator rather than TfL, on weekdays only, which is worth knowing if you left something on a South Western Railway train; anything left on the Tube or a bus goes through the system described in lost property on London transport.

For sitting down, the balcony level above the concourse has the most seating that does not require buying something, and it has the best view of the roof. The information point is in the centre of the concourse. Food is covered separately in our guide to eating near Waterloo station, which also deals with Lower Marsh, the street of cafes and market stalls two minutes behind the station that most travellers never find.

Step-free routes in and out

Every main-line platform at Waterloo is level with the concourse, so the station itself presents no problem. The step-free exits, according to Network Rail, are the one on to Station Approach, the one on to Waterloo Road with its lift, and the one used for taxis and onward travel towards the South Bank. The Victory Arch involves steps down to the road, which is the detail people with wheels most often discover too late.

Underground, the Jubilee line is step-free from street to train in both directions and the Bakerloo is step-free southbound only. The Northern line platforms are not step-free at all. Staff help is turn-up-and-go without booking on the Underground, and on the main line the operator will arrange assistance up to two hours before departure; the details are in step-free and accessible transport in London.

Frequently asked questions

Which Waterloo exit is closest to the London Eye?

The Victory Arch, the stone archway at the western end of the concourse, which leads out to York Road. Cross the road, walk through Jubilee Gardens and you are at the wheel in about five minutes. The arch involves steps, so anyone needing a step-free route should use the taxi and South Bank exit instead.

Is Waterloo station step-free?

Yes for the main-line platforms: Network Rail rates it category A, with every platform level with the concourse. Not all the exits are step-free, and on the Underground only the Jubilee line is step-free in both directions, with the Bakerloo step-free southbound only and the Northern line not at all.

How do I get from Waterloo to Waterloo East?

Up to the balcony level at the eastern end of the main concourse and along the covered walkway, three or four minutes plus a ticket barrier at each end. Waterloo East serves Charing Cross, London Bridge and Kent, and its departures do not appear on the main Waterloo board.

Is there left luggage at Waterloo station?

Yes, run by the Excess Baggage Company and open daily from 07:00 to 23:00, from £10.00 per item for up to three hours. Every bag is screened on the way in. App-booked storage in nearby shops and hotels costs considerably less if you have time to walk.

Does the Waterloo & City line run at weekends?

No. TfL's timetable data for the line contains a Monday to Friday schedule only, with no Saturday or Sunday service. On weekdays it runs from about 06:00 to just after midnight, roughly every three to five minutes. For the City at a weekend, take the Jubilee line to London Bridge or the Northern line to Bank.

Sources

• Network Rail - London Waterloo station information, step-free exits and facilities (checked September 2026)
• National Rail - London Waterloo station facilities and step-free category (checked September 2026)
• Network Rail - London Waterloo station map, June 2025 (checked September 2026)
• Network Rail - London Liverpool Street, described as Britain's busiest station (checked September 2026)
• Transport for London - Waterloo & City line timetable data (Unified API) (checked September 2026)
• Transport for London - Stations, lifts, toilets and step-free data (checked September 2026)