Sydney Airport Train Station Access Fee: $18.61 Adult on Top of Your Fare, $37.75 Weekly Cap (Sydney, NSW)

Every trip that starts or ends at Sydney’s Domestic or International Airport train station costs an extra $18.61 for an adult, charged on top of the train fare, according to Transport for NSW. The fee is capped at $37.75 a week for adults, and it sits outside the Opal daily and weekly travel caps. The amounts below are as of November 2026.

This guide is based on the Transport for NSW pages Getting to and from Sydney Airport and Opal benefits, read on 7 November 2026. For the whole trip to the city by train and bus, see our Sydney Airport to the city guide.

How much is the station access fee?

Ticket type	Station access fee	Weekly cap	Single trip ticket fee
Adult	$18.61	$37.75	$19.00
Child/Youth	$16.64	$33.83	$16.90
Concession and Senior/Pensioner	$16.64	$33.83	Not available

The fee is charged by the Airport Link Company, which privately owns the airport stations, and it is taken automatically from your Opal card or contactless payment. On an Opal single trip ticket it is added to the cost when you buy. The fee is the same for Opal cards and contactless payments but higher for single tickets, and Transport for NSW says train fares are cheaper with an Opal card or contactless payment than with a single ticket. The Trip Planner calculates Opal fares and includes the station access fee where it applies.

How does the weekly cap work?

Once you reach the weekly cap value for your fare type, you pay no further station access fees for the rest of that week, which runs from Monday to Sunday. The Sydney Airport station access fee weekly cap applies to both Opal cards and contactless payments. For an adult, the cap of $37.75 is reached after the third trip, because three fees of $18.61 come to more than $37.75; the page does not say this in words, it follows from the two figures. The access fee has its own cap and does not count toward the Opal travel caps.

Does the Opal daily cap include the airport fee?

No. Transport for NSW says station access fees are not included in the Opal daily or weekly travel cap. The Opal benefits page lists the usual caps, and they apply to the train fare only.

Cap	Adult	Child/Youth and Concession	Gold Senior/Pensioner
Monday to Thursday (excluding public holidays)	$19.30	$9.65	$2.50
Friday, Saturday, Sunday and public holidays	$9.65	$4.80	$2.50
All week (Monday to Sunday)	$50	$25	$17.50

Why does the one-hour transfer discount not help?

The Opal 60 minute transfer does not apply at Sydney Airport stations. If you tap off and on again within an hour, the page says it counts as two journeys and you pay two station access fees. Elsewhere on the network, the Opal benefits page says a $2 discount applies to an adult fare when you switch between metro or train, ferry, bus or light rail within 60 minutes of your last tap-off ($1 for Child/Youth, Gold Senior/Pensioner and Concession fares).

What does it cost between airport stations?

If you travel between other Airport Link stations, the access fee is a flat fee, charged in addition to the train fare:

Between	Station access fee
An airport station and Green Square	$12.74
An airport station and Mascot	$10.34
Sydney Domestic Airport Station and Sydney International Airport Station	$5.20

To go between the two terminals, Transport for NSW says you can catch the T8 Airport South Line train or the route 420 bus. Plan both in the Trip Planner, which includes the station access fee where it applies.

Can I avoid the fee?

The fee applies when you use the Domestic or International Airport stations. Transport for NSW lists these other ways to reach the airport:

• Several bus routes connect Sydney Airport with surrounding suburbs, including Bondi Junction, Coogee, Maroubra, Eastgardens, Mascot, Rockdale, Bexley North, Campsie and Burwood.
• Route 350 runs frequently between the Domestic Terminal and Bondi Junction via Mascot, Maroubra and Coogee, at least every 10 minutes during the day, seven days a week.
• Route 420 runs between Burwood and Mascot Station via Campsie and Rockdale, serving both the International and Domestic Terminals, from early morning until around midnight.
• Route N20 runs late at night between Riverwood and the City via the International Terminal, between midnight and 4am.
• Taxi ranks are outside each terminal. From 3 November 2025, flat fares were being trialled for uninterrupted taxi trips from Sydney Airport to the Sydney CBD: $60 for a standard or wheelchair accessible taxi, or $80 for a maxi taxi where requested or where there are five or more people, including taxes and tolls. The page does not say when the trial ends.

How do I pay, and what if I have a concession?

You can pay with an Opal card, a contactless debit or credit card or digital wallet, or an Opal single ticket. Adult fares can be paid with a contactless card with no set up; tap on and tap off at the start and end of your trip, and only one card can be used per passenger. Adult and Child/Youth Opal cards are available at the airport stations, with a minimum top up of $35 if you get or top up your card at an airport train station.

Concession or Gold Senior/Pensioner Opal cards are not available to buy at the airport. Transport for NSW says to apply online before you travel and allow 7 to 10 days for the card to be posted. Alternatively, you can link most concession entitlements to your credit or debit card by creating a Transport Connect account the day before you travel. Some concession types cannot use contactless concessions and need an Opal card, including Free Travel Opal cards, asylum seekers, Department of Veterans Affairs concession holders and seniors cards issued outside NSW and ACT.

Is the airport fee covered by an event ticket?

No. Transport for NSW event pages that give ticketholders free public transport carry a note that an additional train station access fee applies for travel to or from the Domestic and International Airport stations, and the event ticket does not cover it. We saw the note on the Robbie Williams, Sydney Show page on 7 November 2026.

How do I get to the platforms?

The train stations are underneath the airport terminals, and T8 Airport & South Line services run frequently every day between 5am and midnight. For the Domestic station, take the lift or escalator near baggage carousel 1 in both Terminal 2 and Terminal 3. For the International station, from Terminal 1 Arrivals, exit at Exit A, turn right and head to the end; you can also use the lift or escalator near Check-In desk A.

Sources

• Transport for NSW — Getting to and from Sydney Airport (read 7 November 2026)
• Transport for NSW — Opal benefits (read 7 November 2026)
• Transport for NSW — Robbie Williams, Sydney Show (read 7 November 2026)

Featured image: Sydney Airport Domestic Terminals 2 and 3, December 2015 (photo: MDRX / CC BY-SA 4.0) (text added)

OZ Local Updates is an independent local guide and is not affiliated with Transport for NSW, Sydney Airport or the Airport Link Company. Fares and fees can change; check the official pages above and the Trip Planner.