Houston Bush Airport Transfer — IAH

George Bush Intercontinental Airport (IAH) is Houston's main international gateway and a United hub, with about 48 million passengers and a record 12.4 million international travellers in 2025. It sits 37 km north of downtown Houston by road, close to The Woodlands and Kingwood and a long way from the Medical Center and the Galleria.

A LocalsRide transfer has a driver waiting for you when you land, at a price fixed when you book. Each offer shows the languages your driver speaks.

Transfers start from $50, fixed price, confirmed at booking. No meter, no hidden fees, no surge pricing.

Transfer time and distance

• Kingwood: 25 km, approximately 15 to 50 minutes
• Downtown Houston: 37 km, approximately 20 to 50 minutes
• The Woodlands: 39 km, approximately 20 to 35 minutes
• Texas Medical Center: 42 km, approximately 25 to 75 minutes
• The Galleria and Uptown: 46 km, approximately 25 to 80 minutes
• The Energy Corridor: 55 km, approximately 30 to 75 minutes
• Galveston cruise terminals: 115 km, approximately 1 hour 5 minutes to 1 hour 40 minutes
• College Station: 145 km, approximately 1 hour 20 minutes to 2 hours 10 minutes

The quickest way downtown is usually the Hardy Toll Road, and the Sam Houston Tollway rings the city. Tolls are included in your fixed price.

Where your driver meets you

IAH has five terminals, A to E, linked by the Skyway train behind security and by an underground train before it. Pre-booked drivers meet passengers in baggage claim: at the limousine reception area in Terminal A, in baggage claim in Terminal C, and at Door 103 on the west side of Terminal E for international arrivals. While construction keeps cars off the Terminal E curb, the car waits in the Terminal C limousine parking and you ride the underground train there with your driver.

If you ask for a name sign, each offer shows whether the driver will meet you with one; if not, you agree a pick-up point with the driver in the LocalsRide chat. Right after you book, you get the driver's name and phone number and the car's details, including the plate.

Arriving on an international flight

International flights arrive at the D and E gates, and every passenger clears immigration and customs in one shared hall before coming out into the meeter and greeter lobby on the first floor of Terminal E. The new international hall in Terminal E opened in stages from 2025, with airlines moving their check-in desks there through 2026.

Queues depend on how many flights land together. Your driver comes for the pickup time you booked, and the first 60 minutes of waiting from that time are free.

What does the alternative cost?

Taxis from IAH charge Houston's zone rates: about $57 to downtown, $65 to the Galleria or the Medical Center and $70 to NRG Park, plus an airport fee. Ride-hailing prices follow demand.

METRO's 500 Downtown Direct bus runs nonstop from Terminal E to the George R. Brown Convention Center for $4.50, every 30 minutes from 5:30 a.m. to 8 p.m. Local route 102 costs $1.25 but takes 50 to 90 minutes, and both leave you downtown rather than at your door.

Why book a private transfer from IAH?

• Fixed all-in price, tolls included, on a long ride where a meter keeps running in traffic
• Name sign on request. Each offer shows whether the driver will meet you with it in baggage claim
• 60 minutes of free waiting from your booked pickup time, for slow immigration queues
• Door to door to The Woodlands, the Energy Corridor or a hospital entrance at the Medical Center
• 24/7 service, including late long-haul arrivals

What vehicle should you book?

• Sedan, up to 4 passengers, for business travellers and couples
• Minivan, up to 8 passengers, for families with long-haul luggage
• Minibus, up to 15 passengers, for groups and crews

Houston's other airport has its own page, Hobby (HOU), and routes between cities are on the United States page.