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Why is Gatwick Short Stay Car Park so expensive?
I want to pick my boyfriend up from Gatwick on Fri/Sat morning. I put in the times (arrive at 11pm - leave at 1am) on the Gatwick Car Park Pre Booking website and it says it will cost £20 for Short Stay, but only £8.70 for Long.
I dont want to stay in the Long as its further from the airport but i cant believe Short stay would be £10 an hour? Does anyone know what the rate is if you just go in there on the evening rather than pre-book?
Why do you want to be there for two hours? If you know the flight number, you can find the expected arrival time, before you start your journey, by going to the Gatwick Airport website & clicking on to Flight arrivals. This is something I do quite often, and I time it so that I arrive about 45 minutes after landing. By pre-arrangement with whoever I’m meeting, I pick them up from the short term car park and the fee, providing I’m no longer than 15 minutes, is £1.00p.
At South terminal the car park to pick up from is the short stay park 3 (orange). When meeting someone from North terminal, at an early hour of the morning recently, I actually picked them up from where I dropped them off at departures. There was no one around telling me to move on, so I avoided a parking fee altogether.
Presumably both you and your boyfriend will have mobile phones, so you should be able to arrange it quite easily, so that it costs you no more than a £1.00p.
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5 Top Tips to Frustration-free Travel
It’s common for many travellers to suffer post-travel regret. Whether it’s because of lost or stolen belongings, being taken for a ride, getting lost, or just suffering a poor travel experience. No one wants their memories of a long anticipated trip to be peppered with bad experiences, and fortunately there are some incredibly simple things you can do to lessen the chances of it happening.
1. Prepare before you go.
Obviously the more prepared you are for your trip; the less likely you are to suffer frustration when you arrive. A good start here is ensuring you have most of your plans pre-booked, particularly your accommodation. Usually when you arrive you’ll be exhausted, and often it will be in the evening, so as a minimum it’s a good idea to have your first night or two in each city booked. And check the city tourist websites prior to booking to see if there are local events being held at the time of your travel, as this can affect availability & price. Otherwise you can still bargain-hunt when pre-booking, by using a price-comparison site, or last minute engines.
Here are a few other items you shouldn’t leave home without.
- At least one power adapter for the country you’re visiting.
-Local guidebooks are invaluable for determining places to see, times & days of sight openings, places to eat, and the basic & words phrases you’ll need in that language to get by. If it’s a heavy guidebook, you may find removing the language pages & jotting other day trip details down is a good option. You can then carry them separately in your bag, which is a much lighter option to the whole book.
-Printed directions for the hotels you’re staying at. Google maps are perfect for this whether on foot or by vehicle.
-At least 2 ATM cards. Preferably 2 per person if you’re travelling with a mate. This way if one is rejected in certain countries, or worse gobbled up by a machine, you have a back-up. It’s usually worthwhile to take a credit card, but there are some cautions here. See more on this below.
2. Pack light - Pack right
One of the major frustrations when travelling can be either having too much luggage or the wrong kind. The all-time most important tip any regular traveller will give you is to pack light. Inevitably at some point even with planned travel, you will need to pull or carry your luggage. If there are two of you, this makes it somewhat easier. But remember there’s a good chance you’ll pick up a few souvenirs or other items while you’re there, so starting with a lot of luggage, will only make it more difficult later. Layer clothing is the best kind to take, with a good mix of easy wear t-shirts & singlets. Check expected temperatures before you go, but inevitably you’ll almost always need at least one warmer jacket. Choose one that is warm, but not too bulky. If you are travelling with a mate or spouse, combining your luggage into one medium or large case can be a great decision. If you find you’re picking up items on your travels, and running out of room, it’s usually extremely easy to pick up a cheap knock-off bag on wheels that will see you out til you get home. Starting out with just one main piece of luggage, makes sharing the load with a companion easier. This is also a much safer option, see more on this below.
3. Get the right travel gear
If you are travelling through a westernised country and are likely to be in built up areas, luggage on wheels is almost always the best option. It’s easier to pull luggage than carry it, and it’s more secure against serious thieves.
However for rural, remote areas or under-developed countries, a backpack is definitely best. It’s not only more practical if you’re getting around on foot more or transporting via boat or bus, it’s also a lower security risk in many of these places. You don’t want to draw attention to expensive-looking baggage, which could imply you have expensive contents. If you take a back-pack, make sure it’s sturdy, and can be kept secure. Don’t keep items of value in any external pockets.
The other major key to having fuss-free daily adventures is to make sure you have the right carry-bag. A long-strapped sling bag is best. Small backpacks of any description are a shining beacon to thieves, where your belongings are easily reached conveniently behind your back. You should have a bag you can cross over your shoulder. Ensuring it has a comfortable, strong strap. This bag will do a lot of walking with you, and hold most of your valuable items, so getting it right is a high priority. A zipped bag is mandatory, one which allows no gaps for sneaky hands. If it has a flap, ensure the zip under it is always fully closed, and the zip opening facing to your front. In this way, your valuables are carried at the front of your body, and near impossible to access by another person.
If you are travelling as a male & female, a satchel which is more uni-sex is ideal, because you can share carrying the load.
4. Be travel wise
By following the above suggestions on luggage, you should hopefully have a limited amount of it which is always a far more secure way to travel. If you stop at anytime to make arrangements, always stay with your luggage, and if possible always keep a hand on it. Un-attended luggage is the No.1 kind to go missing in high traffic areas, such as train & bus stations. For this reason when travelling on trains over longer periods, you should keep your luggage close to you, or at least where you can see it. Ideally, get a compartment where you are guaranteed to have it with you.
Where possible you should carry your passports with you at all times. Even many hotel safe’s, unless it’s a reputable hotel, are not very secure. So aim to take things of value with you throughout the day. You should keep your valuables at the bottom of your carry bag, and in an internal zip compartment if you have one.
In many parts of the world credit card fraud is still rampant. Whilst you’ll usually want to take a credit card with you, try to use it sparingly to lessen the chances of the number falling into the wrong hands. It’s a good idea to try and pay for transportation, dining etc with cash withdrawn from an ATM. Do your best not to let your credit card leave your sight.
In certain countries, over-charging tourists is common, so be cautious. For hotels, take all paperwork detailing the room type with you, to help ensure you get what you’ve paid for. Scams can also occur in cafe’s, particularly with getting wine inferior to that which you’ve paid for. If in doubt query it before you consume it. If you are blatantly overcharged, stand your ground. And try to give close to exact money, so there’s no opportunity for them to conveniently keep the change.
In most under-developed countries, you can expect scams around every corner. From travel agencies, to people approaching you on the street. When you arrive, read the hotel information or speak to them about what dangers there may be in that area. Guidebooks will usually indicate which tour agencies don’t offer products as displayed, so peruse these before spending your money.
5. Be travel safe
In many cities all over the world, you can find yourself a target for those who prey on un-wary travellers. Be sensible, do your best not to look like a tourist. Pulling out maps in the middle of the street is a clear sign you’re a tourist, and an easy target. So try where possible to find a convenient spot to do this discretely, or make your plans over lunch. Waist bags worn outside your clothing are to thieves like a red-flag to a bull. There are far better ways of keeping your money close. If you’re not carrying a bag, choose a belt that goes under your clothes.
When walking from place to place, try to stick close to others, and avoid dark streets at night & quite alleys in the day. There’s usually another way you can go that’s populated, or catch transport.
Being street smart is fairly common sense. Stay aware, and cautious..and you’ll likely ward off any potential incidents. This doesn’t mean you have to be paranoid, but just remember you’re away from home, and as a tourist you’re at risk.
If you keep these few basic rules you should find you enjoy fairly fuss-free travel. Inevitably there will always be things that go wrong, and can’t be avoided. But don’t let them spoil your dream trip. Prepare well, be travel wise, and you’re very likely to have an adventure full of wonderful memories.
Rachel Barlow
http://www.articlesbase.com/travel-articles/5-top-tips-to-frustrationfree-travel-700282.html
parking at heathrow airport?
im flying from heathrow and want to leave my car for 15 days somewhere safe.
wheres the best place ?
do i need to book in advance or just turn up ?
i maybe considering hotel and parking, has anyone ever done this? and at what cost ?
Hi,
I’d suggest you book a hotel with parking included. I’ve just looked up the website I generally use:
http://www.airport-parking-quote.co.uk/hotel-and-parking/index.htm
and the prices they have start from £59 for one night in a three-star hotel with 15 days parking included. It’s not much more than the price for parking on its own. =]
Booking ahead is the best idea (even if you’re flying next day). If you turn up at the reception desk, you’re more likely to end up paying close to the offical rack rate and it’s harder for you to shop around (hotels are scattered all over the place, not all close to Heathrow itself).
I’ve used the Premier Inn Heathrow and been really happy - it’s more expensive because it’s close to the airport, check-out is later than at some hotels, and parking is on-site.
Friends have used the Crowne Plaza and the Marriott in Windsor and say good things about both. The APQ website gives good clear info about where and how your car is parked.
When I’ve travelled on last-minute deals I start with the airport quotes site and then ring the hotel direct to haggle over the price. I’ve always managed to get them to drop a bit on the price, include breakfast for the room-only rate… etc. XD
Before you commit yourself to booking, it’s also a good idea to check out what reviews on TripAdvisor say about other people’s experiences at the hotel you’re considering.
http://www.tripadvisor.com/
Anyway, best of luck with the trip — hope it’s somewhere hot sunny & gorgeous…
Where do i pick up someone arriving at Heathrow from USA?
My girlfriend is finally (wooooo) moving over here to the UK with me.
She’s arriving on a Northwest Airlines service from Detroit, where is the best place to pick her up from in my car.
Is there a specific parking zone for this situation?
Yes, there are different car parks for all the separate terminals at Heathrow, also two different types of car parks, long stay & short stay(different prices).
Best bet, is to ask your g/f for the flight number of her flight, find out at which terminal that flight comes into, using the flight number, and then find out where the right car park is for the terminal.
Hope this helps!
How far is it from gatwick airport to Thorpe park!?
In miles & minutes please 
40 miles, 40mins-1 hour traffic permitting.
