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Getting There By Air London Heathrow Airport (LHR) Tel: (0870) 000 0123. Fax: (020) 8745 6061. Website: www.baa.co.uk Heathrow, 24km (15 miles) west of central London, is the world’s busiest international airport, serving destinations worldwide and coping with over 60 million passengers every year. The airport is massive, with terminals one to three linked to terminal four by the Heathrow Express. After a ten-year deliberation and some fierce opposition, plans to build a fifth terminal were approved in 2001 and there is currently talk of a new runway as well. Major airlines: The ‘world’s favourite airline’, British Airways (tel: (0845) 773 3377; website: www.britishairways.com), operates both national and international flights from Heathrow. There are over 90 additional airlines that operate in and out of this airport, serving 160 destinations worldwide. These include Air Canada, Air France, Alitalia, Cathay Pacific, Croatia Airlines, Gulf Air, Iberia, KLM, Lufthansa, Malaysia Airlines, Qantas, South African Airways, Turkish Airlines, United Airlines, Virgin Atlantic Airways and Virgin Express. All domestic flights operate from terminal one. Airport facilities: Facilities include bureaux de change, ATMs, airport information, hotel reservation and travel information desks, postal services, telephones and fax machines, shops, duty-free outlets, restaurants, cafés, bars and a London Tourist Board centre in the London Underground station. There is also car hire available in all four terminals, from Avis, Budget, Europcar, Hertz, National and Sixt. Business facilities: The Business Centre Heathrow (tel: (020) 8759 2434; website: www.the-bch.co.uk) is located in the Queen’s Building, between terminals one and two. It offers 20 meeting rooms, a conference suite, computers with Internet access, faxes, photocopiers and audiovisual equipment. Transport to the city: The frequent Heathrow Express (tel: (0845) 600 1515; website: www.heathrowexpress.co.uk) train service to Paddington station (0502-2347) takes 15 minutes. Single tickets cost £11 pre-booked on the Internet or by telephone and £13 on the train, while returns cost £20 and £22 respectively. The airport is also on the London Underground Piccadilly line (tel: (020) 7222 1234; website: www.tfl.gov.uk), with the fare into the city centre being £3.60. There is also a Central Bus Station at Heathrow, where the main bus service to central London is the A2 by Airbus (tel: (0870) 575 7747; website: www.gobycoach.com), which goes to King’s Cross train station every 30 minutes (journey time – 1 hour 40 minutes) and costs £8 for a single and £12 for a return. At night, the N9 night bus service goes to central London every 30 minutes (journey time – 70 minutes) and costs £1. The Airport Travel Line (tel: (0870) 574 7777) provides further coach transport information. The Travel Line (tel: (0870) 608 2608) can provide information on all public transport to and from London. Taxis are readily available and cost around £40 to the city centre (depending on traffic conditions and time of day). London Gatwick Airport (LGW) Tel: (0870) 000 2468. Fax: (01293) 504 153. Website: www.baa.co.uk Gatwick, 45km (28 miles) south of central London, is the second busiest international airport in the UK, serving over 30 million passengers a year to around 200 destinations worldwide. The free Inter Terminal Transit train links the two terminals (north and south). Major airlines: British Airways (tel: (0845) 7733377; website: www.britishairways.com) operates both national and international flights from Gatwick, although it has cut its Gatwick flights markedly since the September 11 attacks. Over 90 other airlines also use Gatwick airport, serving over 200 destinations worldwide. These include Alitalia, American Airlines, Britannia, Delta Airlines, El Al, Estonian Air, Finnair, Maersk Air, Virgin Atlantic and Virgin Sun. Airport facilities: Both terminals have bureaux de change, ATMs, airport information desks, shops, duty-free outlets, restaurants and bars. There is also a post office in the south terminal. Both terminals have the following car hire providers: Avis, Budget, Europcar, Hertz and National. Business facilities: The airport provides a Fast Track priority service for business-class travellers, as well as a full range of business services at the Hilton London Gatwick Airport Hotel (tel: (01293) 518 080) and Le Meridien London Gatwick Hotel (tel: (01293) 567 070). Transport to the city: The newly revamped Gatwick Express train service (tel: (0870) 530 1530; website: www.gatwickexpress.co.uk) to Victoria station takes 30 minutes, with single tickets costing £11 and a return £21. Trains leave every 15 or 30 minutes depending on the time of day. Alternative train services by Thameslink (tel: (0845) 748 4950) to King’s Cross take 40 minutes and cost £9.80. Coaches depart from the ground floor of the south terminal. Flightlink (website: www.gobycoach.com) goes to Victoria coach station in central London, while Speedlink (website: www.speedlink.co.uk) goes to Heathrow airport. The Airport Travel Line (tel: (0870) 574 7777) provides further coach transport information. The Travel Line (tel: (0870) 608 2608) can provide information on all public transport to and from London. Chauffeur-driven cars are provided by Checker Cars (tel: (01293) 502 808 (south terminal) or 501 377 (north terminal)). Taxis are readily available and a taxi ride to the centre of London costs around £65 for a journey time of approximately 1 hour 30 minutes, depending on traffic conditions. London Stansted Airport (STN) Tel: (0870) 000 0303. Fax: (01279) 662 066. Website: www.baa.co.uk This impressively modern and user-friendly airport is an expanding hub for the increasingly popular budget airlines, which offer cut-price flights to many cities across Europe. One of Europe’s fastest growing airports, Stansted is located 48km (30 miles) northeast of central London and in 2001 served 14 million passengers and 40 airlines. Major airlines: Scheduled flights to over 100 destinations are offered. Budget airline Ryanair (tel: (0871) 246 0000; website: www.ryanair.com) dominates the Stansted skies, followed by other low-cost carriers Buzz (tel: (0870) 240 7070; website: www.buzzaway.com) and Go (tel: (0870) 607 6543; website: www.go-fly.com). Other airlines include KLM, Lufthansa and SAS. Airport facilities: Newly renovated and expanded facilities include bureaux de change, ATMs, airport information, hotel reservation desk, shops, duty-free outlets, restaurants, bars and car hire from Avis, Budget, Europcar and Hertz. Business facilities: The first-class lounge (open to all passengers, for a fee) has workstations with fax, telephone, e-mail and Internet. There is also an Internet café in the main terminal. Transport to the city: The Stansted Express (tel: (0870) 530 1530; website: www.stanstedexpress.co.uk) is the frequent and efficient service to Liverpool Street station, with laptop connections and newspapers in business class. The journey takes 45 minutes, trains run every 15 or 30 minutes depending on the time of day and a standard single fare is £13, a return £23. The main coach service to central London is the A6 by Airbus (tel: (0870) 575 7747; website: www.gobycoach.com), which goes to Victoria coach station every 20-30 minutes (journey time – 1 hour 45 minutes) and costs £8 for a single and £12 for a return. The Airport Travel Line (tel: (0870) 574 7777) provides further coach transport information. The Travel Line (tel: (0870) 608 2608) can provide information on all public transport to and from London. Taxis are usually available at the airport or can be telephoned; Stansted Airport Cars (tel: (01279) 662 444) charge around £70-80 for the 50-minute (depending on traffic and conditions) journey to central London. London Luton Airport (LTN) Tel: (01582) 405 100. Fax: (01582) 395 313. Website: www.london-luton.co.uk The UK’s seventh largest airport is 52km (32 miles) north of central London. Luton served 6.2 million passengers in 2000, with the most popular destinations being Glasgow and Edinburgh. Major airlines: Luton serves over 60 destinations and is the base for the world’s largest charter airline, Britannia Airways (tel: (0870) 607 6757 or (01583) 424 155; website: www.britanniaairways.com), and the popular low-cost airline easyJet (tel: (0870) 600 0000; website: www.easyjet.com). Other airlines include Monarch Airlines, Manx Airlines and Ryanair. Airport facilities: The airport has bureaux de change, ATMs, an information desk, shops, duty-free outlets, restaurants, bars and car hire from Avis, Budget, National and Sixt. Business facilities: An executive lounge is located in the international departure lounge (tel: (01582) 700 898). Facilities include fax, telephone, e-mail and Internet. Transport to the city: The Luton Airport Parkway station provides a fast link (approximately 30 minutes) to central London on Thameslink (tel: (0845) 748 4950; website: www.thameslink.co.uk) for £10 single. Trains run 0700-2200 Monday to Saturday and 0900-2000 Sunday. A free shuttle bus connects Luton Airport with the Parkway station. National Express (tel: (0870) 580 8080; website: www.gobycoach.com) runs services to Victoria coach station, as well as Heathrow and Gatwick airports and the rest of the UK. The Travel Line (tel: (0870) 608 2608) provides further information on travel to London. Taxis are available 24 hours and cost about £85 to central London. London City Airport (LCY) Tel: (020) 7646 0088. Fax: (020) 7511 1040. E-mail: info@londoncityairport.com Website: www.londoncityairport.com Voted the ‘Best City Airport’ in 2000, the business-orientated London City Airport is the most central of the capital’s airports, located just ten kilometres (six miles) east of the centre. The airport is relatively small, with only nine airlines, yet served its record number of passengers in 2000, with over 1,500,000 travellers passing through the airport. Major airlines: Lufthansa (tel: (0845) 773 7747; website: www.lufthansa.com) operates the most flights from London City Airport with four Frankfurt connections a day, followed by British European and KLM UK. Scheduled flights are also provided by Air Engiadina, Air France, Alitalia, Braathens/Malmö, CityJet, Crossair, Luxair and Scotairways. Airport facilities: These include bureaux de change, ATMs, information and hotel reservation desks, postal facilities, duty-free shopping, restaurants, bars, and car hire from Avis and Europcar. Business facilities: The Business & Conference Centre (tel: (020) 7646 0900) offers fully serviced conference suites and office space for hire. Transport to the city: There are two airport shuttle buses, which operate Monday to Friday approximately 0600-2100, Saturday 0600-1300 and Sunday 1100-2100. The green bus runs to Canary Wharf (£3) and Liverpool Street station (£6) (approximate journey times – 10 and 25 minutes respectively). The blue shuttle bus also runs to Canning Town station (£2.50), which is served by London Underground (Jubilee Line and Docklands Light Railway) and the journey takes approximately five minutes. Silvertown & London City Airport train station is a ten-minute walk from the terminal building for Silverlink Metro services to Richmond via Willesden Junction. There is a stand with licensed black taxis directly outside the terminal building. Fares to central London start from £20. The Travel Line (tel: (0870) 608 2608) provides further information on all transport to and from London. Approximate flight times to London: From New York is 7 hours 40 minutes; from Los Angeles is 10 hours 20 minutes; from Toronto is 7 hours and from Sydney is 23 hours 5 minutes (plus stopover). Arrival/departure tax: None. |
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