We will have a 5 hour layover at Gatwick on the way from DFW to VCE. We are not about to try to get out of the airport to see anything so any ideas to help pass the time. Any recommendations for decent food in the airport? (realize that this may be like asking for good Tex-mex in Helsinki).

Thanks

Also, is there anyplace we could shower while we wait?

There's a decent raw bar in the South terminal - very pricey, but hey! it's an airport and the dollar has had a weak week or two.

Going into London isn't entirely out of the question - you can get there in a half-hour, and Southern Trains will take up to four adults round-trip for £20.

Thanks Robspierre, I'd heard that Gatwick was a zoo and did'nt think we would have time to go to London and still get back in time to fight the crowds.What do thin?
We arrive at something like 7:30am, do you think I can convince my wife that raw oysters are part of a traditional English breakfast???

Yes - it's a zoo. But if you get through immigration within a decent time and your luggage is checked through and you have onward boarding passes in hand, you can still spend some time in town. Ask your airline what time you have to be back.

Snag: if you get there on a weekday, the Southern pass isn't valid before 10:00AM, so you'll need a Day Return ticket instead.

If you go into Victoria, you can see quite a lot within a fairly short time. Look over this map for some ideas:

http://www.tfl.gov.uk/assets/downloads/centlond.pdf

Thanks again! We get in on Saturday so maybe the crowds won't be as bad. I'll look at the map and evaluate our options.

I don't think going to London is a wise decision.

1/2 hour on the train each way = 1 hour

Immigration and customs - anywhere between 1/2 to 1 and 1/2 hour - depending on the day and time. - so let's say 1 hour

So far 2 hours

You need to give yourself at least 1 hour to get through security

That's 3 hours.

If you need to drop off carry on luggage at the Luggage Left counter, add another 1/2 an hour.

Waiting for the train can be anything between 1 or 15 minutes both ways.

So let's say it's 10 minutes = 20 minutes total.

Basically you're talking about an hour mabe 1.5 hours in London. Is it worth about $45.00-50.00 for R/T?

That's kind of what I figured. So back to my original post, any suggestions for killing time and/or minimizing jet lag while there?

Yotel

Those are worst-case estimates. If you catch the breaks, your immigration and security could total an hour. 1½ hours in London is a lower limit. The upper limit is 3.

The DaySave pass is £20, which is $40.59 today.

alan row had a good idea about the Yotel, please allow me to expand on that. The Yotel is a very small room you can rent inside the airport. It's sort of like a hotel room except smaller, but it does have a bathroom and shower. Please check it out.

http://www.yotel.com/

The OP said <b>WE&lt;/&gt;,

so unless I'm misunderstanding something that train fare should be multiplied by 2

And in situations like this I would rather overestimate than underestimate. London airports are no fun these days. The security check could be a nighmare, the loooong walks to the gate, secondary security at the gate, etc.etc.

I believe my estimate is right on the money.

Not saying that the OP should not get out of the airport, but I would suggest the local town.

YMMV.</b>

&lt;/B&gt;

A DaySave pass for an adult costs &pound;10, and provides unlimited travel everywhere on the Southern network for one day. Thus, the total cost for two people to travel from Gatwick to London <u>and back</u> is $40 and change.

If the OP gets on the train within less than an hour or so of landing, there is every reason to suppose they can pull it off.

Didn't know about the discount, still I believe that 3.5 hours will be gone from the 5 hour layover just to satisfy all the imm procedures, travel time and security checks upon returning to LGW.

Last time I came in on AA to LGW and needed to catch the train to LON, it took a good 1/2 hour just to get to the train once I was past imm/customs. I needed to catch the terminal train to the other terminal, then a nice walk/escalators, etc.etc.. If everything goes according to plan, you may have about 2 hours in London, but if it does not we're talking 1.5 or less time in the city.

At the end, it's up to OP.

I would feel comfortable doing it because I've been through both major London airports numerous times and I know what, where and how, but for somebody that is not familiar with the set-up, 5 hours is just not worth it.

JMHO

IMO, it's up to the OP - not me - to decide what's worth how much.

If <u>I</u> had never been to one of the fabled capitals of Europe, and I knew it was a half-hour away, nothing would stop me from going, if only for an hour.

There is a Clarins spa which does facials, etc. Nice lift while you wait.

I would vote against going to London. I was just through Gatwick a couple of weeks ago, and we had a solid hour wait in line to get through passport control. Unfortunately, you have to figure on worst-case scenarios in travel, or you risk missing your connection.

I don't know if you've been through Gatwick before, but if you haven't, they allow ONLY ONE CARRY ON when you go through security. That means if you have a handbag or laptop business bag, you have to stuff it in your other carryon or check the carryon. The airline staff didn't tell me this when I checked in and I couldn't fit everything into one bag, so I had to run back from security to the check-in desk to check one of my carry-ons and barely made getting it checked in time.

For me it isn't about money or timing it's about my own personal stress level. I would not enjoy rushing around with only a 5 hour time frame to see a peak at London.

I would follow the suggestions of Yotel, a spa treatment, and/or some drinks and a decent meal somewhere nice at the airport.

&quot;Rushing around?&quot; I don't, either.

A <i>peek</i> at London would entail a leisurely train trip to Victoria, a stroll by Buck House, perhaps a bus ride past Westminster Cathedral and Abbey over to Parliament Square, see Big Ben, the Eye, and the Thames Embankment, back to the station and out.

If circumstances permit another half-hour, then maybe from Westminster up to Trafalgar Square and Piccadilly Circus, down to Green Park, and a Tube ride back to Victoria.

A comprehensive whirlwind tour of the city isn't necessary, because there's a lot of quintessential London within a few minutes of Victoria Station. At least you won't wonder if you <u>could</u> have seen some London.

Here's a printable map to get your juices flowing: http://www.tfl.gov.uk/assets/downloads/cen_bus.pdf