We are arriving at Gatwick South around 2240 and leaving LHR (T3) the next morning. Our options are Nat Ex to LHR arriving at T3 around midnight or staying at Gatwick and catching the 0530 Nat Ex. Our first choice is to get to LHR late that night and stay in a close by hotel, but as the Hotel Shuttles (hotel huppa) are not running at midnight, reasonably what are our changes of getting a taxi who will want to take us for a 2 mile drive? If we are fortunate to find a taxi, is there a standard metered rate that a driver is obligated to charge or will he charge what the market at midnight will have to pay to get to their hotel. Can the taxis refuse a fare at that time?

t

What time is your flight out of LHR?

If it isn't too early - I'd stay at LGW. If you went to LHR you most likely wouldn't be to LHR by midnight - closer to 0100 probably and checked in to your hotel by 0130.

You can be in your LGW hotel by about 11:30 or midnight or so (depending on luggage etc.) The you can catch an early a.m. coach to LHR.

We have to be at T3 by 7:00 AM, so it's not really early.
Has anyone stayed at the hotel on site at T4. Can one walk to T3 from the hotel?
Does anyone know if the Yotel is up and running, either at Gatwick or LHR.
So many questions, so few answers...

No - you can't walk from T-4 to T-3 - they are practically in different counties.

As long as you only have to be at T-3 by 0700 (and that isn't your flight time) Then I'd stay at LGW. At 0530-0600 the traffic won't be an issue and you can take the LGW > LHR coach right to T-3.

<<< Can one walk to T3 from the hotel? >>>

Only if you want to dodage aircrafte taking off & landing - the direct route is across 2 runways.

You could however take the HEX between the terminals which is free

BTW does "we have to be at T3 for 7:00am" mean "check in opens for our flight at 7:00am" or "our flight takes off at 7:00am"?

But as others have said if you arrive at 22:40 you won't be out of the airport before 23:30 and wouldn't arrive at LHR until 00:30 at which point you still have to get to your hotel which would probably require a taxi ride.

PERSONALLY, I'd take the train into London then a taxi to a hotel near Paddington & get the HEX in the morning - it can be quicker than travelling from a hotel at Heathrow & it starts running at about 6:00am.

hi, keywest,

i hate to disagreee with janisj, but I'd always opt for getting to where I need to be asap, then checking into hotel/ catching a nap. in particular there is no knowing what could cause hold ups on the M25 - awful crash very early this am caused total closure for some hours.

I'd bet that there are cabs at LHR all night [try the airport web-site] and they will be on a fixed fare plus supplement, or hotel shuttles may still be running.

regards, ann

Well we decided to agree with annhig and get to Heathrow that night. In order to do this quickly and mildly economically we booked a car with Eddie Manning (69 GBP versus 39 GBP for the National Express bus for two). They will bring us to the Premier Travel Inn on Bath Road- $164 USD vat included. Cheaper than staying at the Hilton at T4 and no worries about taking a taxi from LHR to the hotel at midnight. In the morning we can hop the Hoppa for 8 GBP and get to T3 in 20 minutes.
Sounds like a workable plan, hopefully it will be a plan that works.

£69 is a pretty good rate - especially at that time of night. I've stayed at that TravelInn a couple of times and while it isn't posh by any means - the rooms are modern and clean. By the time you get there the bar and restaurant will be shut down so you might want to pick up some snacks at LGW before you head out.

Ok. So how do you do the GBP symbol?
We are travelling from Toulouse and will have had dinner in France before we fly Easy Jet for 10 euros to Gatwick, so no problem about not eating when we arrive.
The 69 GBP was (is) a great rate. Confirmed it by email before booking and Eddie seems to have a good rep on Fodors.
The Premier Travel Inn is just a place to lie down for 5 hours - no expectations at all. As I tell my wife, if you have low expectations, you are never disappointed.

on a mac it is just alt+3 but otherwise it is -- & pound ; -- w/o the spaces.

£

same goes for euro -- & euro ; w/o the spaces (or on a mac shift+alt+2)

€

hi, keywest,

be sure to let us know how the plan works out. [i feel i have apersonal interest now]

have a great trip,

regards, ann

ann - I will, but I don't anticipate any problems
jan - I guess I can't spend any GBP cause I can't make it work on my PC.

I fly into GAtwick late at night and always found taxis at south terminal. If going to local hotel the standard fare is £10 (you pay at the rank).

I guess the problem you have if the flight is very late then going to sleep in central London is a right pain. SO I would either stay at Gatwick or at LHR.

The premiertravelinn.com range is over the airports like a rash and for roughly £55 a night not a bad crash pad

Try again. Type "&" "pound" ";" without the " and spaces.

£

I did. This is what I get...
&pound,
&pound
doesn't resemble your pounds. Maybe it's easier to buy a Mac.

I get the £ sign on a PC by cutting and pasting from the Character Map. Which is found under Start->All Programs->Accessories->System Tools. Useful for French and German accents marks, Greek letters, etc.

£ £ £ £ £ £ £ £ £ £ £ £
That's the way to do it!
Cut and paste.
£ £ £ £ £ £ £ £ £ £ £ £
Thank you. I can now spend £'s

KeyWest - I think you need to check your bifocals

It is a semi-colon<b> ; </b>-- not a comma <b>,</b>

&amp; pound ; Much easier than cut/paste . . . . . (yes a Mac is even easier )

Yikes. It is a semi colon. I never saw the little dot above the comma, hidden between the quotation marks. I thought it was a speck of dust on my laptop screen.
It is much simpler and I will now use it with reckless abandon.
&pound; &pound;