LynAK

Basic details:

4 people (3 adults and one 12 year old) with 4 medium carry-on sized rolling bags and 1 personal bag each.

Arrive Heathrow from the US at 9:35 am on a Thursday (June 26) on American Airlines.
Staying at Eaton Mews N near Sloane Sq. station.

Departing Gatwick at 9:50 am on a Wednesday (July 2) for flight to Venice on British Airways.

We are booked into a flat through London Connection. They offer a car pickup service for 55 pounds. The driver will also arrange for the person to let us into the flat. Otherwise, we would need to call 2 hours before we arrive at the flat.

Just Airports http://justairports.com quotes a current rate on the website as 28 pounds for an Estate car (station wagon size I think), plus 6 pounds airport surcharge plus the parking fee. So we are looking at somewhere between 34-40 pounds. Sedan sized car is quoted at 24 pounds plus extra charges. Are they reliable? I recognize that this price may be higher in the summer.

Re: Public transportation. I'm not opposed to taking the tube, but am not sure about various issues like changing lines, steps out the tube stations, hauling luggage a few blocks once we get to Sloane Station, etc. I spent a lot of time in London about 30 years ago so am a bit rusty on the underground. If the price was much better than car pickup, though, I'd consider it.

Re: tips--London Connection suggests a 5-10 pound tip for the driver. Is this the standard amount?

And then there is question of the best way to get to Gatwick by around 8:00-8:30 am to make that flight.

I'd greatly appreciate any counsel you all can give me.

Robespierre

Cheap - Tube to Hammersmith - walk across the platform to the District Line, continue to Sloane Square. I see at tinyurl.com/223znn there are two escalators. Assuming you all have Oyster cards, the trip will cost £3.50 for each adult and .50p for the 12yo.

Luxurious - £40-50 for the justairports limo.

KayF

For your trip to Gatwick, there are two train options which will take you straight to the South Terminal. You can connect easily there for the North Terminal if necessary.

There is the Gatwick Express which is the more expensive but quicker train option.
www.gatwickexpress.com

The cheaper option is the normal train run by First Capital Connect. You can find prices and timetables on their website.
http://www.firstcapitalconnect.co.uk

Have a great trip.

I've just noticed you said you have a 9.50am flight out of Gatwick and plan to arrive by 8.30am. This is way too late, you need to arrive much earlier than this. There will be queues for check in and possibly, very long queues for security. Personally, I'd arrive at the airport between 2-3 hours prior to the flight departure. You should also allow for train delays.

Kay

Jeff801

Lyn,

You can cut down your wait time at Gatwick by getting your boarding passes on line 24 hours before departure.

If you don't have access in your flat, there are certain to be internet cafes near the flat.

If there is a BA office close by, I think there may be a few left in the city, you can get the boarding passes at one of them.

Getting the boarding passes will save you at least a half an hour at check in.

TimS

Since Sloane Square is one stop from Victoria Station, taking a Southern train from Victoria to Gatwick will be easier than taking a First Capital Connect train. It, too, will be a lot cheaper than the Gatwick Express--and only ten minutes slower.

Robespierre

Maybe not even five minutes...see thetrainline.com and they show enroute times in the 30-35 minute range - and some Southern trains are faster than GX.

Bluehour

Sloane Square is a small and not a very deep station. There is an up escalator on the "inbound" side from Heathrow. Can't swear it'll be working at the very hour you need it, but it's only a flight or so up.

From there it's a straight roll out onto the sidewalk.

I stayed near this stop for years. Someone always offered help with my bags if I looked like I needed it. The Hammersmith change recommendation is sound. Straight across the platform.

Still, that sounds like a fair amount of luggage. The car service might be money well spent. Up to you, by the time you've paid for tube tickets for 4 the difference is not that much. I'm pretty sure that many people and bags won't fit in a sedan, so you'd need the estate or something similar.

If you do take the car, be SURE to get a local number you can call direct in case the driver doesn't show up. And have the Tube information as backup, just in case.

Enjoy your trip! I'm sure you'll love the area.