Heathrow to Gatwick
 

My family of 8 is planning a trip to the Dordogne in June, but in looking at airfares it seems like it might save us a bit to go into London and then fly into Toulouse. My first question is: does this make sense? In looking at airfares to France, I can't find any less than $1,200 return. Flying into London and transferring is a bit less expensive, but I can't seem to find any flights that go from Boston to Gatwick which is the where EasyJet flys from, so we would have to go into Heathrow and transfer to Gatwick. My second question is: what is the easiest and most economical way to get between the two airports? Please help!

There is a bus that takes you from one airport to another, about an hour's drive. You do get to see some of the countryside.

Type in "heathrow to gatwick" (without quotes) in the search field to get all the info you need.

This is quite frequently asked, so search on "Heathrow to Gatwick" and it should bring up the relevant threads.

Buses are quite frequent, but about £15-20 GBP a person, and you need to allow at least 5 hours between arrival and departure times. The M25 is one of Europes busiest motorways, and can frequently become jammed.

Believe it or not the Heathrow & Gatwick Airport websites have extensive coverage on transferring between the two airports.

Note I would allow at least 5 hours between flights, that Easyjet's checkin closes PRECISELY 40 minutes before scheduled departure time, remember you are allowed ONE BAG through security at UK airports and that Easyjet has luggage restrictions that might upset you - especially if you think a 4000 cu inch bag is an overnight bag.

Personally I'd look into flying from Heathrow to Toulouse as a separate ticket on an airline that codeshares wth (or better still is the same as) your transatlantic airline.

And to emphasize what alanRow says - it is ONE carry on. That doesn't mean a handbag and a carry-on, or a shopping bag and a handbag, or a camera case and a carry on. it means <b>one</b> item carried on. So while the transfer from LHR to LGW is easy (though time consuming) and economical - it may not be worth the hassle.

Did the LGW to LHR and back in August (week before liquid ban). It was horrible. Poorly marked signs if there were any at all. LHR to GTW took 4 hours but I had 5 1/2 between planes so I was OK.
George Bernard Shaw once said that &quot;hell was like a railway station waiting room.&quot; He died before he saw either Gatwick or Heathrow airports.

The main problem I see is what happens if there are problems either with your first flight being late, or a problem with your EasyJet flight on the return possibly causing you to miss your flight home. Read the recent thread here about someone whose Ryanair flight was cancelled, leading to a huge costs for last-minute tickets. If you have travel insurance that you are confident will cover any such contingencies, and you allow plenty of time between flights, then I think it would be fine. The transfer part is easy enough - I didn't have any difficulty finding the buses I needed at Heathrow.