KTtravel has a good idea -- see if you can change your flights so you fly directly into Spain from NY or Toronto.. There will be a pretty large change fee and I don't know if there is even any availability, but worth a shot.

I haven't looked at return flights. Nor have I looked at Leely's link, but I would STRONGLY advise against any airport other than LHR or LGW for the flight out. I suppose you might fly back to Stansted or Luton, but they are more of a pain to reach.

If your mother is set on Spain, I might stay there until the 31st, although I don't like one-nighters. If your flight to Toronto doesn't leave until 3:00 pm you could spend the night of the 31st in London rather than out at the airport, and maybe see the fireworks. (If you can afford it, and can get a reservation, a good place to do that is the bar or dining room of the Marriott County Hall.)

BTW, I had a great time in Barcelona last year (although it was already cold at night in October). See:
https://mytimetotravel.wordpress.com...s-the-ramblas/

And following posts - links at the top of the page.

In saying I thought thursdaysd had the return trip in hand, I was referring to timing the return flight on the 31st. There is a flight, Vueling again, that leaves Barcelona about 12:30 and gets into LGW at 2:00 ish. You really need to finalize plans now. Can't help with airport hotels at Gatwick.

Thank you thank you thank you

ok so Because I could not find anything out of Heathrow, that was reasonably priced...should I book the LGW one leaving the 25th from london to BCN?

so I should not stay in central London (sight seeing area and try to get to LGW in Am for the 9 am flight)?
does anyone know how far ahead i have to be in LGW for the 9 am flight?

--- ughhh this is so exhausting and feeling like i keep hitting dead ends..

on the Bright side, I am sooo happy i found this forum, bc it's apparent now that my stupid travel agents knew NOTHING ...

I think there is a $500 penalty fee for the flight changes - what she told me before, but the worse part is what I exchange it with at this late in time will be so expensive probably. The other reason was from toronto on those days there were NO flights out of Toronto to Spain that were direct. they were all sold out, or went Via London.

So if we arrive on time at 11:30 am in Heathrow
say 3 hours later get out of immigration and customs and security

(with my husband and child's checked luggage sent directly to final destination).

about 3 pm we would leave Heathrow and take a Cab ?? to drive around London, grab lunch and walk around somewhere popular to see

My husband and son should be back to the Airport at 6 pm???? for their next flight which is at 9 pm?

---
that leaves mom and I to get to hotel around 4 pm
Not sure where i should book this for us to see something christmas Eve like that day (walking around)...

Head out to LGW in Am for flight to BCN

or skip trying to see anything and just head to Hotel at LGW for the flight the next day?

How far is Central London (Not Heathrow from LGW ?

Please lmk
thank you

To know for next time, you would still have been better off taking the flight from Toronto to Spain via London than booking a separate ticket from London because your connection would have been protected (although that is not much help if all the following flights are sold out).

If you are sure you want to go to Spain, I would take the Gatwick flight. I would say that you need to be at the airport two hours ahead, which is why I would recommend staying at Gatwick even if it were not Christmas Day, when there will be NO public transport, including trains from London to Gatwick. Look on booking.com for an airport hotel. Or there is always the Yotel - http://www.yotel.com/en/hotels/london-gatwick-airport And buy a guidebook for Barcelona!

You may want to book the National Express tickets for LHR to LGW, ahead of time, as they will be cheaper. Or, if you are going into London with your husband (not that I necessarily recommend that, Windsor would be safer), you'll take the train on to Gatwick from London Bridge or Victoria, although what with strike action and the holiday, I would not leave it too late.

You really should stay AT Gatwick. If you stay in London you cannot take the normal Gatwick Express train -- it doesn't run on Christmas Day.

Going in to London for the day on the 24th would complicate things. You have to go to Victoria Station (about an hour tube ride) and leave your luggage, then head out to sightsee, then return to Victoria, retrieve your bags and catch the train to Gatwick. A cab from London to Gatwick (it is about 30 miles) would take a VERY long time - at least 2 hours but probably more and would cost a fortune.

So what you REALLY ought to consider is leave your husband and son on their own to sightsee in London or not (they could go to Windsor instead)

You and your Mom need to go straight to Gatwick from Heathrow - no side trip into the city. Let her rest up at an airport hotel - don't drag her around a cold/possibly wet London.

<B>TAKE THE NATIONAL EXPRESS COACH DIRECTLY FROM LHR TO LGW</B> (And I don't usually yell ;) )

Look at the Premier Inns at Gatwick I already suggested

I just checked 'in case' and Windsor Castle is open regular hours on Christmas Eve -- St Georges Chapel is closed but the State Rooms, etc are open. So that is something your husband could do (but <i>you and your mom</i> should still head straight to Gatwick.

The more I think about this the more I am convinced that London offers you the best chance of a really nice trip. Going to Barcelona makes your inbound journey about 40 hours instead of ~18. This would be an exhausting even for a 20 yo despite the hotel at LGW. You do want to take the bus from LHR to LGW and spend Christmas Eve at LGW and fly out to BCN in the morning. You do not want to take a cab into London as the roads going in/out London on Christmas Eve are going to be jammed. Just getting in/out of LHR by car is going to be difficult. If I was going to Spain I would have picked Madrid over Barcelona as there is more to do with possible day trips to Toledo, Segovia... I think 5 full days is a lot for Barcelona. Returning to London on the 31st will give you some time to see a little of London but your hotel will be expensive as its New year eve. Expect to pay ~$350 for a hotel room in central London.
Do also realize that if the weather turns bad in Toronto or London (unlikely) that this may turn into a nightmare of a trip with Spain.

I've been on booking.com looking for places for my trip in June,so I plugged in Airport Hotels at Gatwick. One of the first that came up with availability for the 24th was the Gatwick Sofitel. The offer of a twin room with two beds for $127. A real bargain as Sofitel is one of the best of the chain hotels.

Now if you could change your flights to Toronto to BCN and out MAD or vice versa, you could have nice Spain trip with 3+ days in each city with train in between.

Wow history traveler - that seems a very good rate for the Sofitel!

More $/£ than some of the Premier Inns but a much nicer property.

The premier inn was something like L 59. After all who wants to spend Xmas eve in a airport hotel?

Wish you a great trip to Barcelona! Your mother will have plenty of time to immerse herself in the culture, food, shows, shops, cultural events etc.

Three tips:

- See a concert in spectacular Art Nouveau Palau de la Musica Catalana: http://www.palaumusica.cat/en

- Have lunch or dinner in emblematic 7 Portes from 1836. Traditional Catalan food, tons of history in the walls and the best atmosphere: http://7portes.com/en/

- Medieval and vibrant El Born is a cradle of Catalan identity and culture, great sights, some of the best tapas bars, cafés and shopping in town: http://www.spain.info/no/lugares-int...a/el_born.html

And now you also know where to see top of the shelf flamenco in Barcelona ;-)

I think the OP should tell Mom, ok we are doing Spain but we are going to have to change our flights to/from
Spain for ~ $XXX while saving money on the second flights and do just Spain

If it has to be Spain there are direct flights to Madrid from LHR early evening of the 24th, but they start at $303. Personally, I would pay the money to avoid the transfer and overnight at LGW. Although I much prefer Barcelona to Madrid as a city, it is true that there are good day trips out of Madrid.

I think it's wonderful that so many people have chimed in and done research to figure out a way to make this happen - really, really wonderful - but I also think mom just isn't going to be able to withstand the inbound trip. If it were me, I'd be worrying about medical events, including total collapse, and would probably:

1. Tell mom we're just going to London, or London and Paris, period, because it will be too much for you otherwise.

2. Go back to the travel agent and raise holy hell, pointing out that "the fast trains from London" BS is just that and demanding new flight arrangements.

3. Cancel the trip, suck up the $$$ loss, and plan the trip your mom really wants for sometime later, preferably when the weather is warmer and not over a major holiday.

Sorry, but I see a disaster in the making here, no matter how many logistical tweaks you make.

Ok Thank you all again .. I don't know any of you personally, but I love you all, you are so much more informative than the TA here ..

so , from what I gather,

1. Check with travel agent to see if I can change flight, bc you are right Mjs the change fee will prob be the same as the extra fight fee.... i did run this by my little boy who I had promised to be on the same flight with for part of his trip and he cried this am. He is very nervous to be going with his dad the first time alone.

2. If not possible than book hotel in LGW for flight next day or how about a late flight that evening to save a day? if we are not sight seeing in London?

3. I thought we would take private transportation with our luggage and LONG trip..??? we don't have much trains and busses here, so not sure how practical that maybe for 70 yo tired mom? JanisJ ?

4. Mjs - madrid would actually be much easier, but I was told that it has more museums and the weather is generally colder than Barcelona. Moms says she is not into museums, just wants to see the streets, markets, culture, flamenco dancers and food .. Mostly culture.

5. sheesh i feel like after all these years of me finally going to Europe, I'm really stretching to do the unthinkable to make Mom happy, I would've much rather had gone to Paris and London.

She has this idea that tomorrow is not guaranteed (i think after dad's passing, which was Dec 23 last year - the actual day we fly out.
I'm scared of not fulfilling her wish, just because you really don't know what tomorrow brings.

OMG i just went to that booking .com link and booked the sofitel quickly for two nights 24 and 25 since, until we confirm plans.

It said it just needed my cc number to hold it and when i got the verification - it says our cc has been charged and is non-refundable... :( holly crap.
i was just booking it before i lost it, I haven't even called the TA for the tic change yet,

I checked booking.com - the $127/night rate is a non-refundable rate - it says so to the left of the price on the page with all the room options. The higher prices are refundable.

At this point I would:

1. Eat the second night (why did you book two?)
2. Book the flight to Barcelona from LGW on the 24th
3. Book a flight BACK to either LGW or LHR for the 30th or 31st
4. Find a hotel in Barcelona. I prefer the Eixample area, which is quieter but still has plenty of places to eat, and is also home to some excellent Modernisme sights.
5. Book the National Express tickets from LHR to LGW - unless somewhere like justairports.com gives you a quote you find reasonable.