airport parking

In order to get the cheapest price on airport parking at any UK airport you need to check your dates and the prices at 4 airport parking websites.

Most 'airport parking' websites are affiliates of one of these websites (they offer a limited range of airport car parks from just one of four airport parking websites).

Here we tell you about all 4 websites, plus a further website - 1st airport parking - that lets you enter your dates once and quickly search them all to compare prices.

Where to book airport parking at the lowest price

The airport parking checklist

When looking for and booking airport parking, there are a few things to look out for:

1. For detailed information on any UK airport car park visit 1st airport parking, click on an airport name and then on any of the airport car park links in the box on the right or at the bottom of the page.
2. To get the cheapest airport car parking you will need to book at least 24 hours in advance (and in some cases 14 days in advance).
3. Be aware that you will normally pay for 8 days parking on a 7-day holiday and for 15 days on a 14-day holiday. You are charged for each 24-hour period or part thereof. As your return flight normally gets you back later than your outward flight you pay for an extra days parking.
4. When comparing prices, the most important thing is to make sure that you are comparing ‘like with like’. On airport vs. off airport and distance to the airport are the most common variants.
5. Staying in an airport hotel with a relaxing 10 minute journey to the airport can be as cheap or even cheaper than just buying airport parking. At every UK airport except Bristol there are airport hotels offering 'free' parking after (or before) one nights stay at prices close to the cost of 15 days airport parking. A night at a 3 or 4 star airport hotel with free parking is almost always cheaper than 15 days airport parking at heathrow. At gatwick hotels usually start from just below the cost of 15 days parking. If you want an ‘airport hotel with free parking’ package visit holidayextras / APH / FHR or compare their prices with one click via airport hotels guide.
6. At almost every airport the websites identified above are the cheapest. However, at bristol and liverpool the airport website can be cheaper than those identified above. 1st airport parking has price comparison tables on each of its airport specific pages that allow you to check this.
7. The lowest cost airport parking is always at an 'off airport' car park. But, check how much you are saving against the distance from the airport. At gatwick, for example, the on airport 'summer special' car park (which runs 365 days a year, not just in the summer) is usually only £5 or £6 more expensive than the cheapest off airport car park for a 7 day holiday.
8. When you are comparing the prices of airport parking also consider how far they are from the airport. This is particularly important at Heathrow and stansted, where off airport car parks can be as far as a good 25 minutes from the airport.
9. 'Meet and greet' airport parking can save you time and hassle. It's particularly useful for parents traveling with young children or those travelling with the elderly. With meet and greet airport parking (also known as valet parking) you drive your car right to up to the terminal, where you're met by a chauffeur. They take your car from you and park it at a secure car park for the duration of your trip. Then, on your return, you'll be met at the terminal by a chauffeur with your car. You pay extra for your parking and it's expensive for short trips, but it can be worth the expense.
10. Look at the transfers to the airport. Key questions (answered by the 1st airport parking pages) are:
    a. During what hours are transfers available?
    b. Are they provided ‘on demand’ or every 20 minute?
11. In terms of value for money, at Gatwick customers rate APH as the best off airport car park and summer special as the best on airport car park. At heathrow ACP gets a big thumbs up.