Surviving A Night In Gatwick Airport

I think everyone will agree that a night in any airport is not ideal. If you are anything like me, you want to get on with your journey and not wait around wasting time, especially in a cold and often draughty airport terminal.

Well, back in June I spent a night in Gatwick airport out of choice (‘WHAT?’, I hear you scream) but not for fun – don’t worry, I’m not that weird! No, it was a matter of logistics and money. The earliest train to Gatwick would get us in too late to catch our charter flight and a taxi was going to cost us a fair few pounds. So we made the decision to head up to Gatwick the night before and spend a night in the airport. Surely it couldn’t be that bad.

And no, it really wasn’t. I feel that after my first overnight experience in an airport terminal I should share with you my story and my tips for how to survive a night at Gatwick Airport.

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I think the best tip that I can give you is to stay in the South Terminal. We made the rookie error of heading straight to the North Terminal where our flight was scheduled to depart from, and although the night-time ride on the Airport Shuttle was somewhat entertaining, we were met by a draughty, badly lit terminal where there was a distinct lack of seating and only one place offering food and drink.  I mean I can’t complain too much, it was Jaimie’s Coffee but still we didn’t fancy six hours slumped on a cold metal seat, so instead we jumped back aboard the Shuttle and returned to ‘civilisation’.

Back in the South Terminal we found ourselves some comfortable seats upstairs in the lounge area where there was even a place to charge gadgets. Sadly we were too late to nab the recliner seats but as neither of us planned to sleep we were happy with something a little plusher than bare metal.

Not far from the lounge was a 24/7 Café Nero which we made full use of. With a warm coffee in hand, a comfortable seat and 90 minutes free Wifi things were not too bad after all.

I have to admit that I was expecting things in the airport to be a lot quieter than they turned out to be – even after midnight there were plenty of people wandering about; people arriving home from exotic holidays and I guess people killing layover time.

There were even a reasonable amount of places open considering it was the early hours of the morning. As well as Café Nero and Jamie’s Coffee (North Terminal), W.H. Smiths and M&S were also open allowing people to stock up on food, drink etc.

Now, this may be a slightly strange thing to mention in a blog post, but I’m going to tell you anyway – the loos were really rather posh. And when you’ve been sat up all night drinking coffee I can tell you that this is something you greatly appreciate! Each with their own toilet and sink, the cubicles also allow enough room for you to take your luggage in with you. Practical indeed!

At long last, it was time to make our way to the check-in desks back in the North Terminal. By this time, I was starting to flag and the Shuttle no longer had the same excitement or appeal as a few hours earlier. We managed to check in promptly and were soon through security and into the departures lounge.

Unfortunately, we were still a little too early for most of the shops to be open but we did manage to grab a spot of breakfast upstairs. Eventually at around 4am the shops began switching their lights on and opening their doors and the duty free shopping began!

 I used the remaining time in the departures lounge to browse through the shops and pick up a few last minute bits and bobs that I had forgotten to pack. I may have also treated myself to something or other in duty free. If the summer isn’t the time to indulge, when is?

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I hope my guide to surviving a night in Gatwick Airport goes to show that it’s really not too bad. That’s not to say I would jump at the opportunity to repeat the experience but I came out the other side and had a wonderful holiday nonetheless!

Have you ever found yourself spending the night at the airport? What are your tips for whiling away the time? Do let me know in the comments below!