Park like an airport VIP...and SAVE cash
WE ARE flying off on our family summer holidays shortly, with two kids and loads of clobber. It will be quite a palaver.
The flight is from Heathrow. To avoid the rigmarole of depositing the car in a long-stay car park and hanging around for a shuttle bus, I’ve decided to book the airport’s ‘meet and greet’ parking.
This means we will be able to head straight to the short-stay car park, hand over the keys, then take a two-minute stroll into the terminal. I’m hoping it will all feel rather VIP-ish – and the car should be waiting for us in the short-stay car park on our return.
The service is costing me £30 more than leaving the car at one of Heathrow’s long-stay car parks. But if all goes smoothly, for the reduction in hassle I think that’s a price worth paying. Meetand-greet bookings are on the increase – up by 12 per cent in the past year, says specialist airport parking agent Holiday Extras. And while the service does usually cost a bit more, it can sometimes actually be cheaper.
For a fortnight’s parking in the second half of August at Gatwick’s South Terminal, I was quoted £133 for the airport’s Valet Parking South (valet parking is another name for meet-andgreet), compared with £149 for using the Long Stay South parking. Likewise, at Stansted for a fortnight’s parking in August I was quoted £82 for the official meet-and-greet, compared with £88 at the airport’s Long Stay car park. (Note that these prices are not fixed: airport parking rates do fluctuate.)
Given that with meet-and-greet parking you hand over the keys to your vehicle to a stranger who will then drive it to an unspecified, usually off-airport location, it can go horribly wrong. Recently Gatwick First Parking, an unofficial meet-and-greet service, went bust, with more than 100 abandoned vehicles.
So make sure you stick to using an airport-run or approved operator, or one that has police-assessed Park Mark certification (parkmark.co.uk). Don’t leave any valuables in the car, and check it over when you pick it up. Other airport parking tips: Book ahead. Turn-up parking rates can be astronomical. Some car parks let you book for entry later that same day, but some don’t, so don’t risk leaving a reservation until the last minute. At some airports, rates are lower if you book well in advance: for a week’s parking at on-airport long-stay car parks at Luton and Stansted this summer, I was
Shop around. Get a quote for on-airport parking direct from the airport’s website. Then turn to a specialist agent such as Holiday Extras (holidayextras.co.uk) or APH (aph.com) to see if they can beat it. But check transfer times, which may be longer.
If you’ve got an early flight, consider a park-and-stay deal: the cost can be not that much more than parking on its own. For example, a week’s parking in August at Heathrow’s Long Stay Terminal 5 car park costs £79. For a week’s parking on the same dates with a night at the Thistle London Heathrow Terminal 5 hotel, Holiday Extras quoted £107.50 B&B. But watch out for additional shuttle transfer costs. quoted about £10 less for bookings made a month ahead compared with a week in advance.