Originally Posted by
dddc
Why can't they stay the night before at a hotel in Gatwick? There are 2 Travelodges there were you can get rooms from £19 depending if you book early enough. It's not flash, but if you're only sleeping overnight it's not bad. Factor in the cost of the shuttle bus or taxi as well.
There's also a Premier Inn that's very close to the North Terminal, probably about as close as the Sofitel except you have to cross a road, whereas the Sofitel is joined to the terminal.
I've not tried it, but might next time, I actually only noticed it recently. I've stayed in the Sofitel before, which is nice but of course expensive. The Premier Inn looks just as convenient. There's probably more than one Premier Inn at Gatwick so look for the one nearest the North Terminal.
Last time I booked the Hilton that's supposedly attached to the South Terminal, it's actually attached to a car park that's attached to the South Terminal, then from the check in desk it's a long walk to the new wing where they seem to put HHonors members, so it seems to take forever to get from the room to the South Terminal and then across to the transit. It doesn't seem the best Hilton either.