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London Heathrow (LHR) <-> Gatwick (LGW) Transport / Transfer (master thread)
12 Attachment(s)
Accompanying Illustrations:
Map showing LHR, LGW and central London. Black taxi rank. Minicab varieties from one company. National Express bus connecting LGW and LHR directly. |
Three hours to transfer between LGW / Gatwick and LHR / Heathrow
I am trying to use some AA miles to purchase a one way ticket to BLR from MCO this summer (return ticket already purchased - long story).
The only available option for my preferred travel date - and I don't know how American sells tickets with so short a transfer time - includes a transfer in London in three hours (Gatwick to Heathrow). My question is what happens if I miss the connecting flight? Is the onus on me or on British (which both legs are on) to put me on the next flight to BLR? |
Best avoided or find a longer connection.
You are responsible for transportation between airports ... if you have bags, you will have to collect them at LGW and take them to LHR and check-in again ... https://www.flyertalk.com/forum/brit...onnection.html and https://www.flyertalk.com/forum/brit...ial-guide.html BA will re-book you ... but there are too many variables outside your control to make this a stress-free option ... |
Originally Posted by an_asker
(Post 30805797)
I am trying to use some AA miles to purchase a one way ticket to BLR from MCO this summer (return ticket already purchased - long story).
The only available option for my preferred travel date - and I don't know how American sells tickets with so short a transfer time - includes a transfer in London in three hours (Gatwick to Heathrow). My question is what happens if I miss the connecting flight? Is the onus on me or on British (which both legs are on) to put me on the next flight to BLR? 2- drive to lgw will take at least 1.5 hours 3- you then need to get through security and check in at lgw. Let’s assume 30 min youd need to assume at least 2.5 hours in transit time. Not much room for error here and a single delay kills you |
UAPremExecflyer: Thanks for the reference to the other threads. I had not realized that I would have to lug my check-in luggage as well. With that and with what Nuhusky wrote (US passport), it appears that the bottlenecks (not necessarily in that order) would be:
- time to wait for checked bag to show up in LGW - immigration clearance - road bottleneck (if taking direct bus, which is best option with checked bag) - security at Heathrow - anything else? I noticed that there is an earlier flight available the previous day which gives me over four and a half hours of time to switch airports. That appears to be a better bet. Maybe get trip insurance as well... |
Originally Posted by an_asker
(Post 30806011)
UAPremExecflyer: Thanks for the reference to the other threads. I had not realized that I would have to lug my check-in luggage as well. With that and with what Nuhusky wrote (US passport), it appears that the bottlenecks (not necessarily in that order) would be:
- time to wait for checked bag to show up in LGW - immigration clearance - road bottleneck (if taking direct bus, which is best option with checked bag) - security at Heathrow - anything else? I noticed that there is an earlier flight available the previous day which gives me over four and a half hours of time to switch airports. That appears to be a better bet. Maybe get trip insurance as well... The 4.5 hours is a better option. The only thing that trip insurance will get you is a hotel room if you misconnect and are stuck overnight. While it adds a connection, have you looked at flying via LHR by connecting in the US, via any of the East Coast gateways with such service? While multiple connections are a nuisance, I would far rather have a US domestic connection than the hassle of a LGW-LHR ground transfer. |
Originally Posted by Often1
(Post 30806033)
Don't forget that in addition, you must wait in line at BA check-in at LHR and meet the bag check deadline,
The 4.5 hours is a better option. The only thing that trip insurance will get you is a hotel room if you misconnect and are stuck overnight. While it adds a connection, have you looked at flying via LHR by connecting in the US, via any of the East Coast gateways with such service? While multiple connections are a nuisance, I would far rather have a US domestic connection than the hassle of a LGW-LHR ground transfer. |
We had a 4 hour LGW-LHR transfer and barely made it. We'd booked tickets on National Express Coaches which is easy enough and traffic wasn't bad in the middle of the day, but LGW immigration for non UK/EU residents is an absolute nightmare. In the end we made it but it was way too stressful to ever do it again.
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The secret to the quick transfer has already been well demonstrated here:
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Any transfer in London requiring immigration needs plenty of time, regardless. Have done the coach transfer between airports and found it fairly efficient. However, at the other end you need to allow plenty of time for check in and security even if travelling in Biz. If you have the time, why not allow a day so you can spend some time in London and not rush. Three hours, even premium to premium is not enough time. Don't risk it.
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We’ve done this with an overnight stay near the UK departing airport. Three hours? I wouldn’t do it.
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timetable for LHR T5 to LGW and vice versa is 60 minutes and more often in reality it’s even quicker using National Express not an hour and a half. BA won’t sell a ticket with less than a 3 hours connection.- even allowing for the bag drop deadline of an hour long and 45 minutes shorthaul. If your BA flight is late BA will rebook you if on a single ticket. Note on separate tickets it won’t do anything for you. if lots of people missed their flights because 3 hours wasn’t enough then BA would soon increase the time required. But they haven’t so are happy to bear the costs of the few that don’t make it. |
If you miss it, think of it as a free 1 night stopover with the departure tax waived.
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Originally Posted by VegasGambler
(Post 30807747)
If you miss it, think of it as a free 1 night stopover with the departure tax waived.
I did this a few times when traveling from TPA-LGW, LHR-DME I would get there early in morning, take the National Express bus, then shower at the BA lounge at LHR and worked there in the afternoon. It was a 12 hour connection, and I got in a full day of work as I worked East Coast hours, so I saved a PTO day. Very convenient. |
We did this with an overnight. If it would have been anything else, we would not have made it. First off, we hade a one hour delay in AMS. We then had a 1 1/2 hour wait for our luggage in LGW. We booked a private driver who charged us extra for the long wait. We then got stuck in traffic and he went off the highway to get to LHR hotel. He got lost. All in all, we should have arrived at LGW at 11 am and figured we would get to the LHR hotel about 1- 1:30 pm. We arrived at 5:30 pm. I would not even think of trying to make a 3 hour connection. Too many things can go wrong. |
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