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Air travel makes life more convenient, though it comes with a fair share of drawbacks. Let’s ignore some of the crazy flight prices (and the sheer annoyance of trying to add luggage) for a moment and focus on something else: actually the best ways to travel to & from the airport.
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Ways To Travel To & From The Airport
It’s everyone’s biggest concern when planning a holiday. How do you get to the airport on time with minimal stress but also without spending too much money? It’s a tough puzzle to crack, though you’re usually left with these options:
- Drive to the airport
- Get a lift
- Take the train
- Find a coach
There are two questions to cover here: which of these options is the cheapest, and which one is the best for you? Let’s find out!
Drive to the airport
Driving to and from the airport is an obvious choice. If we’re looking at things from a convenience standpoint, it’s probably the best because:
- You don’t have to rely on anyone else
- You’re in control of everything
- You don’t need to worry about lugging heavy bags around
There’s nothing worse than preparing for a holiday and leaving the airport travel to the whims of public transport or another driver. All your preparations go out the window if there’s a slight delay, which causes so much stress. When you drive, you know what you’re doing, you can practice the route months in advance, and you can set your own contingency plans for traffic.
What about the affordability of driving to and from the airport? You need to pay for the following:
- Fuel (or electricity for an EV)
- Parking
That doesn’t seem like much – and to be fair, the cost of fuel is pretty insignificant a lot of the time. Airport parking will be the biggest financial factor holding you back. Most airports are notoriously expensive, particularly if you’re staying for longer than a week. Nevertheless, you can locate cheap airport car parks around the airport itself. These offer great rates, and you normally only need a five-minute shuttle to the airport terminal, which doesn’t alter the convenience that much.
To be honest, the cost of airport parking will either be higher or lower than some of the other transportation options. It depends on which airport you’re travelling to and how much it costs to try alternative modes of transport.
Summary
Convenience: 5/5
Price: Anywhere between 1/5 and 5/5
All in all, driving is the most convenient way of getting to the airport. It removes so much worry from this journey – and it can be more affordable than other options, though it can also be more expensive. Your best bet is to go through all the choices and weigh up if airport parking is cheaper or at least cheap enough for the convenience benefits to outweigh any additional costs.
Get a lift
The second option also involves road transportation, only you’re not the one driving. You could get a lift to the airport via either of these two possibilities:
- A lift from friends/family
- A taxi/Uber
Starting with the convenience, lifts are almost as convenient as driving yourself. You negate the worries of British public transport, yet there are a couple of concerns to think about. You rely on the person giving you a lift to arrive on time – even when it’s a family member, you’ll be amazed at how late they can be!
You also don’t control their route or driving style, which may mean they take you a longer and more traffic-burdened way than you’d wish. This also happens when you book a taxi or Uber, along with the luggage problem. You can try to select the type of car when booking a lift, but there’s no guarantee you’ll get what you want. What if the Uber driver turns up in a car without enough boot space for your luggage? You end up overcompensating and booking a van or people carrier – which ramps up the costs.
But how much will this cost? Again, it depends on where you’re going. If your airport is only 30-40 minutes away, then the cost of a taxi/Uber might be better than public transport and airport parking. The longer you have to go, the more expensive it becomes. Normally, booking a taxi is a toss-up between whether you want to save money or bypass the inconvenience of public transport.
Of course, if you get a lift from a family member or friend, then it could be free. You might want to pay for fuel as a courtesy, but it’ll be way cheaper than any other method.
Summary
Convenience: 4/5
Price: Between 1/5 and 5/5
Again, the costs of getting a lift are similar to when you drive to the airport. On one hand, it can be the cheapest option out there. On the other, it could be the most expensive. It depends on who’s giving you the lift and how far you have to travel – though it’s always slightly less convenient than driving and parking.
Take the train
Let’s look at the first form of public transport: train travel.
Anyone who travels within the UK will know that train travel is mediocre at best. It’s far better in other countries – which is something to keep in mind when you arrive at your destination – but British trains are terrible. Some airports don’t have direct train links, so you need to get a train to a different station and then hop on a shuttle bus to the terminal. It’s pretty inconvenient, particularly when the shuttle buses take another 20-30 minutes. If your train goes direct to the airport without requiring any changes, then you’re extremely lucky.
And what about the prices? Without a railcard, you can pay hundreds of pounds for a return trip to and from the airport. Even a relatively “quick” 30-40 minute train journey can cost over £30 or £40 with a railcard in some parts of the country.
Summary
Convenience: 1/5
Price: Between 1/5 and 3/5
Train travel will almost never be the cheapest option when going to the airport. It might seem like it is, but when you add up the costs of a return trip – plus the fact you may also need to get a taxi to your chosen train station – it’s frighteningly expensive. Plus, when trains are cheaper than other methods, you have the stress of dealing with delays and carrying your luggage around. What if you end up on a packed train with nowhere to sit or place your luggage? It adds so much unnecessary stress to your journey.
Find a coach
Lastly, you could book a coach to the airport. This has some notable benefits:
- Coaches are direct
- There’s always somewhere to sit & put your luggage
- Way cheaper than trains
When everything goes smoothly, coach travel can be the most affordable way to travel. However, there is a slight lack of convenience to consider. A lot of coach stations are in weirdly inconvenient locations. You’ll need to get a lift or take the train and then walk to them, which adds annoyance to your journey. Plus, you need to make sure there’s a coach at the right time; some timetables might not work for your flight unless you arrive four hours earlier.
Summary
Convenience: 2/5
Price: 1/5 to 3/5
Coaches are normally the cheapest way to get to an airport, though they lack a lot of convenience. You have to deal with normal things like traffic as well as issues relating to timetables or the station’s location.
Conclusion – Which option is the best for you?
The best ways too travel to and from the airport honestly depends on which airport you’re going to and the transport links to/from it. Ideally, if you can find decent airport parking rates, then driving will be the most convenient and cost-effective method of transport.