travelling-blogger

comments

Heathrow's £2.5billion new Terminal 2 opened last week. With its snazzy architecture, shops and gourmet restaurants, feedback from passengers has been positive – and as the terminal is initially operating far below capacity, it's likely to be uncrowded for a while.

However, if possible, why not avoid flying from big London airports and try a regional one instead?

It's not only a case of potentially being a shorter drive if you fly out of your local airport, but also of benefiting from cheaper parking.

Brand new: Heathrow Terminal 2 is initially operating far below capacity

A pre-booked stay in an official long-stay car park at Heathrow this month will cost up to £80 for a week, depending which terminal you're using.

At Bristol Airport, the cheapest rate is £36. At Heathrow, you will also need to take a shuttle bus from the car park to the terminal, and therefore factor an extra 30 to 45 minutes into your schedule. At Bristol, it's a short walk to the terminal from the long-stay car park. Smaller airports are also easier to pass through. 

A survey by consumer group Which? found that Southampton had the shortest check-in time (ten minutes), while Stansted had the longest at 20 minutes. Bear in mind, too, that if you fly from a small airport your departure gate may be a matter of yards from security. By contrast, it may be a 15-minute walk at Heathrow.

Snazzy architecture: London Heathrow Terminal 2 opened last week

There is also evidence that using a small UK airport can improve the chances of your flight being on time. According to the Civil Aviation Authority, last year flights in and out of London City Airport were significantly more likely to be on time than those to and from Heathrow or Gatwick.

Of course, there are some disadvantages from flying from smaller airports. If you are delayed, distractions can be limited. I also find fares are often a bit higher flying to a particular destination from Bristol (my local airport) than from London.

As there are fewer flights, they get booked up more easily, prompting airlines to increase prices. That said, the savings made in getting to the airport or on the parking usually outweigh the extra cost.

New flight options from regional and smaller London airports

This summer, Flybe (flybe.com) is starting flights to six destinations in France, Germany, Belgium and the Netherlands from London Southend Airport, including to Rennes in Brittany and Caen in Normandy.

New flights with Ryanair (ryanair.com) include Bournemouth to Chania in Crete, and Bristol to Bologna.

Meanwhile, British Airways (ba.com) now flies from London City Airport to Florence, and SAS (flysas.com) goes from Bristol to Stockholm between late-June and mid-August.

While you need to fly from London to catch many long-haul flights, don't always presume that's the case. Last month, Thomson (thomson.co.uk) began flights from Manchester to Puerto Vallarta in Mexico.

And next May, Thomas Cook (flythomas cook.com) is commencing flights from Manchester to Miami (the only UK service to the city not from London) and to New York.