Flying From Gatwick?

Great to have a holiday ahead of you but the thought of the journey invariably involving the dreaded M25 is worrying when you know you have a flight to catch. Should you leave excessively early then end up spending 4 hours looking at tat in the airport shops? What about parking? You can easily pay more than £50 a week to park and that's not at the airport. You've got to find the car park then wait for a shuttle to drive you to the airport which can be miles away.

Consider instead staying near Gatwick the night before. Of course there are the usual big hotels on or near the airport; very expensive and you are stuck in a concrete jungle. Try, instead staying in one of the Guest Houses in Horley. Horley is 1.5 miles from the airport and developed after the railway was laid in 1841. Many of the large Victorian and Edwardian houses, built by the early commuting stockbrokers are now Guest Houses where you can stay and leave your car while you are away. The rates for staying and parking are sometimes less than just airport parking.

Horley has a great selection of restaurants serving residents of the Guest Houses. Most popular is the 15th century Ye Olde Six Bells, picturesquely situated beside the River Mole and serves great food. You can't believe you are so close the airport in this nice little town and happily not in the flight path so you don't notice the planes.

Many of the Guest Houses offer a free transfer service to and from the airport. So you can set off 10 minutes before you need to check in and feel refreshed before your flight. If you are flying with Virgin (and sometimes BA and Thompson) you can do a Twilight check-in and check your luggage in, the night before. Check-in online and in the morning you can just walk straight through to security. Stay in Horley and avoid that horrible anxiety of being stuck in jam with a flight to catch.