Gatwick looks simpler than Heathrow, and in most respects it is. But it has one trap that catches people out constantly: North and South are two entirely separate terminals, roughly two miles apart, with separate car parks, separate access roads and separate drop-off zones.
Turn up at the wrong one and it costs you about fifteen minutes to fix. Not a disaster — but an avoidable and thoroughly irritating start to a holiday.
Which terminal are you flying from?
It's on your booking confirmation. Check it there.
As a rough guide, easyJet and British Airways short-haul typically operate from the North Terminal, while a broad mix of long-haul, charter and other carriers use the South. But airlines do move between terminals — Gatwick has reorganised more than once — so treat that as a hint rather than a rule.
If you booked through a tour operator or a third-party site, double-check the terminal on the airline's own app closer to the date. That's where changes show up first.
North Terminal parking
The North Terminal has short stay parking directly adjacent to the building, with long stay a short shuttle ride away. Access is from the M23 via the North Terminal roundabout.
Short stay is genuinely convenient — a few minutes' walk to check-in — but the tariff escalates quickly past the first day. It's designed for people dropping someone off or waiting for an arrival, not for a fortnight in Spain.
For anything longer, compare long stay and the off-airport operators. The gap is usually significant.
South Terminal parking
Same basic structure: short stay adjacent, long stay served by shuttle.
The South Terminal also connects directly to Gatwick's railway station, which matters if part of your party is arriving by train and meeting you there. It's the more natural terminal for a mixed group arriving by different means.
The inter-terminal shuttle
The two terminals are linked by an automated shuttle. It takes three to five minutes between terminals, plus walking time at either end — so budget about fifteen minutes door to door.
It's frequent and reliable, and for the vast majority of the time it works exactly as it should. But it does occasionally close for maintenance, and the replacement bus service takes noticeably longer.
That's the real argument for parking at the correct terminal rather than assuming you can hop across: not that the shuttle is unreliable, but that you've no reason to depend on it.
Fifteen minutes each way is rarely worth more than a few pounds of saving. Price the correct terminal first, and only consider the other one if the difference is genuinely large.
Off-airport options
Independent operators around Gatwick frequently undercut the official car parks substantially — this is a competitive market and it shows in the pricing.
Most serve both terminals, but confirm which one your transfer actually drops at. A compound advertising "Gatwick" that shuttles to the North Terminal is no use to you if you're flying from the South and haven't checked.
gatwick park and ride is typically the best-value choice for stays beyond a couple of days. gatwick meet and greet sidesteps the terminal question almost entirely — you drive to whichever terminal you're flying from and hand the car over there, which removes the risk of getting it wrong.
If you're weighing those two up, meet and greet vs park and ride compares them properly.
What if the cheaper car park serves the other terminal?
It happens. You're flying from the South, and there's a noticeably cheaper compound that shuttles to the North.
Do the arithmetic honestly. You're adding roughly fifteen minutes at each end, plus the small risk of the shuttle being disrupted, plus the cognitive load of remembering to allow for it on the way back when you're tired.
For a saving of five or ten pounds, it isn't worth it. For a saving of forty, it might be. Just make the decision deliberately rather than discovering it on the morning.
Check the terminal twiceOnce when you book your parking, and again about a week before you travel. Airlines occasionally move flights between terminals, and your parking booking won't automatically follow. Most operators will amend it if you ring them — but only if you know.Gatwick-specific things worth knowing
Drop-off charges
Gatwick charges for terminal drop-off, and the fee applies at both terminals. If someone is giving you a lift rather than you parking, factor it in.
Peak periods
Summer weekends are the busiest departure times, and Gatwick skews heavily towards leisure travel — which means school holidays hit harder here than at more business-focused airports. Book earlier for those dates than you would otherwise.
Late arrivals
If your return flight lands late at night, check that your operator's transfer runs at that hour. Not all off-airport shuttles are 24-hour, and discovering that at midnight is a poor end to a trip.
The M23 approach
Access is straightforward from the M23, but the junction gets congested on Friday evenings and Sunday afternoons in summer. Allow extra if you're travelling then.
Security
The same standard applies as anywhere: look for the Park Mark Safer Parking Award, which means police have assessed the compound for perimeter security, lighting and surveillance.
And ask where the site actually is. Around Gatwick there are plenty of legitimate operators competing on price, so there's no reason to accept a vague answer about where your car will spend the next fortnight.
Booking well
Gatwick follows the same curve as everywhere: four to eight weeks ahead for ordinary dates, eight to twelve for school holidays. Given how leisure-heavy Gatwick's traffic is, the summer peak is particularly pronounced.
See when should you book airport parking? for the detail, and twelve things that work for the wider tactics.
In short
Confirm your terminal, book parking for that terminal, and check again a week before you fly. Compare off-airport operators, look for Park Mark, and book four to eight weeks out.
Get the terminal right and Gatwick is one of the easier UK airports to park at.
Getting to Gatwick by car
Access is from the M23, which joins the M25 at junction 7. The terminals are signed separately from the motorway, so the decision point comes before you reach the airport itself.
North Terminal is reached via the North Terminal roundabout. South Terminal has its own approach and sits alongside the railway station.
Set your sat-nav to the car park's postcode rather than "Gatwick Airport" — a generic destination can easily deposit you at the wrong terminal, which is precisely the mistake this guide exists to prevent.
How long to allow
Off-airport park and ride — around 45 minutes before you want to be at the terminal
Meet and greet — 15 to 20 minutes
Official long stay — 30 minutes including the shuttle
Official short stay — 15 minutes
Add half an hour on summer weekends, and more if you're travelling on a Friday evening in July or August.
Arriving by train, leaving by car
Gatwick is unusual in having a mainline station attached directly to the South Terminal, which creates a scenario worth planning for: part of your group driving, part arriving by train.
If that's you, the South Terminal is the natural meeting point regardless of which terminal you're flying from. Meet there, then use the shuttle together if you're departing from the North. It's simpler than trying to coordinate two arrivals at two terminals.
If your terminal changes
Airlines occasionally move between Gatwick's terminals, and your parking booking won't follow automatically.
Check your terminal about a week before you travel, and ring your parking operator if it's changed. Most will amend the booking without difficulty. Discovering it on the morning means a shuttle ride you hadn't planned for, at the point in the day when you have least slack.
Which terminal is better to park at?
People often ask whether one Gatwick terminal is simply a better bet than the other. Honestly, there's very little in it.
Both have short stay adjacent to the building and long stay served by a shuttle. Both are reached easily from the M23. Both sit within the same competitive off-airport market, and plenty of independent operators serve the pair of them from a single compound.
The North Terminal is marginally quicker to reach from the motorway. The South Terminal has the railway station attached, which matters if anyone in your group is arriving by train.
Beyond that, park at whichever terminal you're actually flying from. That one decision matters far more than any difference between the two.
A note on Gatwick's busiest days
Gatwick's traffic skews more heavily towards leisure travel than most UK airports, which changes the rhythm of the week. Friday evenings and Saturday mornings in summer are the pinch points, and the approach roads feel it as much as the terminals do.
If you're travelling then, add half an hour to whatever you'd normally allow, and book your parking earlier than you would for a midweek trip. The cheaper off-airport operators sell out first, and they sell out soonest for exactly those slots.
