London Heathrow Airport parking, directions, transfers

Heathrow is London’s main airport and, in fact, the world’s busiest international airport. It is 15 miles west of the city and has just added a brand new, cutting edge fifth terminal.

Between around 5 am and 11 pm, Heathrow can be reached by rail. There’s an Express train to Paddington taking 15 minutes and costing £32 return. The stopping train takes about half an hour and costs about £7 for a single ticket. The tube runs during the same sort of times and takes about an hour to central London. Coaches also operate during the day, taking from 40-80 minutes, but the first arrival time from London is 8 am. Those catching early morning flights might prefer to stay in a hotel near Heathrow Airport the night before.

A taxi into London from here will cost £45-70 and take about an hour. Those arriving with their own car at Heathrow can park in one of the Long Stay car parks for around £15 per day. They are between 5 and 15 minutes from the terminals via a courtesy shuttle bus.

Heathrow Parking Guide

If you’re arriving at Heathrow by car, you don’t have to be limited to the on-site car parks.  There are a number of off-site parking options that could be more convenient for you.  Prices vary from place to place depending on how long you leave the car, the time of year and your requirements, so contact the car parks directly for a quote.

With a meet & greet service, your car is collected at the airport, parked off-site and brought back to you on your return.  Usually, all you have to do is call the company when you land and a driver will arrive with your car.  With a park & ride service, you drive your own vehicle to the car park and then take a shuttle bus to and from the airport terminal.

We know that the security of the car park will be of the utmost importance to you and you’ll want to know what insurance there is for those looking after your vehicle.  To help you out, we’ve put together a handy guide to Heathrow Airport’s off-site car parks, with details of their services. 

Value Individual Parking

This company offers both park & ride and meet & greet services at Heathrow Airport.  It’s been in business since 2004.  Their facility is in Iver, 5 miles from Terminals 1, 2 & 3 and 7 miles from Terminals 4 & 5.  This is off the M25, to the North of Heathrow, so it would suit customers approaching from that direction.  The compound is private, padlocked and surrounded by steel palisade fencing.  After leaving your car there, your party will be given a private transfer to the airport, which normally takes about 15 minutes.  The service is available for parties of up to 4 people with a maximum of 6 suitcases. 

When you choose meet & greet, a secret password ensures that you are handing the keys over to the right person at the airport.  Customers should note that their vehicles and contents are not covered for theft by Value Individual Parking.  They are insured only to drive the vehicle to and from the compound, up to a maximum of £50,000.

Q Park Heathrow

This is an international car parking company.  Their facility is based on Bath Road, which runs along the north of the Heathrow Airport complex.  It’s open 24/7 and has a maximum vehicle height of 1m 80.  It’s a park & ride service, with a free shuttle bus to and from all the airport terminals every 20 minutes, 24 hours a day, which takes about 5 or 10 minutes.  The compound has a Park Mark Safer Parking Award from the Association of Chief Police Officers.

Reeds Service Park

This car park is in Wraysbury, to the West of Heathrow and accessed from the M25 or the M4.  It’s best located for terminals 4 and 5 and is a park & ride facility.  A complimentary minibus will take you to and from any of the terminals; to T4 takes 15 minutes and to T5 takes 12 minutes.  Valet services are available, if you’d like to return from your holiday to find your car has had a wash and spruce up.  The facility has CCTV and brick perimeter walls with barbed wire, but ultimately cars are parked at the owner’s risk and Reeds can’t be held responsible for any loss or damage.

Purple Parking

This is a national car park company with several parking options for Heathrow Airport.  The facility is located in Southall, to the North East of the airport, and is accessed off the M4.  It’s 15-20 minutes from the airport and courtesy shuttles operate between 03.30 & midnight for park & ride customers.  The height restriction is 7ft 6.  It has 24 hour security guards, CCTV and a police gold security award.  A meet & greet service is also available for this car park. Another alternative is the P&R premium service, where means you drop your own car off at the car park on departure and it is brought back to the airport terminal for you on your return.

Parking Express

This company has managed long stay parking at Heathrow on behalf of BAA since 1999, and its facility is within the boundary of the airport.  It is a park & ride service.  There are bus stops throughout the car park and courtesy buses every 10 or 12 minutes to take you to the terminals.  The journey takes about 10 minutes.  The car park has security fencing and patrols as well as CCTV.  The gates are controlled automatically and there is a Number Plate Recognition System, so pre-booked customers will have express entry and exit.

Star Parking

This is a meet & greet service, established in 2000.  Their facility is about 3 and a half miles from Heathrow and it has the Park Mark from the Association of Chief Police Officers’ Safer Parking Scheme.  When you call the company to inform them you have landed back at Heathrow, your car will be brought back within 10-15 minutes for Terminals 1, 2 & 3 and within 20 minutes for Terminal 4. You can have your car cleaned while you are away. 

Edward Lloyd

This is a meet & greet service, and a free car wash by hand is offered with every booking.  The facility is covered by CCTV and has 24 hour security guards and high fencing.  A uniformed driver will meet you at your terminal to collect the car.  On landing back at Heathrow, you call them and the driver will be waiting for you with the car outside the building by the time you exit.

Happy Days Parking

This car park is to the North of Heathrow in West Drayton.  It is 3 miles from Terminals 1, 2 & 3, 6 miles from Terminal 4 and 4 miles from Terminal 5.  The facility is manned 24 hours a day and has CCTV and high fences. It’s open 24 hours and has no height restrictions.  For park & ride customers, a courtesy bus runs to all the terminals every 15 minutes between 05.00 and 23.00 and on request outside these times.  Sports equipment can be accommodated on board if notified in advance. There is also a meet & greet service.  The drivers wear a uniform and are insured to drive any vehicle within an 8 mile radius of Heathrow.

Knights of London

This is a meet & greet parking service. They will call you 20-30 minutes before your arrival time to confirm you are on schedule.  You will be met by the driver at the terminal.  Customers from Terminal 5 can park their car at the Reserve Valet Parking on level 4 of the car park, without incurring any fee.  Their off site facility has high fencing with razor wire, CCTV and 24 hour security patrols.  Cars are accepted between 4 am and 11.30 pm.

Heathrow Park 4 U

This is a meet & greet parking service.  Their facility is fully fenced, floodlit, with security cameras, microwave detection system and 24 hour security patrols.  Cars in their control are road risk comprehensively insured.  They will take responsibility for any damage that has been caused by their negligence, but any other incidents have to be covered by your own insurance. You can have your car valeted before it is returned.

Courtlands

This is a park & ride facility by the Heathrow Airport complex, at the North side, on Bath Road.  It is owned by BAA and is the official off-airport car park for Heathrow.  It is accessed off the M25 and M4.  The facility is manned 24 hours, frequently patrolled and has security fencing.  There’s a courtesy coach to the terminals which runs every 10-12 minutes and takes 10-15 minutes, depending on which terminal you need.  They run 24 hours a day.

Recommended Websites

 

Heathrow Airport Parking - Rhino

Offers an Airport Parking and Airport Lounge price comparison service at 17 Heathrow airport car parks, including meet and greet services, valet parking and business parking.

There are no other airports within 20 km of London Heathrow Airport.