What is your cut off for getting an airport hotel?

We arrived at the airport 2 hours before our flight home from Berlin a couple of weeks ago. Thankfully our gate was very close to passport control as it was shutting when we arrived to board because it took over an hour to get our passports stamped despite the queue being less than 30 travellers.

get a hotel the night before. I’m like you and like to get to the airport with plenty of time to spare. Also don’t live a million miles from you and agree with you entirely with your reason for choice of airport too

There are definitely two camps of people- early flight people and late flight people. Neither is right or wrong but I am definitely in the early camp. I normally aim to arrive 3 hours before to give a buffer. We have had an m25 issue where we got stuck, had to cancel our planned parking and pay extortionate fees for on the day then run though the terminal. I did not enjoy that at all.

the new European entry system is a bit of a nightmare now. Sadly I think the days of rocking up 90 minutes before for return flighty are well and truly done.

P.S. easyJet don’t state you have to be there three hours early. Bag drop doesn’t even open until three hours before the flight and if everyone on that flight turned up at that time the airport would be chaos 😂

I’d definitely stay over if I lived that far away, and more so if I was relying on the shite public transport in the UK. Leaves on the line - oops, train cancelled!

Staying in Bath the day before sounds lovely and a nice extension to your holiday.

Arrive afternoon and check in.

get up and have a nice breakfast and check out and head to the airport.

I always think those who are so regimented over competitive not arriving too early are the type of people who are highly strung and can’t just sit and relax and read a book and need to be rushing around everywhere!

You clearly have a plan which works for you, OP, so that 's great, but honestly... you've made this rule up. Do you think EasyJet would ban you from boarding if you arrived at the airport 2 hours before the flight rather than 3 hours?

You’re disgusted because I don’t go the airports as early as you do? 😂 That’s quite funny. I take 50-60 flights each year. I am yet to miss a single one. What’s so disgusting about that?

Oh, and you keep saying easyJet states you must be there 3 hours ahead of time. How would they even check you’ve complied with that “rule”? (Which btw, isn’t a rule). I would never be allowed on an easyJet flight if they really had such regulations…

Yes go the day before, you don't want the worry of traffic delays etc just before your trip. I also like to be early, I just take a book, buy a hot drink and relax until boarding. Bath is good for a wander, just leave plenty of time from there to the airport as they've been doing a lot of roadworks around where it is, which can make things tricky and longer.

Flights to the place I go to in Spain are at 6am so usually stay at the airport Hilton where you can walk to the terminal as check in is 4am. When lived on the IOW even it the flight was in the afternoon I’d go up the day before as wouldn’t want to risk a ferry issue on the day.
I take my car as 9/10 there are three of us with luggage so much easier.

I thought that was for long haul flights? I'm pretty sure Europe is 2 hours?

But we know the OP is going from Bristol, which is probably much smaller and less chaotic than Manchester so doesn't need the same time allowance.

I travel regularly from Leeds, Liverpool and Manchester and allow more time at the latter. I would treat Bristol he same as I would Leeds and Liverpool, where 90 mins is plenty.

I can only assume previous posters have never travelled from Manchester airport with checked in luggage - we queued for almost 2 hours last time to check in & get through security! If I’d arrived 90 mins before, I’d have missed my plane! Birmingham can be similar.

In your case, I’d go the day before.

Id stay overnight. We live in very rural. 2 hrs 45 direct train to bham International but on a train line that has regular cancellations and trains are not very often. If I fly before 4pm, I just stay overnight. I'd stress too much otherwise.

Just stay and relax.

I'd say do what makes your travelling as stress free as possible, funds allowing. I'm speaking from current experience after landing in the US 4 hrs ago with my 77 yr old Dad and 15 yr old DD. Seeing family who very kindly paid our flights so I felt more than happy to pay for hotel rooms at LHR then an arm & a leg for 7 days parking at T2!
I'm also a 3+ he's before flight type of person 😃

Absolutely this. Just get an airport hotel booked, travel at your leisure, and have a good night's sleep, then stroll over to the airport. It is not particularly cheap, but I have had too many trains going wrong to contemplate otherwise, I travel a lot. x

By the time you've faffed around with public transport or a coach and hotels it'd be cheaper just to book a taxi, I'm sure. I appreciate that there are multiple stops etc., but 5 hours on a coach to do a journey that surely could be driven direct in 2.5 hours tops is bonkers.

Definitely the night before. The M5 is awful and has been for months. Unless you live in Devon/Somerset/North Somerset you have no idea just how bad it’s been/is

Yes, London City only lets you drop bags 2 hours beforehand

I’m from Okehampton and I had a teacher once who told me they got to Bristol in an hour - while I think they have exaggerated a little bit, I don’t know how the bus can take 5 hours? What are they DOING?

I’d definitely go the night before and stay in an airport hotel . You can’t depend on the transport arriving on time or there being no traffic delays, motorway closures etc . It would put you at ease , you can have a nice meal at the hotel and a good breakfast, lie in and a chill before flying .
when we’ve stayed in airport hotels you can usually drop your bags in the evening so all you need to do is go through security with your hand luggage .
Must admit we treat it as part of the holiday and really enjoy travelling the day before .

Depends. For that time I would travel on the day but if I got a cheap hotel, I’d travel up the night before and extend the holiday. Premier Inn are usually reasonable. Nothing worse than being stuck in traffic or there’s an accident.