Leave at 4:00am or stay at airport hotel

[worm77daisy]

Going on holiday in a couple of weeks 2 adults a five and three year old, we have an 8 hour flight, we have to be at Gatwick for 07:00am, a three hour drive away - so leaving at 4, getting up at the latest 3:30! We will be arriving at our destination early afternoon local time.

Would you stay at the Gatwick Hilton for ££, or just suck up the early start.

TIA

I'd go for the hotel.

No, go for the hotel every time. There are too many things that can go wrong on the journey. Plus a 3:30am start is a shitty beginning to a holiday if you can afford to do otherwise.

As others have said a hotel plus parking is often only a few pounds more than parking alone.

Always stay over the night before. Cannot be arsed to get up at silly o'clock. We have got 18 days parking and a family room for £133 at Manchester Airpirt next month.

I don't mind silly O'clock, I had DDs who would sleep in the car.

I'm crap at 6am starts, so we'd probably drive.

However, as poster above says, you can sometimes get carparking deals in wiyh the accomidation that make it very tempting.

Especially as some cheap carparking is way out and transport coaches infrequent enough to make you cold and nervous.

Go the night before. You may also have the option of checking in the night before so all you have to do the next morning is get up and go through security

Premier Inn , Yotel much cheaper than hilton also attached to the airport. plus if you hit traffic or anything else best the day before so you don't miss your flight.

We got an amazing deal at premier inn at gatwick north with the fly sleep park thing they do. We had same scenario as you and did it. Great start to holiday

I'd leave at 4am. Doesn't worry me getting up early (and it's not IMPOSSIBLY early) when I know i'm heading off for fun.

The last couple of years we have stopped in the Holiday Inn, Povey Cross at Gatwick. Again family room, long haul parking for around £135.

Their buses run every 15 mins and are very reliable.

Go the night before and stay over. You have an 8 hr flight leaving at 7am. You'll get there at 9am local time having been awake since 3am uk time, that's 12 hours awake by breakfast time in Florida.... Then you need to get through immigration, baggage, probably car hire and drive to accommodation? You might get a couple of hours on the plane but it's not good sleep. Make sure you get more sleep the night before.

OP Good call.

I always make bacon and cream cheese bagels or bacon rolls the night before and put them in the fridge in a carrier bag with some fruit and some of those innocent smoothies with straws. Then you have breakfast to eat en route.

Top tip Belloc thanks. I may well regret my decision yet!!