Stansted airport parking - I am an idiot

[researchandbiscuitfan]

For the first time ever I haven’t noted down or photographed where the car is in Stansted mid stay and I have no memory of it. Our flight gets in late and I’m faced with trawling kids round most of the car park before a 3 hour drive (then I have to get up at crack of dawn for an early hospital appt). I know we weren’t in the early letters, but I can’t even find what letter the car park goes up to online.

I am such a fool. There’s nothing I can do here beyond trawl each letter once I arrive, is there? No clue where to get off the bus for the airport or anything 😩

Ask Siri. It can throw up a map of your parked car, might narrow it down a bit

OP You're not as much of an idiot as what we saw. Someone had left both of their windows fully down in the airport parking. Long Stay.

Oh and when DH parked the car in Feb, in the frost and dark, he too forgot to look for the carpark number (DS and I were at the airport hotel). We had a cold traipse around the car park on return in snow and ice.

Ah no!

I've had a little nose and found their parking phone number. Might be worth calling them.

Also there are help points in the terminal, you could always go straight to it an explain your predicament, be super nice and explain that you're stuck with young children. There are some kind people out there.

There are indeed some kind people out there including bbcessex and her friend who has located my car!!! 💐💐💐💐💐
#mumsnetisthebest

Omg what a lovely person you are BBC! Thank goodness OP can take a thing off her mind. Glad you’ve had a lovely holiday OP, hope your op goes ok.

Amazing!! Hooray for bbc and for not having to search the car park in the dark!

As a broader theme though, the Parking at Stansted is horrendous and ruins what is otherwise a very slick little airport.

Fantastic! Massive respect BBC. The kindness of strangers is a wonderful thing. Hopefully your faith in the world is a little restored,OP. Sounds like you've been having a tough time.

@researchandbiscuitfan so happy to read this update! Wanted to send you empathy anyway- I'm also a widowed parent of young kids and losing the car like this is up there on my nightmare list! Compulsive photographer - DC laugh at me..

But yep, totally draining being responsible for EVERYTHING

@snorfig I did that in the Victoria centre last week Who knew blue zone was on every floor?

I don't know if they have the same at Stansted but I dropped my son at Heathrow recently and whilst I was very smart and noted zone B I didn't note which floor (!!!). Anyway upon return to the ticket machine there was another machine where you entered your car registration number and it told you the floor, zone and aisle number!!

Aw. I love a happy ending.

Also peeps... for those using the key fob and pressing the buttons to male your indicators flash (I do it too) -
Always press the lock, not the unlock button. That way your lights flash but your car remains secure 👍

Yaaay or bbcessex

What a relief OP and a lovely gesture from another MNer

My poor mum lost ours in the long stay at Gatwick.... it was a banana yellow ford fiesta and we naively thought we'd see it a mile off . Turns out a lot of people had yellow cars back in the 80s too...................

Lovely!

I love mnet, a story with a happy ending
A show of how we can work together to help each other
And I have now learned that my phone can find my car the next time I go to the shops
Perfect!

Yay!!!

Ahhhh this is lovely! Fantastic work @bbcessex and OP, I’m sure it must be so hard without your partner but sounds like you’re doing a wonderful job and are a brilliant parent

Thanks all 😁😁😁😁 turns out my friend really enjoyed her mission!!!

Like I posted earlier.

All you have to do is go to the customer service office in the car park. They keep records up to six months of what zones were open/closed. All on computer. Dates, times, when zones opened/closed. CCTV not needed. So if you came in on such-a-such date, at such-a-such time, at the click of a button, the person in the office will tell you where your car is. Providing you have remembered correctly?