To book airport hotel for 0720 flight

[Twistertea]

First world problems I know

2 DDs (4yo and 6mo) .. holiday booked but flight is at 0720- be at airport for 0520-

Airport an hour's drive from us... Then will need to factor in parking/transfer time.... So assuming would have to leave at 4am. Means getting DDs up at 3.45ish and straight into car...

Alternative is to book airport hotel which would save about an hour in bed so not getting them up until 430/445 but being in hotel could mean bedtime becomes later due to unfamiliar environment therefore losing sleep anyway.....

WWYD?

Book the hotel - definitely! Much less stress to contend with. No panicking on the drive through that you'll come across a traffic jam etc etc.

The airport hotel is the start of the holiday for me. All of that pre excitement ready for the trip.

Do it, if you think it will save stress then do it.

I decided a few years ago to never use airport transfers again, after a toddler wee'd and then vomited down the aisle of the shuttle bus we were on.. (not blaming the poor kid). I factor in the cost of hiring a car or private transfer into the holiday and it's much nicer.

I'd get a taxi from home. Probably cheaper, you'll need to get up roughly at same time and will have a better nights sleep as well as not having to eat the shit over priced food.

I wouldn't with a 6mo. Babies sleep badly in strange cots, odd smells, change in routine etc.

I'd get them to bed a little early and then whip them out of bed at the last minute and into the car still in sleeping bag/onesie and then change at airport. You'll have a couple of hours of waiting after check in.

Hotel sounds a nightmare. Plus packing and unpacking all the baby paraphernalia for a few hours in the hotel is painful!

Which airport? Some you can check and bag drop the night before so aim for 6am room leave...

You won’t sleep as well as at home and it will take longer to get ready and out the door in an unfamiliar place. I would skip the hotel.

Hotel, definitely. You're not worrying about the traffic for the drive, accidents can happen at all times to delay you, you will also be able to leisurely check the windows, cooker etc and avoid the 'Did you turn off the whatever' scene. You can usually get a Premier Inn for £30-40, we do it if we're on the early flight from our local airport.

Airport hotel any day! Which airport are you flying from? Manchester has hotels that are not technically in the airport site, but have free shuttle buses all times of the day and night. The will also let you park onsite for less than airport parking. We've done this a couple of times.

Airport hotel! Every. Single. Time. Without fail. We often have to drive 3 hours depending on the departure airport. Once thought we could take a chance - got the kids up at 2am. Piled them into the car and off we set. Drove through an absolute pea souper the entire way. Never again! Airport hotel over an early and unpredictable start every time! Make it part of your holiday.

I wouldn't book the hotel. Get them into the car in their pyjamas while they're still asleep. The big disruption is being at the airport at 5.20, so even if you're at an airport hotel you'll be getting up at 4.30am. I just don't think you gain anything much at all by going the day before.

I think hotels are pointless unless you’re travelling from ages aaway from the airport. I hate having to get things out of cases or have seperate things, I always get up early anyway to make sure we don’t oversleep/haven’t left anything etc etc, everyone sleeps less anyway due to the excitement of a hotel room and for the sake of an hour I wouldn’t bother. With a 6mo they will prob do what they like re sleep anyway and with my 2yo if we get him up early for the airport he doesnt sleep in the car but crashes on the flight which is even better!

I book hotels for flights later than that! It is so much more relaxing. We usually fly from Heathrow so stay at T5 and have dinner in carluccios the night before and dd (who loves the airport) can have a run about

100% book it

Also just check what time you actually need to be at the airport, it is often not as long as you think

Absolutely, I book hotels for morning flights even if 11am. Only paid £30 for our last travelodge, I don't travel well in the morning and you never know what traffic will be like. Plus it starts the holiday early!

Do it. At least if it's somewhere like Stanstead where the hotel is a short walk from the terminal.

Definitely book the hotel. We do this all the time. It starts the holiday early, and makes the morning less stressful. In fact we're doing this in July when our flight isn't even until lunchtime--it will make jet lag better to sleep to a normal time rather than get up very early (we are not close to the airport).

We live a similar distance from the airport as you OP, and have the same flight time when we go away in the summer (me and DH, no children). We've booked the Premier Inn opposite the North Terminal at Gatwick. I get very jittery at the possibility of delays on the way to the airport, even at Silly O'clock in the morning, so it made much more sense to us. We do the same thing when we cruise, and drive down to Southampton the day before. To us it makes for a much more relaxing start to the holiday.

I would definitely do the hotel. I do tend to catastrophise though and imagine a road closure or a car breakdown if I leave early so prefer to go the day before. I don't sleep well in hotels but then again I don't sleep well awaiting an early morning drive so I'd rather get near the airport.

Depends on the airport. If I fly out of Bristol, I pay for the on site parking which is a three minute walk from the terminal. It's an extra £20 but much less stressful than shuttle buses etc.

Book the airport hotel- let the holiday start the night before, have a nice meal & some drinks

I am a big fan of airport hotel stays for early morning flights- we have 2 young children (5 yrs & 6 months) and it takes the pain of leaving for the holiday in the early hours. Find it less stressful to leave the night before, kind of doing it in 2 stages!

Once we've left home in the car, it feels like we have started the holiday already

The hotel!

I wouldn't bother for an hour, but if its worth £150 or os to you then fine. your money, your choice.

Hotel, ideally one which includes parking.

If you decide against this, do check the Traffic England website for overnight roadworks en route, it's not safe to assume early morning drive will be low traffic and easy.

I'd only do a hotel if it's at the terminal itself. Park the car in the airport long term parking the night before, get the transit to the terminal, walk to the hotel. There are reasonably priced hotels at the airport itself at Gatwick, stansted and Heathrow Terminal 4.

If it's an off-site hotel - don't bother. You'll lose most of the time you have gained getting the bus to the terminal.

Depending on where and which airline you are flying with you may not need to get to the airport at 5.20. We flew out of stansted last Sunday at 7.15: stayed in one of the two on-site hotels, got up at 5.15, had breakfast, got to the terminal just before 6 and despite queues at security we still had a 15 minute wait before our gate was shown.