Arriving at airport at midnight for a 6am flight

[HettyMeg]

Getting a 2 hour taxi to airport at 10pm so arriving at around midnight. For a flight at 6am.

Friends are doing this instead of booking a hotel and I think they're crazy. Just get a hotel!

Ridiculous. 6am flights are the work of the devil. But there is no need to be at the airport for midnight for a 6am flight. 2 hours before is fine.

DH and I (and our 2 DC) had a 6.30am flight to New York about 15 years ago. Had to be at the airport for 4.30am. Airport was an hour's drive, had to allow an hour and a half in case of delays, so got the taxi at 3am. Hardly slept the night before. Went to bed at 8.30pm, didn't get to sleep till 10pm, then the alarm went off at 2am!

We were all so tired. The plane was an hour late and took off at 7.30am. At that point we had been up for 5 and a half hours, had only had 4 hours sleep, and still had a 6 hour flight to go. Got there 1.30pm - 8.30am NYC time - and were all shagged by 5pm their time (10pm ours.) We all flaked out on the bed, and were wide awake at 4am the next day!

We walked around the quiet streets of Manhattan at 6am, and took in all the sights, stopping at 8.30am for breakfast, then going into the tourist places from 9.30am. We were tired again by 8pm though. 😆 Took us 3 days to recover, then 2 days later we went home!

Will go for a 2pm flight next time. Midday at the latest. Even if it costs more. Enjoyed the trip as a whole and have nice memories of it, but will never do a 6am or 6.30am flight again... Especially not if there is more than a couple of hours time difference. It will be more tiring now, being 15 years older! As has been said, I am too old for all this shit now, and too old to miss a night's sleep.

Oh, and yes, I wouldn't get a hotel for a 6am flight.

I saw a TikTok today that said Manchester isn’t letting you through security until it’s below 3 hours before your flight

No way I would do this!! Just get a hotel!

My DM used to arrive 5 hours before departure. She has an anxiety about time & worries about missing the flight. This is her coping mechanism.

We did a 9am flight to Tokyo last year & chose a cheap hotel near the airport as we didn't want to risk the dreadful peak hour traffic in the city & have DC we didn't want to get up at 4am. On other travels we used to meet people who would sleep in the airport instead of paying for a hotel if they have connecting flights. Everyone is different.

Are they checking in luggage? They won't be able to that early for a flight and so won't be able to get through security etc and into the more comfortable lounges.

I just had a 6am flight. Planned on getting to airport for 4am so wanted to leave home at 3am (not that it should take anywhere close to an hour at that time of night, but just to be on the safe side and to allow time for parking the car). But we ended up not sleeping at all that night! It was midnight by the time I had finished all my packing etc and then combination of too excited to sleep / too worried about not waking up on time.

4am at the airport, there were plenty of nice clean safe spaces to wait, toilets available and restaurants/cafes open. But you couldn’t go through Departures yet - think that opened at 4.30.

So if I was these people, I’d just be leaving home later. But I wouldn’t be wasting money on a hotel.

This ….

i won’t book flights leaving before 8am at the absolute earliest. I’d arrive at an airport hotel mid afternoon on the previous day, have an early dinner and go to bed early. Breakfast once I’d gone through security or on the plane. I’d probably have a nap at the hotel once I arrived at my destination too!

I’ve spent the night at Gatwick on the ‘land’ side when returning from holiday. It was miserable, there are far fewer seats than in departures, and not much is open. I did it as my flight back had been delayed, and then there were baggage issues, and I’d missed my last train so was stuck. I could have got a train out of Gatwick but had missed my next train - and a night at Clapham Junction was even less attractive than Gatwick and I know they generally chuck you out of train stations. There were quite a few other people doing the same, I think a lot were due to go out on early flights and had arrived by train/coach, so competition for the seating was fierce.

We’ve got a 7.30am flight so have booked in hotel next to airport night before. Gives time to get food, relax and early night for kids. I think bag drop doesn’t even open until 4.30 so pointless getting there ages beforehand. The airport is just over an hour away from home on a good day.

My son's done something similar due to having to get the last train from the arse end of nowhere for an early flight from Heathrow. But he's a very young adult, was travelling alone and doesn't mind sleeping sitting up. He did book the earliest slot in a lounge so he could have a shower and some comfort before getting his flight.

Id do the hotel and do the check in luggage the day before. That's what we often do, if it's a package holiday. Then you only need to be in airport for 4am, to get through security.

Are two hour taxi rides? And another 2 hour one on the return. I don't think this is a budget driven decision.

Do they have cases, as they won’t be able to drop them off until two or three hours before the flight?

Got up at 2am, strong coffee, driven 2 hours to airport, to catch a 6.20 flight.

Wouldn't consider a hotel, don't sleep well in them and still have to get up at stupid o'clock.

2hour taxi drives, even across 4 people, arn't cheap.

I’ve got a 6am flight on Friday but we only live 45 mins from the airport. So I’ll go to bed at 11pm on Thursday, up at 2.30, leave at 3.15 to get to airport for 4am. Then a nap on the flight and another nap in the afternoon at our destination.

My godmother goes to Spain twice a year, and she always does this. Arrives on the last bus to the airport ~10pm, takes sandwiches, reads a books a d waits until the first flight at 6am.

She’s in her 70s too. I’m not sure I’d be keen, but saving probably at least €200 vs a later taxi or hotel or later flight makes it worthwhile for her. She says there’s always a diverse bunch of happy (but tired) travellers hanging around and she feels quite safe.

Their holiday, so their choice. I think they're nuts though.

I don't do flights before 9am anymore. You're up at a daft time, and then spend the rest of the day feeling like shit from tiredness.

Would they even be allowed through to the terminal that early? Do they have baggage? Usually bag drop isn’t open until 3 hours before. So they’d literally be sitting on those uncomfortable seats with nothing to do.

Seems like a way to ruin their holiday early. Can they not set off at even 1am?

I understand it having read a million messages on MN and elsewhere online from ppl who like to get to airport or other places at timings that I view as stupidly early. Or people who live outside London, then drive for hours all the way into central London for a 9am appointment on a work week day rather than park at end of a suburban trainline & use public transport.

I am planning a long-distance trip (part work, part leisure) which will involve some multi-hours stopovers. the less time spent in airports, the better.

A long taxi ride in the small hours could well be a similar cost to an hotel room.
For a silly o'clock flight, I always stay in an airport hotel - often a short walk to Departures.

If you're one on those people who can sleep anywhere I suppose it's better than having to get up at 2am or whatever.

In my early 20s when you could buy a budget flight for a tenner but that was usually a seat on a 6am flight I used to overnight it at the airport. I could rough it back then but now no chance.