London Heathrow Airport

In this section you will find traveller airport reviews as well as our London Heathrow Airport Guide with info on WiFi, lounges, facilities and services....and yes, even the names of some airport hotels in case you decide that sleeping in the airport is not for you!

The terminal remained at full brightness all night, so no night-time cosiness, and there were quite a few people working, fixing stuff, etc. - Mo.Si

Recent Review

Terminal 3, Gate 3. Photo credit: Caro
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by Mallamun
There are three potential sleeping areas in this airport: the commons, the gates, and the paid lounges. The lounges are obviously extremely expensive and accessible only to business class travelers, so if you have access to them, you don't even need to be on this website.

The commons are IMPOSSIBLE to sleep in. A ring of shops and walkways surrounds a tightly crowded island of chairs. No matter what time of day you find yourself at Heathrow, this area is SWARMING. Because all airport traffic encircles this area, you will be surrounded by a ring of human activity. Additionally, almost all the chairs have bars between them, and there is so much traffic that even if you are hearing impaired enough to sleep here, trying to sleep under the seats will result in getting your hands stepped on.

The last possible area you might try to snag a nap are the gates. These are spacious areas full of pleasant nooks and long rows of seats. It's quiet. It seems perfect. However, airport personnel apparently have a policy of waking sleeping travelers. I was able to nap for 15 minutes before a woman came up to me and demanded to see my boarding pass, before telling me that if I wanted to sleep, the ONLY area I was allowed to do so in was the lounges. Apparently this boils down to money for the airports: pay for the lounges, or don't sleep at all.

I tried to enter another gate area, but I was stopped again by someone who said that I could only enter if I was boarding the flight. (I wonder why they have chairs in this spacious area if only boarders are allowed to pass through?)

I had been awake for almost 24 hours by the time I got to this airport and had expected to get at least a few hours sleep in a corner, but there was literally not a single corner in the entire airport where I could sleep. I wandered for two hours, searching, and finally gave up. Horrible.

Do NOT count on sleeping here.

The last review for this airport was in 2013. Have you been there recently? Tell us about it!

>>>Read All London Heathrow Airport Reviews

London Heathrow Airport Guide

Airport Lounges

There are several pay-per-use lounges at Heathrow airport. I haven`t included the airline lounges on this list, but they exist too.

Servisair Lounge - Location: Terminal 1, airside, 2nd Floor. Hours: 500am - 1030pm. Lounge Access: from £17.49 per person (3 hours). [ book lounge ]
No. 1 Heathrow- Location: Terminal 3, airside, near gates 13-22. Showers are available. Hours: 430am - 1030pm (Daily). Lounge Access: US$ 49 per person (3 hours).
Servisair Lounge - Location: Terminal 3, airside, near Gates 12-42 Airline Lounges F-1. Hours: 500am - 1030pm. Lounge Access: from £17.49 per person (3 hours). [ book lounge ]
Air Canada Maple Leaf Lounge has two lounge locations:
- Terminal 3 - Departures - Location: Airside. Hours: 530am -10am (Daily). Rates: $ 30-55 (depending on your fare)
- Terminal 3 - Arrivals - Location: Landside, Arrivals Level. Showers are available. Hours: 6am - 130pm (Daily)
American Admiral's Club - Location: Terminal 3, Airside on the Departure level, Lounge area H. Hours: 6am (Sun - Fri) 6am - 630pm (Sat). Rate: US$ 50

Airport WiFi / Internet

WiFi is available at London Heathrow Airport for a fee. Connect to the Boingo network.

Airport Hotels

If sleeping in the airport does not appeal to you, there are hotels at Heathrow airport inside Terminals 4 and 5....

Sofitel - direct access to Terminal 5 via covered walkway. Day rooms are available 9am-6pm.
Hilton Hotel - direct access to Terminal 4 by covered walkway.
Renaissance Hotel - located between Terminals 1 and 3, this hotel is accessible by the Free red London Transport bus.
Arora Hotel - located 5 minutes from the airport. Free airport transfers to Terminals 1, 2, 3 and 4. Public bus to Terminal 5
Yotel - cube style rooms located inside Terminal 4 near Arrivals on the Mezzanine Level. Day rooms/hourly rate from 4-24 hours are offered.

To find the cheapest room, try this Hotels Near Heathrow Airport page on Tripadvisor and sort hotels by price.

More Services, Facilities & Things to Do at the Airport

Art Gallery - Location: Terminal 5, Landside, near Premium Check-in counters
ATMs / Cash Machines - Cash machines are located landside and airside in all terminals.
Car Rentals - Alamo • Avis • Budget • Enterprise • Europcar • Hertz • National
Food / Dining - There are lots of food concessions throughout the terminals. Below you will find the 24 hour food options at Heathrow airport.
Terminal 1 - Landside: Costa Coffee
Terminal 1 - Airside: 24 hour food options are not available
Terminal 3 - Landside: AMT Coffee • Costa Coffee
Terminal 3 - Airside: 24 hour food options are not available
Terminal 4 - Landside: Caffe Nero
Terminal 4 - Airside: Costa Coffee
Terminal 5 - Landside: Costa Coffee
Terminal 5 - Airside: 24 hour food options are not available
Information Desks - Locations: Terminal 1 (Landside, Arrivals, near car rentals / Hours: 6am-11pm) • Terminal 3 (Landside, Check-in Area, Zone D / Hours: 7am-930pm) • Terminal 4 (Landside, Arrivals, near taxi desk / Hours: 530am-1030pm) • Terminal 5 (Landside, Arrivals). During off hours, use the courtesy phones to ask for help.
Luggage storage / Lockers - Terminal 1 - Arrivals, next to lifts for Heathrow Express. Hours: 6:00am - 11:00pm.
Terminal 3 - Arrivals. Hours: 5.30am - 11:00 pm.
Terminal 4 - Arrivals and Mezzanine levels. Hours: 5.30am - 11:00 pm.
Terminal 5 - Arrivals near UK arrivals. Hours: 5.30am - 11:00 pm.
Rates: £8.50 per item per 24 hours (or part thereof).
Mobile Charging - Free Power Pole charging stations are available in the departure lounges in all Heathrow terminals. Use them to charge up to eight electronic devices.
Prayer Rooms - St. George's Chapel - There is a chapel located between Terminals 1 and 3. It is underground, so you need you descend the stairs. Hours: 07:30-20:00 The prayer room is located street level. There are other prayer rooms located in the terminals, but you have to stumble upon them or ask the Information Desk where they are located.
Observation Areas - The best spots to watch the action on the runway are the following:
Terminal 1 - The Tin Goose, Caffè Nero and Costa Coffee
Terminal 4 - The AMT, Costa Coffee, the 4Deck lounge, and many of the gate seating areas.
Terminal 5 - Almost everywhere. The Gordon Ramsay Plane Food and wagamama offer particularly good vantage points.
Showers - Location: Terminal 3 (Airside, No. 1 Traveller's Lounge) • Terminal 4 (Landside, near the Heathrow Express Station) • Terminal 4 (Airside). Rate: Showers in Terminal 4 are free. A towel pack (including shower cap, shampoo and shower gel) is available for a small charge.
Smoking Areas - There are no designated smoking areas once you get past security.

Airport Hours

open 24 hours

Airport Transportation: Getting There

All of your land transportation needs will start or end at the central bus station (open 24 hours), located between Terminals 1 and 3. To buy tickets and get directions to places beyond the airport, go to the travel centre (hours: 06:00-22:30) at the station. Follow the link for comprehensive transportation information to/from Heathrow Airport.

For inter-airport transportation, there is frequent coach service to:
- Stansted - departs every 30-60 minutes. Journey time is 90 minutes. Fare £23
- Gatwick - there are 100 buses between Gatwick and Heathrow per day. Journey time is 75 minutes. Fare £19.50-

Airport Transportation: Getting Around

Heathrow's 4 terminals are connected by trains and buses. To move between Terminals 1 and 3, you can walk.

London Travel Resources

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