Forget London. Arrive at an alternate UK international airport to save time and money.
Most visitors to the UK head to Heathrow or Gatwick because London is the UK’s most famous entry point. And London Heathrow is the busiest international airport in the world after all.
But if your final destination is a trip to the Scottish Highlands or a musical pilgrimage to Liverpool or one of England’s independent capitals, Birmingham, Manchester or Newcastle, it could cost you everything you’ve saved on your economy flight for the fare of the UK. train, hotel rooms, rental car mileage, or gas (gasoline) just to get where you really want to go.
A wide variety of UK airports
If you fly ocean liner, you may have more options for where to land than you think. There are more airports that support flights to the US than a few years ago, but they are reaching fewer destinations within the US. However, there are still at least 10 airports across the UK that have scheduled flights and flights. connection to and from North American destinations. Some fly to only a few cities in North America, but others have direct or connecting flights to destinations on the east and west coasts and in the Midwest of the United States and Canada.
When looking for flights to alternative airports, you can get a bargain. And, if your final destination is far from the UK capital, you can probably save travel and hotel costs as well as time.
How it all adds up
Airfares go up and down, and depending on how and where you buy yours, prices for the same flight can vary greatly. The best way to see how much time and money you could save is to pick a time and compare the numbers.
For the sake of comparison, let’s say you’re heading to the Western Highlands of Scotland, for sightseeing, golfing, a cruise on Loch Lomond, and visiting some of the islands, perhaps Skye or Islay for whiskey. You can either fly into London and then make connections or you can fly smart and head straight to Glasgow International Airport, which serves cities on the east and west coasts of the United States and Canada.
On 8th December 2017 we searched for the cheapest travel arrangements for a May holiday (usually a mild and warm month across the UK) from 7th to 21st May. Here’s how the numbers accumulated:
- Newark Airport to London Heathrow : The cheapest non-stop flight was an Air France flight operated by Delta from JFK to London Heathrow. It cost $ 601 and took 7 hours and 5 minutes. Flying from Heathrow to Glasgow on British Air costs $ 144 and adds an additional 1 hour 25 minute travel time not counting the wait time between flights, which could be hours or even a full day (adding a hotel bill and expensive meals at the airport on your own)) So that’s a total expense of $ 745 and 8 hours and 30 minutes of air time not counting the waiting time between flights, plus the possibility of meals or accommodation at the airport.
- From Newark Airport to Glasgow International Airport: The cheapest non-stop flight was a Lufthansa flight operated by United Airlines for $ 589 with a travel time of 6 hours and 55 minutes.
That’s a savings of $ 156 and a time savings of nearly two hours. If you decided to travel from London to Glasgow by train, the round-trip fare would be roughly the same, but you could add at least five to six hours of travel time, not counting the time you might have to wait to coordinate your air arrival with Your departure. of the train.
So for some UK destinations alternative international airports make a lot of sense. Take a look at these airports that support transatlantic flights to see which one is best for your travel plans.
Alternative UK Destination Airports
- Manchester Airport – The gateway to the North and North West of England serves 13 North American air transport hubs, including Atlanta, Boston, Charlotte, Chicago, Houston, Las Vegas, Los Angeles, Miami, New York, Orlando, Philadelphia, San Francisco and Washington. It serves more North American locations, on the east and west coasts, than any UK airport outside of London.
- Glasgow Airport – Scotland’s main international airport serves destinations on the east and west coasts of North America. They recently added direct flights to Montreal and Toronto and also serve Miami, New York, Philadelphia, Orlando, Las Vegas, Halifax, Calgary, Vancouver, and single-connection flights to Los Angeles and San Francisco.
- Edinburgh Airport – Fly from New York – JFK, Newark and Stewart in Orange County, NY – Toronto, Chicago and Orlando (on travel packages) Providence for Boston and Washington DC. Scotland’s capital is also convenient to the northeast border country of England.
- Birmingham Airport – Fly from New York JFK or Newark, Boston or Toronto for access to The Midlands and Mid Wales and good connections to the rest of the UK, Europe and even more.
- East Midlands Airport – Located in Derbyshire, practically in the center of England, various holiday operators flew to popular US destinations like New York and Florida.
- Bristol Airport – It has no direct flights to the US, but this gateway to western England and South Wales has connecting flights from Boston, Chicago, Los Angeles, New York, and San Francisco.
- Cardiff: Cardiff has direct flights to Orlando (who doesn’t), but there are also connecting flights to most hubs on the east and west coast, as well as destinations in Texas.
- Liverpool John Lennon Airport – Since October 2015, this North West England airport has become a gateway to North America via Dublin. Cities reached via this unique route include Boston, Chicago, New York, Newark, Hartford (halfway between Boston and New York), Orlando, Los Angeles, San Francisco, Toronto, and Washington DC. Many benefits, you can take advantage of the pre-clearance customs and immigration facilities at Dublin Airport.
- Newcastle International Airport: connects to New York, Orlando and Las Vegas.
London airports
London has five airports. In 2016, they all supported some transatlantic flights.
- London City Airport If you’re happy to splurge on first-class travel, British Airways has premium flights to New York JFK from this airport. If you are thinking of adding the UK to a longer trip, you can fly to the City of London from the most popular European cities.
- Heathrow – the biggest and most obvious choice of all.
- Gatwick – Once a secondary airport, Gatwick now has better transport links to London and a greater variety of scheduled flights. It is convenient to the destinations of Kent, Sussex and the south coast.
- Stansted – This small but fast-growing airport northeast of London handles flights from all over Europe. While services to North America are limited, it is possible to fly from Orlando or Las Vegas to Stansted.
