Airport Cars Gatwick

Four suitcases, two kids, 7am landing from Dubai? Book a car.

Airport Cars Gatwick runs pre-booked saloon taxis from both North and South terminals, meeting you in the arrivals hall instead of sending you to the official taxi rank. Think door-to-door from LGW to Croydon, Crawley or central London without dragging bags onto the Gatwick Express. Pricing is usually lower than a London black cab quote but higher than Thameslink or Southern trains, and it starts to make sense once there are 3–4 people in the car.

Pickups usually happen inside, near Costa in arrivals at North or South terminal, which clashes with airport signs pointing you downstairs to the taxi rank. One reviewer mentioned a driver texting as soon as their flight touched down and waiting by Costa, coffee in hand, for a run up to Croydon. Build in 10–15 minutes after baggage reclaim to find the driver, especially on your first use.

Hours are essentially 24/7; locals mention 4am collections from Crawley with no surprise surcharges beyond the quoted night rate. Night and weekend pricing does apply, but several reviews say quotes are honoured even when flights run 30–60 minutes late. The fleet is mixed: you might get a newer hybrid one day and an older saloon the next, so don’t expect uniform “executive car” standards on every booking.

Complaints cluster around very busy holiday weekends, with some 1–2 star reviews mentioning late pickups even when booked days ahead. Others talk about extra parking or waiting fees being added if immigration queues drag past the standard free waiting window, which can hurt after a 12-hour sector from Asia. A few passengers also report having to ring the office to locate their driver instead of getting a proactive text on arrival.

Step-by-step: using Airport Cars Gatwick

• 1. Book online at least 24 hours before you fly, and enter your airline, flight number, and landing time for LGW North or South.
• 2. Check the quote includes night/weekend rates and parking; save the confirmation email and phone number.
• 3. On landing, switch off airplane mode and watch for a WhatsApp or SMS from the driver within 5–10 minutes.
• 4. Head to the agreed meet point in arrivals (often Costa in North or South); ignore generic “taxis” arrows to the downstairs rank.
• 5. If there’s no message by the time you reach baggage reclaim, call dispatch before leaving the carousel to lock in the waiting start time.
• 6. Confirm your drop-off postcode with the driver, then check the meter or fixed-fare sheet so any extra parking time is clear.
• 7. On arrival at home or hotel, grab a receipt with pickup time and total paid; it helps if you later dispute any added waiting fee.

One practical tip: text your terminal and “bags on belt” time to the driver as soon as luggage starts rolling; it can shave down waiting charges and makes the Costa meet-up much smoother.