Before you visit London you should know in which airport your plane will be landed, how far it is from your hotel and how will you go there. Many people don't take this serious and in the end they pay a lot of money taking a taxi which in London are really expensive. In my opinion the best airport is Gatwick because it is closer to the centre of London and the transportation is fast and quite cheap. Gatwick Airport is the second airport in London in importance, located 45 km from the city center. Many visitors and tourists prefer to book a hotel near the airport to avoid the noisy city and prices are quite lower depending on the room you book. If you don't know which one to choose, I would recommend the Sofitel at Gatwick which is a luxury hotel really close to the airport terminal so you never have to worry about being late and losing your flight. Another great option is the Hilton at Gatwick which is also too close to your plane and offers affordable luxury amenities.
There are to means of transportation to get to Gatwick airport from the center of London or the other way around, by train or by bus.
By train is the Gatwick Express train service that takes you from the South Terminal of the airport. From 5.50 to 00:35 the train runs every 15 minutes. The last trains depart at 0:50 and 1:35. The single ticket costs £ 15.95 and return is £ 30.80.
If you book your ticket online the cost is lowered by 10% and 15% with the return. Also for those who buy train tickets first class online (£ 23.20 one way £ 50 return) in addition they have free access to the exclusive lounge at Gatwick Airport. The train gets from Gatwick Airport to Victoria Station without any intermediate stop.
In addition to the Gatwick Express you can also take the Thameslink train which stations are London Bridge, Blackfriars and King's Cross and departs every 30 minutes. The ticket price in this case is £ 9.80 for one way and from/to London Bridge the journey takes 40 minutes. There is also the Southern Railway that depart from Gatwick and Victoria each hour from 1 to 4, the trip takes 35 minutes and costs £ 8.90 one way.
Another way to reach the city center of London from Gatwick Airport is the coach. The best solution is certainly with the National Express that takes two and a half hours to reach Victoria Station and costs £ 7. Finally, you can save more with the great EasyBus which takes a little more than an hour to reach Earl's Court / West Brompton. The departure is every 20 minutes and tickets are only £ 2 if booked online, not bad.
I guess it is obvious why many people prefer to stay at one of the Gatwick airport hotels from Holiday Extras. And why not while there are so many affordable options getting to the center of London.
