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London Gatwick Airport (LGW)

London Gatwick Airport (LGW) has two passenger terminals, the North Terminal and the South Terminal, joined day and night by a two-minute shuttle. Four train operators connect the South Terminal station to London in 30 to 45 minutes, and both terminals have family security lanes, baby-care rooms and Kids Zones.

Children are 2 to 11 years old; infants are under 2.

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Updated 23 October 2026

The terminals at London Gatwick Airport

London Gatwick Airport has two passenger terminals, the North Terminal and the South Terminal, handling domestic and international flights. An inter-terminal shuttle service runs every few minutes, 24 hours a day, 365 days a year, and connects the two buildings in two minutes. In the South Terminal the shuttle station is next to the train station; in both buildings you follow the signs for the other terminal.

If you are connecting between flights on the same terminal, the airport asks you to allow at least 60 minutes; if your arrival and departure are in different terminals, allow at least 90 minutes. International connections at Gatwick pass through UK border control, and if your hold bags are not through-checked you collect them at Baggage Reclaim before checking in for your onward flight.

Airlines and terminal assignments at LGW

Each airline operates from a designated terminal at London Gatwick, and TUI splits its flights by flight-number prefix:

  • North Terminal: Air Arabia, Air Arabia Maroc, Air China, Air Mauritius, Air Transat, Animawings, Atlantic Airways, Azerbaijan Airlines, China Eastern, Condor, easyJet, Emirates, Ethiopian Airlines, Eurowings, FlyErbil, Freebird, Gulf Air, Icelandair, JetBlue, Qanot Sharq, Qatar Airways, Royal Air Maroc, Singapore Airlines, SWISS, Uzbekistan Airways and WestJet.
  • South Terminal: Aegean Airlines, Air Baltic, Air Europa, Air France, Air India, Air Peace, Air Zimbabwe, Ascend Airways, Aurigny, Azores Airlines, British Airways, China Southern, Corendon Airlines, Croatia Airlines, Enter Air, Iberia Express, Jet2, KM Malta Airlines, Kenya Airways, Mavi Gok Airlines, Norse Atlantic, Norwegian, Nouvelair, Pegasus Airlines, Ryanair, Sky Alps, Sky Express, SunExpress, TAP Portugal, Titan Airways, Tunisair, Turkish Airlines, Turkmenistan Airlines, Uganda Airlines, Vueling and Wizz Air.
  • Both terminals (TUI): TUI flight numbers beginning with TOM operate from the North Terminal, while flight numbers beginning with BY operate from the South Terminal.

Air Transat, British Airways, easyJet, Norwegian and WestJet offer self-service check-in kiosks at the airport. British Airways, easyJet, Jet2 and TUI Airways also offer day-before bag drop during designated afternoon and evening hours for eligible morning departures.

Getting to and from London Gatwick Airport

The airport train station is in the South Terminal, a five-minute walk from departures and arrivals and a two-minute ride on the shuttle from the North Terminal. Four rail operators run direct trains to more than 120 stations, with journeys into central London taking 30 to 45 minutes:

  • Gatwick Express: nonstop trains to London Victoria twice an hour, with a journey time of 30 minutes.
  • Southern: direct trains to London Victoria, Clapham Junction, Brighton, Horsham, Southampton, Eastbourne and Portsmouth.
  • Thameslink: direct trains through central London to London Bridge, London Blackfriars, City Thameslink, Farringdon and St Pancras International, continuing north to Bedford, Peterborough, Cambridge and Luton Airport Parkway, and south to Brighton.
  • Great Western Railway (GWR): direct trains every half hour to Redhill and Reigate (15 minutes), Guildford (1 hour) and Reading (90 minutes).

You can pay with a contactless payment card or an Oyster card at the ticket barriers for journeys between Gatwick and London. For road transport, National Express, FlixBus and The Airline run coaches from both terminals to London, Oxford, Brighton and Heathrow, Metrobus runs local buses including Fastway routes 100, 400, 420 and 460 to Crawley, Horley, Redhill, Reigate and Horsham, and Gatwick Cars Ltd is the official taxi provider outside both terminals.

London Gatwick Airport with children

Both terminals have dedicated Assisted Travel and family lanes at security that give families with young children in pushchairs extra time and help. Every item, including children's toys and pushchairs, still goes through the scanner. After security, both departure lounges have a Kids Zone where children can play and wait before boarding.

Dedicated rooms for feeding and changing babies, marked with a babycare symbol, are located in the check-in areas, along the routes to the gates, in transfer areas and after passport control in arrivals, and some toilets also have fold-down changing tables. You may carry enough baby milk and baby food in your hand luggage for the trip, all airport restaurants warm baby bottles, and you can pre-order up to two tubs of baby milk from Boots at least seven working days before your flight to collect after security in either terminal.

What to check before you go to LGW

Check-in normally opens around four hours before scheduled departure for long-haul flights, three hours before for European flights, and two hours before for UK and Ireland flights, and the airport recommends arriving at least two hours before your flight. Remove loose straps, ribbons and bag covers from hold luggage before bag drop so they do not jam the baggage system.

No flight calls are made in the departure lounges at London Gatwick, so watch the flight information screens closely; boarding usually begins 45 to 60 minutes before departure. Keep a bottle of water, a snack and a spare change of clothes in your carry-on bag for the wait.

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Frequently asked questions

How do I change between the North and South Terminals at London Gatwick Airport?

Use the inter-terminal shuttle service, which runs every few minutes, 24 hours a day, 365 days a year, and takes two minutes between the North Terminal and the South Terminal.

Which terminal do British Airways, easyJet and Emirates use at LGW?

British Airways operates from the South Terminal, while easyJet and Emirates operate from the North Terminal. TUI operates from both terminals: TOM flight numbers use the North Terminal and BY flight numbers use the South Terminal.

How do I get from London Gatwick Airport into central London by train?

From the train station in the South Terminal, Gatwick Express runs nonstop to London Victoria in 30 minutes, Southern serves London Victoria and Clapham Junction, and Thameslink serves London Bridge, London Blackfriars, City Thameslink, Farringdon and St Pancras International in 30 to 45 minutes.

What facilities does London Gatwick Airport have for families with children?

Both terminals offer dedicated Assisted Travel and family security lanes for families with pushchairs, Kids Zones in the departure lounges, baby feeding and changing rooms before and after security, bottle warming at all restaurants, and baby milk collection at Boots after security.

How early should I arrive at London Gatwick Airport before my flight?

Check-in normally opens four hours before long-haul flights, three hours before European flights and two hours before UK and Ireland flights, and the airport advises arriving at least two hours before departure.