Free Parking

Advantages: Strangely compelling
Disadvantages: A pretty dark subject

...Buy one get one free offers are quite possibly the greatest invention shops have given us. For all of us, it?s a chance to get something for nothing. But for the brave, it?s a world of opportunity. After all, if you already have one thing you?d really like in your hand, something you?d willingly pay the full price for anyway and they?re offering you something else, you?re getting it for nothing. So you have nothing to lose. It was this latter attitude that put Stuart Browne?s ?Dangerous Parking? in my hand recently. This particular buy one get one free offer was in my local Oxfam. Having chosen a book I knew I?d like, I could afford to take a chance on my other purchase. At worst, my total outlay would be about £1.50 and I already had something worth £6.00 in my hand, and something I knew I was going to enjoy. If I was going...

Soho_Black 10.10.2004 · Read review
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Review of Dangerous Parking - Stuart Browne

Car Parking for the Confused

Advantages: easier than a taxi/bus
Disadvantages: could work out expensive, handing over your car keys to strangers

...So as previously mentioned I recently flew to Scotland from Gatwick airport, living where I do I didn't want to be trying to get a train as getting to a train station is tricky and I don't want to be using taxis given how much it can cost to travel 80 miles even when one is prebooked. So knowing I was flying from Gatwick I used the Gatwick airport website to compare the prices of the nearby carparks, it came up with Park Plus as the cheapest by quite a considerable amount for the time period I was looking at. With a 4am drop off on Friday morning and 4pm latest pick up time on Sunday it cost me £18.60. Arriving at Gatwick airport you need to follow the directions to the South Terminal and the Long Term Parking, from here you enter the car parks, there are several but Park Plus was one of the first on the left and is clearly...

scuba_angel 09.04.2007 · Read review
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Review of Gatwick Airport Parking

BCP Manchester Airport Parking

Advantages: situation of car park adjacent to terminals
Disadvantages: think I have said enough in my review.

...moved, the low fuel light was flashing, this only happens when the initial static low fuel level light has been on for quite some miles. This was a bit of a shock to me because when I handed the car over there was around a quarter tank of fuel in the tank, around 12 and a half litres, I get around 35 miles to the gallon, and knowing that we had a fair journey back to where we live I did not want the hassle of having to get to a petrol station after a long flight, so I knew that I had enough fuel for any distance they had to cover in parking the car and returning it to me and also our journey home. I pointed this out to the driver when he handed me the carpark ticket, to be fair he was quite sympathetic, but said that all the car would have done was around 22 miles, 11 miles to carrington and 11 miles back. He said that he could only...

wdh60 01.08.2009 · Read review
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Review of Manchester Airport Parking

Nightmare parking

Advantages: none
Disadvantages: extortionate fines

...I understand that parking restrictions and fines need to be in place, especially in city centres, as it would cause chaos on the roads. However, I do feel that I must vent some of my anger on the way my Local Authority in Bristol works in terms of parking. The charges for parking are astronomically expensive if you wish to park in the centre of Bristol. I often see traffic wardens hunting around in 'packs', prowling by cars on parking meters so they can instantly give them a ticket as soon as they go one minute past the ticket expiry time. Traffic wardens are now paid commission on how many tickets they manage to give out, they also work until midnight now as the majority of the parking meters charge up until midnight. I hate them, they are the dregs of society. They purposely print tickets that you must display on your car...

neiltom88 21.08.2001 · Read review
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Review of Parking Fines and Clamping

APH Parking at Manchester

Advantages: Inexpensive, courteous, polite service
Disadvantages: Not so easy to find, waiting around for buses to pick you up can be a pain

...I recently flew to Dublin from Manchester airport. Thanks to engineering works on the line at some point between here (Sheffield) and Manchester, the railway option wasn't open to me for my weekend away. Firstly this posed two problems: one) I'd have to drive because my love affair with coach services ended some three years ago when, as a student, a National Express (spit, curse, spit) driver completely missed my stop and proceeded to blame me for him missing it. Two) driving meant that I couldn't be sampling the Irish delights, sorry, alcohol (well, a delight to me and a main reason for my weekend away). Anyway, grumbling aside, I set about working out my route to Manchester airport, before deciding that an investigation into this whole airport parking malarky would be needed. I'd never driven to an airport before (the whole...

indiegirl 20.11.2002 · Read review
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Review of Manchester Airport Parking

Secure Parking at Leeds Bradford Airport

Advantages: Great Service, Good Value, Secure Parking
Disadvantages: you have to come home

...Ok so most of us tend to fly from the big Airports Like Manchester and the London Duo, but there are a few die hard folk like me who prefer the convenience of flying from their regional airports whenever possible, sadly some of those airports seem to be latching on to the ‘nice little earner’ of airport parking and raising their charges, not I have to say those nice folk from Sentinel Security Car Parking at Leeds Bradford Airport who have reasonable charges, and are well worth considering if you are flying out from Leeds Bradford Airport. ~~~0o0~~~ So the Advantages of their service are · Meet and Greet Service at the Terminal area · 24 hour secure parking · Car wash & wax (£5) or Full Valeting service (£45)(extra charges) · They are Only half a mile from the Airport · Staff are very friendly and look after you...

Dalesman 23.08.2001 · Read review
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Review of Bradford Airport Parking

Gatwick Airport Car Parking: Review of Ace Parking

Advantages: Chauffer is waiting for you felt 1st class
Disadvantages: None

...4 weeks ago we decided to book a break to Glasgow. I was recommended by a friend to look for a company called Ace Meet and Greet at Gatwick Airport, on finding a site that advertised Ace I entered my details but on the results I couldn't see Ace any where. I decided to find them directly There website is called www.ace-parking-gatwick.co.uk and on talking to a very friendly lady, she informed me that the large websites charge a big commission to them to give them bookings. They have decided to let the customers come direct and get a better deal. I personally paid £45 for 1 weeks parking. These brokers where charging £60. holidayextras have a guarantee they wont be beaten but very easily they where. An email was sent to my inbox which I printed out. the day came and off I went with my directions to Gatwick. I called ace meet...

mjenkins 01.11.2006 · Read review
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Review of Gatwick Airport Parking

safe and secure parking

Advantages: Always space to park and quick transport to the airport
Disadvantages: about 5 miles from the airport.

...for a few minutes to see if there are any more passengers you set off for your desired terminal at heathrow, (the bus does not wait long, and I have been the only passenger on the bus several times). I would advise allowing 30 minutes in total from parking to terminal just in case the traffic is heavy as you are 5 miles away from the airport. On your return journey and upon arrival at Heathrow you call the toll free number that you would have been provided and wait at the designated bus stop where the bus usually arrives within 15 minutes, if it isnt already waiting for you. On arrival back to the car park you are dropped off at your car and away home you go. Purple Parking do also provide a collection service where you drive your car to the airport yourself and one of their drivers collects it from you there and takes it back to...

jasonking12 27.10.2005 · Read review
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Review of London Heathrow Airport Parking

APH parking for Gatwick Airport

Advantages: Great value and convenience
Disadvantages: none

...Before my recent holiday to Majorca we wondered on the best way to get to Gatwick from Southampton. The cheapest quote we could get for a return taxi was around £90. Due to the times of our flights it was difficult to arrange a lift with either family or friends and after checking various other option including trains and national express we found a website for off-airport parking at APH parking, Copthorne. We got an online quote which was £37.10 plus VAT for 8 days parking. You receive an email to act as you receipt for the parking. We left for the airport at a time that suited us, we stopped for something to eat on the way up and had took a leisurely drive there which is something that we would not have been able to do had we taken one of the other options. On arrival at the car park (which was very easy to find) we had...

Lizzy1 22.07.2004 · Read review
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Review of Gatwick Airport Parking

LHR - Purple Parking

Advantages: Very secure
Disadvantages: Getting to it from and back to M25

...-bus back to the car park: the driver picks up the packets with the keys and exit passes then finds your car for you. When leaving, make sure to use the correct exit: the entrances have warnings of one-way tyre shredders. There is a double barrier exit system: when this is free, insert the exit pass (this is in the packet that contained your car key) into the slot. Drive up to the next barrier. Wait for the barrier behind you to fully descend: only then will the one in front released. Retrace your route back to the M4 and then home. Update: May 2006 I have used their "Meet & Greet" service three times in the passed two months from LHR T1 & LHR T4. My motivation for paying for this additional service is the disadvantage I noted on my original review: "Getting to it from and back to M25". Having used it twice for business trips I...

asrdesigns 21.08.2004 (18.05.2006) · Read review
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Review of London Heathrow Airport Parking