Sleeping In Airports

[Moonraker]

Facing the likelyhood of kipping overnight at Stansted Airport next month ( 10 hour wait for connecting flight to France) I was interested to find this web site:

The Budget Traveller's Guide to
Sleeping in Airports

There is some useful tips and also forums where people leave info and stories for airports around the world. The direct for Stansted is here;

LONDON (Stansted), England

I read some other info on Stansted which I thought was useful:

Here is advice on sleeping rough at Stansted taken from here

*LONDON (Stansted), England (Contributed by The bloke in the yellow vest!)
"June 18, 2004 - I work here and we always have about 500 sleepers. We do exclude people but only for a reason (if they are drunk/loud/abusive) or if they make life uncomfotable for others.
The airport is exceptionally safe, with have Security, Armed Police and Customer Services all wandering around 24hours.
If you come to sleep here, invest in a sleep mat ot get here early (before 10pm).
Sleep in Zone K, it's quiet and the 'bleepers' do that zone early.
Just remember...sleep but be pleasant and polite and that's what you'll get back!"

I am sure I am not the only low-budget traveller to have experienced the delights of hard airport benches or cold floors

The Best and Worst section is worth a read

From what I read and remember I will have the following:

• iPod Shuffle MP3 player (prevent boredom and drown out airport noise)
  
• Book of something to read (see above)
  
• Layered clothing ( to regulate temp)
  
• Full water bottle ( I hate being dehydrated)
  
• Some food/ snacks (Stansted is pretty well supplied with food places and cafes some open all night)
  
• All my kit in 2 bags and close to me ( carry on bag and check in bag. Wash kit and towel packed for easy access)
  
• Decent travel alarm! (guess the noise volume will wake me up anyhow as morning approaches)
  
• Hopefully a Thermarest and sleeping bag (so I can kip fine on the floor if no seats left)
  
• All sharps and other stuff packed away in my hold luggage beefore the check in !

I understand there are free showers available at Stansted so that wil be a nice way to wake up [edit] actually it looks like it is £5 with towel from the Stansted Airport web site Info page:

Stansted - Information

So, any other advice, experiences?

Simon

 

[Stuart]

The last airport I slept in (6 hours) was dubai, very very comfortable they even have a quite area with reclined seats and foot rests.

the MP3 player is a must and remember to have enough food and drink with you as airports charge a fortune for food.

 

[JakeR]

How much is hotel accomodation?

 

[leon-1]

Jake, it is not just cost, it is time and distance to the airport, you could probably get a B&B for about £25, but IIRC there are not too many places near Stansted and even if you find one will it be available, as soon as you start looking at proper hotels start looking at the prices getting considerably higher and being quite a bit further away.

Stansted can be a bit of a git getting in and out of as well from what I recall.

 

[JakeR]

oh, don't think i've ever been in stanstead. I've also been lucky enough to never have problems with airports, touch wood.

 

[Kath]

I've slept in a few airports and never had any trouble. The worst time was a delay and I had a 2 year old with me. That was pretty nerve wracking but it was fine and everyone was very understanding. I always attach my bags to me (that time I attached the toddler and my bags on the same strap! ) and be sure to keep anything valuable out of plain sight. I don't know Stanstead but I'd expect the advice about the area to sleep in is good - just don't sleep in the main thoroughfares.

All the best! :biggthump

 

[paul in swindon]

my worst sleep in an airport has to be heraklion airport (crete) on my way home from my dads wedding and i had a 9 hour wait but i haddent slept so i decided to huncker down for some shut eye only to be woke by the extreme heat coming througe the plate glass windows that surround the departure lounge as i slept the early hours it was cool and comfy when i woke <<<< well lets say i was a little sweaty and grumpy when i asked if there where any showers i was told not to be stupid



well all in all it was a grotty experience and ANY tips on airport comfort are welcome here

well done Kath !!!!!! :You_Rock_

 

[Moonraker]

How much is hotel accomodation?

leon-1 is spot on Jake. Stansted is probably the WORST airport for accommodation :roll:

The 'airport' hotel' is the Radisson SAS Hotel London Stansted Airport. Expedia Special Rate standard room rate is £126.85. Bearing in mind I would be booking ahead nearly a month :roll:

Searching expedia for Stansted hotels nearly all are £100 and there are only 3 hotels within 10 miles of Stansted! The cheaper option would be TravelLodge Harrow but even that is £60 and over 16 miles away. There are B& B but again they are inflated prices (supply-demand) and as leon-1 also pointed out transport is a mare unless you want to get to London and late at night it is even worse (taxis charge more, B&B tend to have earlier check in time etc)

Actually Jake, I don't mind kipping down at the airport. I find that often it is the journey to a place and all that comes with it, that make the experience special, if not comfortable I have travelled through Italy standing up on a train for 13 hours, taking turns to kip on a rucksack with 4 others; slept on the deck of the Brindisi - Corfu ferry, shared a train carriage with 15 other people across Poland; had all the food I had left for a week nicked in Copenhagen train station, but at least the thief was honourable and left a pair of hiking boots as payment I am always pleasantly surprised by how such adversity can often bring out the kinder side of people, when you share such experiences ( offered food, drink etc).

So I prefer to rough it for 10 hours for the sake of the price of a £100 hotel room, when that £100 is paying for me to travel nearly 6000km across Europe, visit 6 cities and back

 

[Paganwolf]

Worst i had was Brunei airport borneo and an 11 hour delay only thing open was duty free where i bought 6 cigars as big a broom handles ,no booze as its a dry country! did look at the after shave though, (Kouros and coke MMmmmmmmm ) 11 hours later i was green and knackerd.Happy Days. Great thread

 

[Moonraker]

11 hours later i was green and knackerd.Happy Days. Great thread

So you were back to your normal healthy self then

 

[Paganwolf]

So you were back to your normal healthy self then

:rolmao: HEY!! do you know me???? :?: :rolmao:

 

[Moonraker]

:rolmao: HEY!! do you know me???? :?: :rolmao:

I think I am building quite a mental picture by now PW All good I assure you

 

[Paganwolf]

:shock:

 

[JakeR]

There was me thinking it was £20-30 in some cheapy airport hotel...:roll:

I guess when your travelling your up for the experiences!

 

[arctic hobo]

Nah, airport hotels are always insanely priced, as they know they're on a captive market - your average businessman isn't going to sleep rough in an airport - and they aren't the only ones by a long stretch. It depends where I'm going but I have only slept once in an airport, often I've time to kill when in Norway rather than the UK, so I just go and find the local woods ):

 

[Moonraker]

Nah, airport hotels are always insanely priced, as they know they're on a captive market - your average businessman isn't going to sleep rough in an airport - and they aren't the only ones by a long stretch. It depends where I'm going but I have only slept once in an airport, often I've time to kill when in Norway rather than the UK, so I just go and find the local woods ):

I'm sure that they don't however from the quote above from someone working there:

I work here and we always have about 500 sleepers.

500 per night seem to have little choice.

I may just take a walk around and find a couple of trees for the hammock There is some irony as my uncle's practice did the landscape architecture for Stansted, so hopefully a few of the trees he had planted should be big enough now to hide me And a good opportunity to test out the Noggin army sleeping bag I plan to buy