With many consumers intent on becoming more eco-conscious in 2019, UK travellers may not appreciate the environmental damage and negative consequences of their ‘kiss and fly’ lift to the airport. Kiss and Fly is the practice of dropping-off and collecting a traveller from the airport, resulting in twice as many car journeys when compared with pre-booking off-airport parking.

As well as resulting in vehicle congestion and producing double the amount of harmful emissions, lifts to the airport also include the ‘hidden costs’ of the time and money spent by the family member or friend. To encourage travellers to become more mindful of their journey to and from the airport, Airport Parking & Hotels (APH) has therefore researched just the costs for kiss and fly drop-off fees at 23 of the UK’s airports, including London Heathrow, Manchester and Edinburgh. Available in the Know Before You Go Section of the APH website at www.aph.com/kissandfly, the research also highlights the extra miles kiss and fly trips result in.

Just five of the 23 airports researched allow drivers to drop-off passengers directly at the terminal for free, including London Heathrow and Cardiff. However, travellers should note that these airports may charge after a certain amount of time. For example, Cardiff Airport charges £5 for every 10 minutes parked after the initial 10 minutes. 15 airports permit the drop-off of passengers at the terminal for a fee, with the cost varying from £1 for up to 30 minutes at Exeter Airport to £3.50 for 10 minutes at London Stansted. Friends and family should keep an eye on the time at Luton Airport since after paying £3 for the first 10 minutes at the terminal forecourt, motorists are charged an additional £1 for each minute they spend in the drop-off zone.

Holidaymakers who are willing to walk a short distance can save on premium charges by choosing to be dropped off in short and long stay car parks, with 18 airports offering this for free. These include London Luton Airport, which allows up to 15 minutes for free in the mid-term car park, which is 10 – 15 minutes away by foot from the terminal building. Similarly, parking at Southampton Airport’s long stay car park is free for up to 30 minutes and the terminal can be reached in 5 minutes via a shuttle bus, which runs every 10 – 12 minutes. However, both Bournemouth and Bristol do not offer options for dropping-off passengers for free, even at short stay car parks.

For collecting loved ones from the airport, 14 airports permit collection of passengers from the terminal forecourt, with two allowing temporary parking for five minutes free-of-charge. Drivers at nine airports, including Aberdeen and Bristol, must collect travellers from the short stay car parks nearby, with the cost varying from free at five airports to £5.10 for up to one hour at Birmingham Airport.

Alongside monetary charges, kiss and fly journeys include ‘hidden costs’ for loved ones. For example, drivers heading to Birmingham Airport from the city centre can expect to spend a total of two hours on the road and pay around £9.60* in fuel costs for two return trips. When combined with two charges of £5.10 for each hour of parking at Birmingham Airport, the total cost for a kiss and fly driver comes to £19.80.

Nick Caunter, Managing Director of Airport Parking and Hotels said: “Those who ask friends or family to drive them to the airport may not consider that kiss and fly transfers to the airport are damaging to the environment and also to the time and wallets of their loved ones. APH offers airport parking at all major UK airports, allowing travellers to save the time and money of their loved ones and also reduce their impact on the environment.”

For further information on Airport Parking and Hotels (APH) visit www.aph.com or call 01342 859515.

ENDS

NOTE TO EDITORS
*Cost for fuel calculated from HM Revenue & Customs’ Advisory Fuel Rates from 1 December 2019, available at: www.gov.uk/government/publications/advisory-fuel-rates/advisory-fuel-rates-from-1-march-2016.

About Airport Parking and Hotels (APH)
Established in 1980, Airport Parking and Hotels (APH) is an award-winning airport parking operator and retailer, winning the ‘Best Airport Parking Company’ award at the British Travel Awards 2018 for a ninth year running. In addition to APH’s own car parks serving Gatwick, Manchester and Birmingham Airports, APH also offers parking at all major UK airports as well as airport hotels, airport lounges and via trusted partners other extras such as car hire and travel insurance.

APH is a carbon-balanced company having worked closely with the World Land Trust for many years to off-set their carbon emissions and to help support rainforest conservation by protecting threatened forest habitats. APH also supports other charities and is a proud corporate sponsor of the University of Southampton Centre for Cancer Immunology, where the world’s most eminent experts come together in the quest to find new and innovative treatments. APH also has a partnership with Action Medical Research for Children to raise vital funds for research through a series of staff-based cycle and running challenges.

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