About london stansted airport
Stansted currently has one terminal and one runway (there are plans to add another runway). It is is particularly popular with 'no frills' airlines and for charter flights.
There is an information desk in the international arrivals area, open daily 05:30 - 23:00. The terminal also has bureaux de change, ATMs, shops, duty-free stores, restaurants and bars. It offers limited parking choices and just one on airport hotel.
Getting to london stansted airport by road: the airport is 30 miles northwest of central London next to junction 8 of the M11 motorway (depending on the traffic - less than 20 minutes away from junction 27 of the M25 motorway).
For a map of the airport and surrounding area click here. To zoom in further just click on the area of the map you want to enlarge.
For excellent turn by turn directions try the free route planner provided by the AA. Click on this link to jump to the AA website.
Getting to london stansted airport on public transport: the airport has its own main line train station within the terminal. The 'Stansted Express' rail service runs between the airport and London Liverpool Street Station between 05:00 and 24:00, taking around 45 minutes. For more information visit stanstedexpress.com.
There is also an hourly service by Central Trains to Birmingham.
Coaches: National Express run 3 services from stansted airport to central London, with coaches operating 24 hours a day. The A6 runs from the arport to London Victoria, the A7 to Liverpool Street and Victoria and the A9 to Stratford in East London.
There are also 'airlink' coach services operating between Stansted and Heathrow and Gatwick airports.
Stansted Airport Transfers: Flying to or from London Stansted, or to Rome, Bergamo or Pisa? Don’t spend all your precious travel budget in expensive transfers. Book your direct, low-cost airport transfer with Terravision. Use the secure, online booking form to save precious travel money and time and book all your airport transport needs before you fly.
Viator also offer an airport transfer service to / from Stansted Airport in a 'private car transfer' or via an 'airport shuttle' (a mini-bus).
Airport Hotels: The 3 star Hilton and 5 star Radisson SAS are the only on airport hotels. Other hotels near the airport include the Manor, Yew Tree Inn, Hallingbury Mill, Saracens Head and Down Hall. For more information, including where to book, see the cheaper london hotels website london stansted hotels page.
Airport parking: There is short term, mid stay and long term parking. The short-term car park gets very busy, but prices are quite reasonable (at least when compared to heathrow) at around £17.50 for 24 hours (or £2.00 for 60 minutes).
Mid stay parking is much closer to the airport than long-term parking (long term parking at stansted involves a long trip on a courtesy bus at unfeasibly high speeds on tightly curved roads). Allow at least 15 minutes for the transfer from 'mid stay' and 20 - 25 minutes for the long term car park. Expect to pay around £12 a day for mid-stay and £7 a day for long stay. Make sure you write down where you left your car.
On airport car parks are: short-term, e-parking (mid stay) and pink elephant (long stay).
Off airport car parks are slightly further from the airport. You should allow around 30 minutes for your transfer to the airport. Off airport car parks are: BSFC and Boxsted car parks.
To compare the cost of airport parking across a number of suppliers, visit the stansted airport parking page of 1st airport parking.