London Gatwick Airport

Used South Terminal on 16th May. First time to Gatwick in 2 years and cannot understand why they claim it has improved. This terminal is like a zoo once you get airside. They've added shops and cafes wherever they can squeeze them in blocked up the movement areas and the general signage and wayfinding around the terminal is terrible. Overcrowded and generally a very poor second level airport compared to Heathrow. Maybe this is the market for charter airlines but it has a very unpleasant feel.

Flight arrived early 18/05/2014 - but 2 hours later still waiting for bags! Apology announcements from third party contractor Swissport rather than from Gatwick airport. Excessive car parking charges being incurred by everyone arriving to collect passengers. Avoid Gatwick!

Check-in through security to departures was one of the easiest experiences I can ask for. Personally I don't want seats bars shops etc etc - but each to their own. However coming home landed at 10.30 and out at midday after having to wait a long time through security and baggage allowance - this is what is letting Gatwick down. And why people won't travel via LGW. Stupid wait for luggage and the exit after baggage reclaim does this airport no favours.

Flew into London Gatwick early Sunday morning. Our flight was delayed for 1.5 hours from Paphos when we finally arrived at 2am we were left waiting for 2 hours for our luggage with thousands of other travellers young and old alike! There was no one to talk to no management no one even in the customs area! I will never use Gatwick again.

We always use LGW and rarely have problems apart from the usual endless line of passengers at passport control on the way back. I don't understand this as we don't just turn up by surprise! They know what planes are coming in and how many passengers they will be expecting. Put more staff on! Quite simple! Like a lot of other reviewers I agree that the emphasis has become about how much money they can get via the shopping /food outlets but whatever happened to the customer/passenger service? As long as we are spending everything is fine. If there is a problem staff are very difficult to be found and when you do find them they are rude defensive and mind numbingly unhelpful. Come on Gatwick the north terminal is pretty whizzy now. Please be nice to your paying customers/passengers and stop trying to rip us off and treating us like we are stupid. The 'long walk' doesn't bother me at the moment but it really is a long way. Customer service cut backs again? Not everyone can make it to the far gates and I don't see too many of the vehicles to move people who have problems. What I see is a lot of puffed out and panicking senior people. Again LGW remember you are there for your passengers and should be giving excellent customer care consistently not every now and then. We love you but we need more from you and we know you can deliver!

Flew out to Tampa on BA 22 April. The whole airport looks old and tired. Food and drinks are expensive.

We landed at Gatwick off Emirates flight from Dubai. The queue at passport control caused us to miss our train connection by 20mins (queued for much longer than that) then when using the staircase from passport control found that it was absolutely filthy. It had obviously not been cleaned for sometime. The general standard of cleaning around the airport left a lot to be desired. However I cannot make any complaint about the departure area at Gatwick.

Gatwick is looking very old and tired. A long work to the gate in North Terminal and to passport control on return. Long wait for bags on return. Food is expensive. Only good thing about Gatwick are train connections to London.

Arriving at Gatwick on 31 March on easyJet 854 from the Isle of Man five minutes early we taxied to a gate in the South terminal rather than the designated North terminal. We were then taken by bus to the domestic arrivals again in the South terminal but no luggage appeared on the domestic arrivals carrousel eventually we discovered that our luggage was going around and around on the carousal next door in the international arrivals. After much head scratching it was decided that we would have to show our ID and baggage check to the UK Border Control to be allowed to collect our luggage. Frankly the handling agent not only was totally incompetent but couldn't care less (no reflection on easyJet except their staff were invisible). The sooner easyJet move totally into the North terminal the better. Shame that our taxi was waiting at the North terminal when we eventually exited from the South terminal. What a shambles.

I decided to check in a bag as I needed the extra weight allowance. Never again. The queue at bag drop was horrendous and added another 45 unnecessary minutes to my journey. The loudspeaker system was not working and there was one poor member of staff shouting out the last calls for passengers to board their flights. If I was a foreigner visiting this country I would not have been able to understand the English language spoken as it certainly was not enunciated correctly. There were no staff to control the queues or to apologise for the long delays. Every other airport I have flown from including this in allegedly third world countries have dedicated bag drop counters for each airline. Why does London Gatwick not use this system?