London Heathrow Airport

Have used T3 for four decades during which improvements have generally not made things better. The Duty Free area is way too large and the prices not at all that competitive: area should be halved for more comfort and seating places. Distances to the gates are unacceptable. A miserable places for arrivals; departures is much better but still not good.

I have travelled through several terminals 1/3/4 and find them all very different. Terminal 4 is out of the way south side of the runways but is modern and clean. Not a lot of restaurants inside a lot of shopping for that last minute duty free item however. Terminal 1 is old but once terminal 2 is redone it is expected to be replaced. Overall it is crowded but seems to be well taken care of. Terminal 3 is huge - if you have a flight from one of the ends of the long concourses take comfortable shoes! I think most North American and Asian carriers are based in terminal three so mornings are busy read maps to not get lost which is easy to do in this terminal. London Heathrow is a great airport a lot of things to buy or if you like plane watching all terminals offer a view of airlines from all around the World. It feels a lot closer to London than Gatwick but it can be a bit more expensive to get into Central London from Heathrow.

Terminal 1 international arrival midday on a Sunday. Bussing to the terminal was prompt although there was a long walk to immigration. Queues long for both EU and other passport holders but he EU side moved quite fast. Between Immigration and Baggage there was only one small toilet which led to queues outside. Baggage worked well and the total time between the wheels touching the ground and leaving the airport with two bags was 1 hour.

Terminal 5. I was amazed how good this terminal was (first time user). We had an early flight and ate breakfast at the Gordon Ramsey Plane Food restaurant. Excellent food and service plus it was peaceful compared to the rest of the terminal eateries. We used the bag drop service excellent and rapid service. Departure lounge good adequate seating and excellent range of shops. Good seating at gates. On return flight very smooth walk through UK entry checks and our bags came rapidly to carousel. Signs to T5 long stay car park (and other transportation) very good.

Terminal 5. Maybe we were lucky due to flying out during the BA strike but there were no queues anywhere and the place was spotless. Decent choice of shops and eateries. So nice and light compared to the other enclosed stuffy terminals. On the way back we were disembarked at terminal B so had to get the shuttle train to the main terminal. We were out within 30 minutes of landing.

Departed from T3 early morning (Air Canada) and arrived back early morning. I frequently use T1 and T5 and have very positive opinions on the arrival experience - generally very fast and smooth with the exception of T5 when BA flights can't find a gate to park. T3 has improved significantly. The building is still very old and the departure hall is still like a third world airport. However it is not as crowded as it used to be not a long queue in front of security. Some annoying passengers questioned why they had to take off their accessories water etc but you encounter those kind of passengers everywhere in the world. After security there are plenty of shopping. Heathrow is probably the best place for airport shopping partly due to the exchange rate. Arrival was a good experience. Its a long walk as usual but for EU/UK passport holder or those using Iris scan there was no queue at all. You whip through immigration in a second. Then the luggage came out before I even arrived at the belt.

T5 - Horrific transfer took 1h15 to get from the aircraft and through security impatient staff chaos at the top of the escalator and security staff unsure of where Geneva was. However domestic transfer did not involve passport or security checks so no issues.

There is a huge difference according to which terminal you use. We used T3 and T4. T3 is very boring looks like it was built in the 1970's and not well maintained whereas T4 was a fine experience with good shopping possibilities. I wonder why there are no carts available airside - it is not good for shopping or the passengers which carries handbaggage.

I have come through Heathrow a few times now for domestic flights between London and Belfast. I've had no problem or mishaps and found the airport as I would wish to. Although the walking distance is quite long the routes are always well signposted and it is easy to get to where I need to be. If you have any mobility issues then assistance might well be advised to help you cover the potentially large distances involved with getting around such a huge airport. The shops and cafes that are available are also very good (although a little pricey).

Much as I dislike BA and have avoided them for years I had no choice for a recent trip. T5 is almost enough reason to resume travelling with BA. It's light and airy no queues employees who clearly enjoy working in such a lovely environment and a quick and easy transition from arrival to departure. An example for others to follow. A pity that the cabin crew on the BA flight were surly and haughty which detracted from the initial good experience of T5. The ratings I have given refer to T5 not to Heathrow in general.