Last Updated: October 2026 – by Ian Silva
Gatwick North Terminal (RH6 0PH) is easyJet’s home at Gatwick and the base for most of the airport’s long-haul carriers – Emirates, Qatar Airways, Singapore Airlines, JetBlue and WestJet all fly from here. It is the airport’s newer terminal, opened in 1988, and it connects to the railway station at the South Terminal by a free two-minute shuttle. This Gatwick North Terminal guide covers which airlines actually fly from here in October 2026 – several carriers moved or arrived this year – plus security rules, the Pier 6 walk that catches people out, and what a transfer really costs. This guide covers the terminal itself; for a car from the North Terminal, our Gatwick airport chauffeur page has every route and price.
- No queue
- Name board
- Fixed price
Skip the taxi queue at Gatwick
A chauffeur inside arrivals with your name, fixed price agreed before you fly. Mercedes E-Class, S-Class or V-Class.
MILE5 runs fixed-price Mercedes transfers to and from the North Terminal – the price is set when you book, the chauffeur tracks your flight, and pickup is inside the terminal with 60 minutes of complimentary waiting. Not the cheapest way to reach Gatwick; the point is that nothing about the journey is left to chance, at 4am or midnight, with an E-Class for up to three passengers or a V-Class for up to seven. Read what our clients say about their airport transfer experience.
Which Airlines Use Gatwick North Terminal? (October 2026)
Gatwick North Terminal serves easyJet – all flight codes – alongside the airport’s long-haul heavyweights: Emirates, Qatar Airways, Singapore Airlines, JetBlue, WestJet, Air China and China Eastern. The 2026 additions Condor and Air Arabia both chose the North too. What is NOT here matters just as much: Jet2, British Airways, Ryanair, Norwegian and Turkish Airlines all fly from the South Terminal, and several of those moved or launched this year, so a terminal remembered from a past trip is not a safe guide.
For airlines at both terminals in one place, including TUI’s split by flight number, see our full Gatwick airline terminal list.
Verified against London Gatwick’s official airlines and terminals list, October 2026. TUI splits by flight number: “TOM” departs North, “BY” departs South.
The rule that saves every trip: check your boarding pass 24 hours before departure, not when you book. Gatwick has already seen airline terminal changes in 2026. MILE5 chauffeurs confirm your terminal from your flight number before pickup and drop you at the right doors.
How Early Should You Arrive at Gatwick North Terminal?
Gatwick’s official guidance is to arrive at least 2 hours before your flight, and 3 hours is the safer buffer for long-haul. Through school holidays and bank holiday weekends, treat those as minimums for morning departures – the 5am-9am bank is when easyJet’s short-haul wave and the long-haul check-ins overlap, and it is the busiest window of the North Terminal’s day. Midweek and mid-afternoon in term time, 2 hours is comfortable.
The cut-off that catches people out: most airlines close check-in and bag drop 40 to 60 minutes before departure, it is enforced automatically, and online check-in does not extend the bag-drop deadline. Check your own airline’s exact time the day before you fly. The same deadlines apply at the South Terminal and every UK airport.
MILE5 removes the guesswork by working backwards from your flight: pickup time is calculated from your departure, your address and live traffic, so you reach the North Terminal with the right buffer rather than the longest one.
How Long Are Security Queues at Gatwick North Terminal?
Gatwick North Terminal’s CT scanner lanes are quick when the terminal is quiet – nothing comes out of your bag, which is most of what used to slow the trays down. The queues are about volume, not process, and the volume is predictable. From 15+ years and 50,000+ MILE5 transfers, the shape of the North Terminal’s day looks like this:
Gatwick’s monthly queue figures and the two-litre liquids rule are set out in our Gatwick security times guide.
Based on MILE5’s operational experience planning Gatwick pickups and drop-offs. Queues vary day to day, so allow extra time at peak.
What actually speeds you through Gatwick North Terminal security: pre-book Fast Track from £6 online (the dedicated lane runs 4am-8pm and costs more on the day), keep liquids and laptops in your bag – the CT lanes are fastest for passengers who do not unpack – and remember containers up to 2 litres are fine. The terminal itself is open around the clock and security opens ahead of the first departure wave, so for the very earliest flights you will not beat the desks by arriving in the middle of the night.
Avoid security stress entirely by arriving at the right time, not the earliest time. MILE5 sets your pickup from your flight, current traffic and your terminal – not guesswork.
Navigating North Terminal – Layout, Gates and the Pier 6 Walk
Gatwick North Terminal spreads across several levels: check-in and bag drop sit over two floors with easyJet’s self-service kiosks and bag drop dominating the central area and the long-haul carriers on staffed desks around them, security is on the upper level, and the departure lounge beyond it runs over two floors of shops, restaurants and the Lounge Pavilion. Landside you will find coffee shops, a WHSmith, a bureau de change, a chapel and prayer room, left-luggage services and the special assistance desk in the check-in hall.
The distance to know about before you fly: Gates 101-113 sit in Pier 6, reached by the glass air bridge that spans a live taxiway – aircraft taxi directly underneath you. It is a noticeably longer walk from security than the main gates, so allow extra time. And the North Terminal is a silent airport: there are no boarding announcements over the tannoy, so the screens are your only warning. When a gate in the 100s appears, start walking – not when boarding opens, when the gate appears.
Arriving at Gatwick North Terminal, baggage reclaim and customs feed into the arrivals hall on the ground floor, where MILE5 chauffeurs meet passengers with a name board – inside the building, before the exit. If you are connecting to another airport, see the Heathrow to Gatwick transfer page or all airport-to-airport routes, and for live boards covering both terminals use the page for live Gatwick arrivals and departures.
Food and Drink at North Terminal
Gatwick North Terminal’s departure lounge carries the full airport mix – sit-down restaurants, grab-and-go chains, coffee shops, bars and a Wetherspoon pub – spread over two airside floors. Landside, The Nicholas Culpeper pub serves a full menu before security, alongside the usual coffee and convenience options.
The strategy has not changed: the same chains charge noticeably more airside than landside, so eat before security when time allows, and carry an empty bottle through to the free refill points rather than buying water in the departure lounge. Now that liquids stay in your bag at the scanner, a landside meal deal travels through security without a second thought – and metal or insulated bottles just need to be empty.
North Terminal Lounges – What’s Available in 2026
Gatwick North Terminal has the wider lounge choice of the two terminals, most of it clustered in the airside Lounge Pavilion. One update worth knowing if you last flew a while ago: the easyJet Gateway lounge arrangement ended in October 2024, and that space now runs as a standard My Lounge – there is no easyJet-branded lounge at Gatwick any more.
From-prices as published by the lounge operators, August 2026 – pre-booking online is always cheaper than paying at the door.
School Holidays: Is Driving to Gatwick Actually Cheaper Than a Chauffeur?
School holidays and bank holiday weekends are peak season. In school holidays and over bank holiday weekends parking follows demand: the drive-up rate at Gatwick’s own Long Stay runs to around £230 for a week before fuel, with pre-booking well ahead the only reliable way to bring it down. Add the £10 drop-off charge if anyone runs you to the doors, and the full comparison is worth two minutes before you book anything.
The chauffeur is not the cheap option on paper. What closes the gap over a week away is everything the parking price leaves out: fuel, the drop-off fee, the shuttle with the bags, and landing back at 11pm to drive the M25 half asleep. For a peak-week trip the difference is smaller than most people expect, and what it buys is the whole journey handled.
Getting to Gatwick North Terminal – What Each Option Actually Costs
Train – remember the shuttle leg
Every train serving Gatwick – Gatwick Express, Thameslink and Southern – arrives at the station inside the South Terminal. For the North Terminal, add the free two-minute shuttle plus the walk at each end, roughly 10 to 15 minutes door to door. Gatwick Express runs non-stop from Victoria in about 30 minutes at around £24 for a standard single, 10% less booked online; Thameslink and Southern serve London Bridge, Blackfriars, Farringdon, St Pancras and Victoria for less, with Southern fares from £10.70. Solo with light bags, the train wins on price every time. With a family, luggage and the shuttle leg on top of the Tube leg, the fare advantage shrinks and the effort multiplies. Note that there are no trains between Gatwick and East Croydon on Sunday 10 January 2027, so check National Rail before travelling that day.
Coach
National Express coaches run from central London to Gatwick’s coach station at the South Terminal, and some also stop at the North Terminal. The cheapest way to the airport booked ahead, and the slowest – allow up to two hours from central London plus the transfer.
Uber and app cars – the variables
App-based cars price dynamically, and surge peaks exactly when Gatwick does – early mornings, Fridays, bank holidays. Drivers see the destination before accepting, and airport runs with their empty return leg get declined disproportionately often. Every private car also pays the £10 forecourt fee on drop-off. For the full app-by-app breakdown, see our Uber vs Bolt comparison for airport transfers. Gatwick travellers weighing a fixed-fare app against a pre-booked car should also read the Addison Lee versus Uber comparison.
MILE5 – fixed prices to and from Gatwick North
Every route below is part of MILE5’s Gatwick chauffeur transfers: the price is fixed at booking whatever the date or hour, the chauffeur tracks your flight, the £10 drop-off charge is absorbed into the fare, and arrivals pickups are inside the terminal with 60 minutes of free waiting.
Fixed E-Class prices; S-Class and V-Class (up to 7 passengers) available on every route. See full MILE5 pricing for all routes →
Parking and Drop-Off at North Terminal – 2026 Rules
Gatwick’s drop-off charge is £10 for up to 10 minutes at both terminal forecourts, then £1 per additional minute to a 30-minute maximum, after the rise from £7 on 6 January 2026. The system is barrierless ANPR – pay online by midnight the day after your visit or face a £100 penalty, reduced to £60 within 14 days. The free alternative is the Long Stay car park: two hours free, with a shuttle to the terminal.
Gatwick’s £10 is among the highest drop-off charges in the country, and our UK airport drop-off price comparison shows where every other major airport sits.
Parking for a trip from the North Terminal, book Long Stay North specifically – Long Stay South connects to the other terminal and adds the inter-terminal shuttle to your journey with luggage. Pre-book as early as possible (drive-up rates run to around £230 a week in peak season), and compare the off-site operators, which undercut on-airport parking on longer stays. Every MILE5 transfer absorbs the drop-off charge inside the fixed price.
Special Assistance at North Terminal
Special assistance at Gatwick North Terminal must be pre-booked through your airline, not the airport, at least 48 hours before your flight. The assistance desk sits in the check-in hall, and walk-up help is available but not guaranteed at peak times – in the school holidays, book well ahead.
MILE5 vehicles accommodate wheelchairs and mobility aids. Contact us when booking your transfer if you have specific requirements – we coordinate with the terminal’s assistance team.
The Shuttle Between Terminals
You cannot walk between the North and South Terminals. Gatwick’s free automated shuttle takes about two minutes and runs every few minutes, 24 hours a day – allow 10 to 15 minutes end to end with the walk to and from the platforms. If you are airside in the wrong terminal you must exit, cross on the shuttle and clear security again, so budget 45 to 60 minutes for a wrong-terminal recovery. Flying BA, Jet2 or Ryanair instead? The Gatwick South Terminal guide covers that side of the airport.
Nine North Terminal Tips Frequent Flyers Use
- easyJet is all North Terminal now. Every easyJet flight code sits at the North on Gatwick’s official list in 2026 – the old some-flights-at-South split is gone.
- Jet2 is NOT here. Jet2’s new Gatwick base is at the South Terminal. If you assume it sits with the other leisure carriers at the North, the shuttle recovery costs you 45 minutes or more.
- Watch the screens – there are no announcements. Gatwick is a silent airport. Your gate appears on the flight information screens and nowhere else. Miss it and nobody calls your name.
- Gates 101-113 are a long walk. Pier 6 sits across the glass air bridge over a live taxiway – a great view and a long way. Start walking when the gate appears, not when boarding opens.
- Buy Fast Track before you travel. From £6 pre-booked online, more on the day; the dedicated lane runs 4am-8pm.
- Leave liquids and laptops in your bag. The CT scanner lanes are fastest for passengers who do not unpack – and containers up to 2 litres are fine at Gatwick.
- Screenshot your boarding pass the night before. Terminal, gate deadline and seat all survive a dead battery or no signal.
- Arriving or connecting? All trains leave from the South Terminal – take the free shuttle across. Staying overnight before an early flight, the Sofitel connects directly to the North Terminal by covered walkway.
- Pre-booking your transfer removes every arrival uncertainty. MILE5 tracks your flight from takeoff, adjusts to early or late landings, and meets you inside arrivals with a name board. Get an instant quote →
Common North Terminal Problems (& Solutions)
Problem: “I arrived at the wrong terminal”
Take the free shuttle immediately – two minutes across, running constantly. If you were already airside you will exit, cross and clear security again, so budget 45 to 60 minutes. The 2026 airline moves have made this mistake more common, not less: Jet2 landing at the South and easyJet consolidating at the North both broke old habits. Check the boarding pass, not the memory – MILE5 chauffeurs verify your terminal from your flight number before departure, not after arrival.
Problem: “Security queue is massive and my flight’s soon”
Find a security staff member, show your boarding pass and explain calmly. Genuine tight connections can be moved up the queue at staff discretion – politeness works, aggression does not. If Fast Track has capacity on the day, you can also pay at the entrance, though it costs more than pre-booking.
Problem: “My phone died and I have a mobile boarding pass”
Any staffed airline desk or gate agent can reprint a boarding pass from your booking reference. Head for the nearest staffed desk rather than rejoining the main check-in queue.
Problem: “My app driver cancelled at the last minute”
Drivers see the destination before accepting, and an airport run means an empty return leg – cancellations are disproportionately common on airport pickups. Pre-booked transfers exist to solve exactly this: MILE5 assigns your chauffeur in advance, they are committed to the journey, and the price is fixed regardless of what the M23 is doing. For regular travellers, our corporate chauffeur service adds account management and monthly billing. If you are flying in for World Travel Market, the WTM 2026 airport transfer guide has the Gatwick to ExCeL price and the road-closure notes.
Essential North Terminal Information
Address
North Terminal, Gatwick Airport, Horley, West Sussex, RH6 0PH
Sat-Nav Postcode
RH6 0PH
By Train
All trains arrive at the South Terminal – free 2-minute shuttle to North
By Car
M23 Junction 9, follow signs to North Terminal – drop-off £10 for 10 minutes
By Chauffeur
People Also Ask
Which terminal is easyJet at Gatwick?
easyJet flies from Gatwick’s North Terminal. Gatwick’s official airline list assigns all easyJet flight codes to the North Terminal in 2026 – the old arrangement that placed some easyJet flights at the South has ended. Still check your boarding pass 24 hours before departure, because airlines can move terminals without notice.
Which airlines use the North Terminal at Gatwick?
Gatwick North Terminal serves easyJet (all flights), Emirates, Qatar Airways, Singapore Airlines, JetBlue, WestJet, Air Arabia, Condor, Icelandair, China Eastern, Air China, SWISS, Eurowings and TUI’s “TOM”-numbered flights, among others. British Airways, Jet2, Ryanair, Wizz Air, Vueling, Norwegian and Turkish Airlines all use the South Terminal.
Is Jet2 at Gatwick North or South Terminal?
Jet2 flies from Gatwick’s South Terminal, not the North. The airline’s new Gatwick base launched on 26 March 2026 with 29 routes, all operating from the South Terminal – a common wrong-terminal trap for passengers who expect Jet2 to sit with the other leisure carriers at the North.
Which terminal is Eurowings at Gatwick?
Eurowings flies from Gatwick’s North Terminal, according to Gatwick’s official airlines and terminals list. As with every carrier at Gatwick, confirm the terminal on your boarding pass 24 hours before departure.
How early should I arrive at Gatwick North Terminal?
Arrive 2 hours before European flights and 3 hours before long-haul, and treat those as minimums for morning departures in the school holidays – the 5am-9am bank is the North Terminal’s busiest window. Most airlines close check-in and bag drop 40 to 60 minutes before departure, and online check-in does not extend the bag-drop deadline.
How long are the security queues at Gatwick North Terminal?
Gatwick North Terminal security is quickest after 7pm and through the middle of the day in term time, and busiest during the 5am-9am easyJet departure wave, when school-holiday queues can exceed an hour. The terminal is open around the clock and security opens ahead of the first departures; Fast Track from £6, pre-booked online, uses a dedicated lane running 4am-8pm.
Can I take liquids over 100ml through Gatwick security?
Yes. Gatwick has scrapped the 100ml rule at both terminals – containers up to 2 litres are allowed in cabin bags, with no clear plastic bag, and liquids and laptops stay inside your bag at the scanner. Your return airport may still enforce 100ml, so check its rules before packing for the journey home.
How many gates does Gatwick North Terminal have?
Gatwick North Terminal’s gates run through the main departure lounge piers, plus Gates 101-113 in Pier 6, reached by the air bridge over the taxiway and the longest walk from security. Gatwick states each terminal has 31 aircraft stands, with a further 57 remote stands served by coaches, so some flights board by bus rather than at a numbered pier gate.
Written by Ian Silva, MILE5’s lead content author. This guide draws on MILE5’s 15+ years and 50,000+ airport transfers, plus first-hand research into terminal logistics, fleet operations, and London airport routes.
Questions about Gatwick North Terminal or need transfer advice? Contact MILE5 – 50,000+ airport journeys completed, every terminal covered.
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