First time using Bristol Airport Car Park

Going on holiday is of course my favourite hobby but getting to and from the airport is not. My local airport is Bristol and I can get two buses or a taxi but this is the first time that I have booked airport car parking.

Mainly because I only started driving again last year but now love my car and want to drive it at every opportunity. But also due to a diverted flight last year which meant we couldn’t get a taxi for over 3 hours luckily we had the option of getting a bus into the city centre and then another bus home but this isn’t always what you want especially after such a long day travelling.

I booked a holiday with TUI and they sent me a code for discount on car parking at Bristol airport. I hadn’t even thought about driving until I got this email. It worked out only a couple of pounds cheaper than a taxi but since we were travelling on a Sunday and arriving back in the UK late at night it was more convenient on this occasion to book the airport parking.

In the end I booked with a different company I simply googled Bristol Airport parking discount code and went with the best option which happened to be Holiday Extras

According to a recent survey Bristol airport is the 9th busiest UK airport by passengers. I didnt realise this but it definitely felt like this during a trip last year when I was delayed due to bad weather in fact it felt like the busiest airport in the UK when passengers were stuck at the airport. It was this diverted flight that made up my mind to choose to drive this time.

There are many options for parking at Bristol airport so it is important to choose the right one for you. I personally went on cost but also because I was travelling with my mum who has severe mobility limitations I had to choose somewhere that was also accessible so in the end I went with Silver car park.

It was easy to book and pay online. I didn’t realise until we got to the airport that the silver car park is actually off site but they have a free connecting bus. The day we were travelling our driver mentioned that there were 4 buses on so there was never long to wait.

You have to pre book the Silver Car park. On arrival to Bristol airport the Silver Car Park was sign posted and it was easy to find. I went through a barrier that has registration recognition. I found a disabled parking space near the office door but there were plenty of other parking spaces as well as parent and child dedicated spaces.

On entering the office I gave my booking reference and the number of the bay that I had parked in. In exchange they gave me a ticket for collecting my car on my return. I had to handover my key as they move the car to a parking space and then the day and time you are returning it is in the collection car park for your retrieval.

Getting to the airport was quick and hassle free however returning home has put me off slightly. We arrived at 10.30pm on a Sunday evening and the airport was very busy. A bus just left as we got to the queue then we couldn’t get on the next bus as it was full. We only had to wait a couple of minutes for another bus but it was raining and freezing and it felt like much longer.

This bus again got full quickly and there were people in the queue that had to wait for another bus. Luckily I got my mum on the bus quickly and she managed to get a seat because she would not have been able to stand for the five minutes it takes to get to the car park.

It was difficult getting on the bus for me as I had to also do my mums suitcase and as it was rammed with people it was not the easiest and I think if I was travelling with her again I might look at different options. However if travelling by myself or with someone who can carry their own case then it is a little bit more convenient than a taxi if you have a discount code.

I have a blue badge so the car was waiting in a disabled space which was again close to the office door however the car park did look very big. After getting off the bus there was again a huge queue in the office but it moved really quickly. The queue looked longer because everyone was going in the office so if there were 5 people in one car they all seemed to go and collect the key for some reason. My mum was sensible and waited outside with our cases for me to go and get the key.

It was really simple to retrieve car I handed over the ticket they had given me on check in and they handed me back my key with which parking bay it was in. I dont know how easy it would be to get your car if you didnt have this ticket, luckily I gave it my mum to look after as I always loose things like this.

My car didnt have any damage and I was confident that the car park had good security which was the main thing.

But writing this the day after travelling home I think I would rather get a taxi for the extra couple of pounds depending on where I am flying from as I do get tired travelling and I would prefer someone else to do the rest of the trip to my door so I dont have to stress.