Early morning flights are popular — they avoid London's traffic, land you at your destination by midday, and are often the cheapest departures. But getting to Heathrow at 4–5am without losing your mind requires planning.
How early do you need to arrive?
For most short-haul flights: 90 minutes before departure. For long-haul: 3 hours before departure. This accounts for check-in, security, and walking to the gate.
Driving to Heathrow at 4–5am
This is actually one of the easiest times to drive to Heathrow. The M25 and M4 are virtually empty — journey times from central London are 25–40 minutes. From the Home Counties, even less.
Parking at early hours
This is where Meet & Greet parking really shines. Instead of navigating to a car park in the dark, walking to a shuttle stop at 4am with tired children, and waiting for a bus — you drive directly to your terminal and hand your keys to our driver, who is already waiting. It is by far the smoothest parking option for early morning flights.
Should you stay near Heathrow the night before?
For flights before 6am, an airport hotel stay the night before can make sense if you live more than an hour away. Many hotels offer park-stay-fly packages — though independent parking operators like us are typically 40–60% cheaper for the parking element.
Public transport at 4–5am
The Heathrow Express starts from around 5:10am from Paddington. The Elizabeth Line runs from approximately 5:30am. The Night Tube (Piccadilly Line) runs to Heathrow 24 hours at weekends. Taxis and ride-hail apps are available around the clock.