A field report from GATWICK AIRPORT SOUTH TERMINAL LANDSIDE

date: 04.21.24

We all need to take a rest from the stresses of travel, but can you sleep a whole night in the airport without paying ANYTHING? I went to Gatwick South terminal to investigate.

I took a spare duvet to the airport on a Sunday evening to see how easy it would be to find a space somewhere in the airport that would let me sleep overnight without being interrupted. It was going to be a big challenge indeed, as most people only manage a few hours of shut-eye before the flight, which is a different thing when you have a plane to board.

Up in the departures area, there were several places that people have marked out for sleep. The airport doesn’t expressly forbid anyone from sleeping in the airport, and most were clearly going somewhere, with a case and the familiar neck pillows that some people still carry around. Some others were probably not travelling anywhere, they had rucksacks rather than wheeled suitcases. I saw  a man with a futon, so clearly it’s not unusual for people to actually camp out and use the airport for free accommodation.

By eleven thirty on Sunday night, there were several people already laid down sleeping on the floor of the departures area,  but it didn’t look very comfortable, the ever present harsh lighting, as well as the noise would mean it would be harder than normal to shut down completely.

The main café nero was still open, but the seats are single and so you wouldn’t be able to get anywhere near horizontal in them.

I considered other spots in the terminal, such as the charging area for mobile phones. This area is surprisingly busy,, and one of the things that makes it desirable for people is that you can feel safe because people leave their phones charging unattended. but of course, the airport knows that people try to sleep on these chairs, so they’ve placed metal headrests which can’t be moved.

The final place I considered for my overnight sleep was the prayer room. Having checked in advance, I learned that it’s open 24hours, making it ideal for an overnight stay. 

Now, because of the heavy doors and the location at the end of the bulding, it’s the warmest area of the airport by far. My first worry was I wouldn’t be allowed in, once someone saw my duvet, In fact, I needn’t have worried,  at least not straight away. the other advantage is that the prayer room is carpeteted. I figured if someone challenged me, I could say that I was bringing in my duvet to use as a prayer mat. At first, I found myself unable to fall asleep. Every time someone opened the door, I’d hear it, and every-time they used the washroom, I heard the pipes rumbling into action. 

But before long, the warmth from the floor and my duvet meant I was hitting REMs after less than an hour and soon I felt myself drifting off. 

As I was still asleep, I was considering that I had won my challenge. But then I heard the door open again, and this time, it wasn’t a pious muslim coming to pray , but one of the guards coming to remove any sleepers from the room. His  exact words were that by sleeping, we were preventing people from using the area for praying. but at four am, it was hard to see that anyone was going to come in to use the room to pray.

With that, I picked up my duvet and looked for one more place to catch the last stage of sleep. There were still people napping by the phone charging area, and the chairs in café nero were all stacked up. The caffe know that in the early hours people want to sleep, so they do this on purpose.

This was going to be difficult, outside the prayer room there is plenty of clear floor space, but the esclators make a loud noise as people reach the top and then loudly wheeled their cases along the concourse. 

By five am, travellers were arriving for the first flights. But I was exhausted. The last place I found was the long soft banquette seats by caffe nero. Bingo . this was comfortable enough and I could streatch my legs out and sleep on my front. Even though the shop was still playing classical music much too loudly on purpose, I was determined to get some zzz’s regardless of the situation.

But this only lasted an hour before someone from Nero’s came along to shout at myself and a lady in a dressing gown. 

‘No sleeping’ she demanded. By this point, I gave up on getting any more sleep. I had been in the airport nearly ten hours and had slept for maybe two hours. 

As I left caffe nero, I saw several armed police and dogs examining the area. I had left at just the right moment. 

Verdict.

Sleeping in the airport is not easy. there is the constant bright light, loud passengers, and the fact that the ambient temperature can be quite cold. All of these things are done because airports would prefer if you didn’t use their space to sleep in. People sleeping rough could be a security hazard. Although not as serious as a terrorist with boxcutters and bleach. I was lucky that no-one ever asked for some ID, and I was afraid I would be escorted. Next time  I need to stay overnight, I’ll book a hotel. these aren’t cheap, of course, but at least it’s a way to be safe and no-one will interrupt you in the middle of the night.