Despite being located 28 miles South of London’s city center, Gatwick Airport is still considered a part of the London airport group. It is the second largest and second busiest, outdone only by Heathrow International Airport. Serving over 32 million passengers a year, the need for car hire at Gatwick Airport is critical which is why five separate companies have locations onsite.

There are car hire desks in both terminals. The car rental building at the South Terminal is open 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. The car rentals at the North Terminal only operate between 6 a.m. and 10 p.m. although they still maintain a 7-day a week schedule. Advance booking allows you to pick up your rental car on each terminal’s lower forecourt road. If you do not want to go through the car hire desks at the Car Rental Building you can prebook from any of seven companies that work out of Gatwick Airport. As well as the internationals, Alamo, National, Avis, Budget, and Hertz, there are two regional car hire companies that maintain a presence at the airport; Europcar and Season Car Hire.

While it is easy and convenient to take advantage of the onsite locations for direct booking, you can acquire greater savings by booking in advance. By using any of the multitude of price comparison sites you will be able to work the competition against itself for the best possible deal on the type of vehicle you want to use. As well as the bottom line price provided, it is suggested you also check to see if the price includes some of the extra fees that may or may not be figured in to the listed rental price. Check not only for the type of insurance required but, if you are going to be traveling in London itself, there may be the congestion fee that will also have to be figured into the total car hire expense.