Blue Badge and accessible parking at Gatwick

Accessible bays, Blue Badge concessions and the special assistance service — and why all three need arranging before you travel, not on the day.

Last reviewed 6 September 2026. Prices and car park rules change often — confirm the current details before you travel.

If mobility is a factor in your trip, Gatwick parking is a planning problem rather than a price problem. The options are all there, but almost every one of them works better if it is arranged in advance, and several do not work well at all if left to the day.

Blue Badge parking at an airport is not like on-street parking

This is the point that causes most confusion. Airport car parks are private land. The statutory Blue Badge concessions that apply on public roads do not automatically carry over to them.

Gatwick does operate concessions for Blue Badge holders in its car parks. What those concessions are, which car parks they apply to, and whether they require registering the badge or the vehicle in advance are all things the airport sets itself — and it changes them from time to time.

So the only safe advice is: check the airport's current published policy before you travel, and if registration is required, do it in advance. Arriving and hoping is the one approach that reliably goes wrong.

Where to park

Designated accessible bays are provided in the car parks closest to the terminals, which is exactly where you want them. The short stay multi-storeys put you within a short, step-free, covered walk of the terminal building with no transfer bus involved.

If walking distance is the constraint, this proximity is worth paying for. The long stay car parks are cheaper but involve a bus, a wait and additional walking at both ends, which may not be a sensible trade.

Accessible bays are limited in number and cannot be relied on to be free on arrival, so book ahead where the car park allows it.

Special assistance

Gatwick, like all UK airports, provides a special assistance service for passengers with reduced mobility or other disabilities. It covers help moving through the terminal, getting to the gate, and transferring between the North and South Terminals.

Two things about it are worth knowing:

You book it through your airline, not the airport. The airline passes the request on. This surprises people who go looking for a form on the airport's website.

Book it at least 48 hours before you fly. Assistance can usually be provided to passengers who turn up and ask, but it is far less reliable and may involve a long wait. The 48-hour notice is what the system is built around.

If your needs include help from the car park itself rather than from the terminal entrance, say so explicitly when booking, because the standard service starts at designated points in the terminal.

Meet and greet as an accessibility option

Meet and greet is usually sold on convenience, but it is worth considering on accessibility grounds. Handing the car over at the terminal forecourt removes the car park, the transfer bus, the wait and the walk in a single step, in both directions.

For a traveller who finds standing, waiting or walking difficult, that can be more valuable than any of the price differences elsewhere on this site. The usual caution applies about checking the operator carefully, and it is worth confirming that the handover point is somewhere you can be dropped close to.

Practical checklist

• Check the airport's current Blue Badge policy and register in advance if required.
• Book special assistance through your airline at least 48 hours ahead.
• Book a car park close to the terminal rather than a cheaper one further out.
• If you need help from the car park, not just the terminal, say so when booking.
• Confirm step-free routes from your specific car park, including at the return leg when parts of the terminal may be quieter.
• Allow more time than the standard advice suggests, in both directions.

Because policies in this area change and the details matter, treat this page as an orientation rather than the final word, and confirm the specifics with the airport and your airline close to your travel date.