BHX

The second Eid vacation soon came around and I took the opportunity to pop over to the UK so see my family as I will be spending the Christmas period in Dubai.

Rather than use one of the London hubs I chose to fly into Birmingham as this much closer to my home town of Cheltenham. It is also interesting for me to compare and contrast airports in the uk and I am now an official convert to Birmingham. Here is a quick pros and cons:

Pros:

1. A short walk from the gate to immigration

2. When the Emirates flight arrives on time it is the only one coming into Birmingham at that time so the immigration queue is empty

3. Luggage was quick

4. You can walk to the car hire pick up – no shuttle bus needed

5. It is only one mile to the M42 where you can connect to the M6, M5, M50 and M40 easily

6. Only a 40 minute drive to Cheltenham

Cons:

1. As you walk to the car hire if it is raining (like it was this morning) bring an umbrella

2. The Servis Air business lounge can only be described as dreadful – no hot food, small and cramped, and all a bit run down and dirty.

I am a convert – I will be avoiding Gatwick/Heathrow in the future whenever possible.