Birmingham Airport, which was known as Birmingham International Airport until November 2010, is nestled in England’s West Midlands. This well serviced and easy to navigate airport is just 10km (6 miles) from central Birmingham and is an increasingly popular departure point for cheap flights in or out of Britain.
Although Birmingham is one of the largest cities in Britain, the airport itself avoids the hustle and bustle of many larger airports and instead offers passengers a decent range of shopping and dining options without being too overwhelming. Birmingham Airport has recently merged its two terminals into a single terminal building in order to streamline passenger movements and prepare for a planned increase in traffic.
Birmingham Airport is a hub for low-cost airlines such as bmi, Flybe, Ryanair, Monarch, Thomas Cook Airlines and Thomson Airways. Passengers can use Birmingham to fly to many destinations in Europe and there are often cheap flights to Birmingham International Airport from the Middle East, North America, the Caribbean and India as well.
Birmingham Airport is well connected to various transport facilities running to a number of cities across the United Kingdom. It’s a popular airport for low-cost carriers and the facilities available at the airport are great for all types of travellers ranging from shopaholics to businessmen or parents travelling with their kids.
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<div class="rxbodyfield">The terminals are adjacent one another and within easy walking distance.</div>
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Train: The free Air Rail Link shuttles passengers to the Birmingham Station where passengers can catch a train to Birmingham City Centre as well as London and many other cities across the UK. Trains leave at intervals of three to 30 minutes from Monday to Friday between 5:30am and 11:15pm. On Saturdays and Sundays the service is slightly less frequent and trains only run from 6am on Saturdays and 9am on Sundays. Tickets start at £3 for the short 15-minute trip into town.
Taxis: Taxis can be found outside Terminal 2. All taxis are metered and there are a number of taxi companies to choose from, including Birmingham Taxi Alliance, Your Taxi, British Airport Taxis and Airport Taxi Birmingham UK. Taxi fares into central Birmingham cost between £18 and £20 depending on time of day and traffic. The drive into Birmingham generally takes up to 25 minutes.
Bus: All buses to and from Birmingham Airport stop between the terminals. Passengers using the bus services at the airport are spoilt for choice. Bus No. 38 runs into Birmingham city centre and takes about an hour. Tickets cost £1.40 and the bus service is available every hour between 7am and 6pm from Monday to Saturday, although on Saturdays the buses only start running at 8am. Other buses going into the city centre include West Midlands Bus No. 58 and No. 900. It is also possible to catch the above buses from the Birmingham Airport Railway Station. Long distance coaches also operate from the airport bus station and it is possible to catch buses to London, Liverpool, Cambridge, Manchester, and Wolverhampton as well as many other destinations from Birmingham Airport.
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There are several parking options at Birmingham Airport; some are located two minutes walking distance from the terminal while others are ten minutes away. The drop and go area is adjacent the departures terminal and costs £1 per ten minutes. However a 30-minute stay will set you back £7 and the charges go up £5 per 15 minutes thereafter. Garages 1, 2 and 3 are best for short and medium stay parking. They are located beside the terminal building and charges range from £3.50 per hour up to five hours and then £20 per day. The long-stay parking garages are a ten-minute walk from the terminal and are located next to the second roundabout along Airport Way. There are regular shuttles between the long stay parking lots and the terminal. Long-stay parking in long stay car park one is free for the first 15 minutes, £2 for 15 to 20 minutes, £3.50 for one hour and £3.50 per hour up to five hours, thereafter parking is charged at £21 for the first 48 hours and £9.50 per day thereafter. Long-stay parking garage two is slightly cheaper and costs £21 for the first two days and £9.50 per day thereafter.
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Money and communications: ATMs, banks, and a currency exchange are all available at Birmingham Airport. There are also auto-exchange machines available and a post office on the ground floor.
Luggage: The airport’s lost and found centre is located on the upper floor of terminal one. The left luggage facility is also available at the lost and found centre for a nominal fee.
Conference and business: Business Point offers a range of business services from fax and photocopying facilities to meeting rooms, conference facilities and board rooms. A number of airlines such as Emirates and Flybe have executive lounges with business facilities available. There are also a number of airport hotels with conference facilities located close to Birmingham Airport. These include Novotel Hotel, Holiday Inn, the Hilton Birmingham Metropole and the Crowne Plaza NEC. All are within a five-minute taxi ride of the airport.
Other facilities: Birmingham Airport has facilities raging from a multi-faith prayer room to assistance for passengers with special needs as well as a travel agent, first aid facilities and a baby and parent room. Birmingham Airport also has a free smartphone app, designed by StreamThru. The app offers airport maps, flight information, weather forecasts and a parking reminder to help you remember exactly where you parked your car.
Wi-Fi: Wi-Fi is available at Birmingham Airport for £5 per hour.
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