Self Park, Park & Ride, Self Park & Ride, and Meet & Greet – what do they mean?
On-site Airport Parking
On Site Airport Parking is at the Airport and is usually just simple Self Park Airport Parking. This is where you park your car and make your way to the Airport Departure. This is convenient but can be quite expensive, especially for long stay (a week or more). Because of limited numbers, they can also be full in the peak summer period.
Off-Site Airport Parking
There are at least three different Off-Site Airport Parking Services, parking which is usually near the Airport. There is Park and Ride, Self Park and Ride, and Meet and Greet.
Park and Ride Airport Parking
Park and Ride Airport Parking is where you book in advance online and pay, drive to the Airport Carpark, book in, park up, leave your car keys, and you are taken in a minibus or bus to the Airport.
When you return, you call the company and they arrange to collect you to return to the carpark. You get back in your car and drive home. Park and Ride Airport Parking is usually the lowest price and best value service.
Many Airport carparks have a reserve carpark in addition to the main carpark. The reason the Park and Ride Airport Parking service is slightly cheaper, is because it gives the carpark more flexibility. The carpark can move your car to the reserve carpark, and bring it back before you return. This gives the Park and Ride Airport Parking carpark flexibility of parking spaces in the main carpark. This enables the business to accommodate more customers.
Self Park and Ride Airport Parking
Self Park and Ride Airport Parking is the same as Park and Ride Airport Parking, except you keep your car key. Self Park and Ride Airport Parking usually costs slightly more than Park and Ride Airport Parking. The reason it costs slightly more is because you are keeping your car key. That means the car will stay in the parking space it is parked. This gives the Airport carpark less flexibility as they cannot move the car, limiting the number of customers they can accommodate.
Meet and Greet
Meet and Greet is where you are met, usually at the Airport. The car is taken and parked for you. When you return the car is returned to you at the Airport. This is a marketed as a VIP type of service, and is usually the most expensive of the ‘Off-Site’ Airport Parking Services. You can read more about them here: Meet and Greet – is it really a VIP service? Some Airport carparks also offer a valet service of cleaning your car before you return which will obviously cost more as it is another premium type service.
Budget Airport Parking
I personally prefer the Self Park service as I get to keep my car keys and know my car will not be moved. If you are on a budget and don’t mind your car being moved, then you can book the Park and Ride Service. With the Park and Ride service, your car will probably be moved and may be in a different parking space when you return. There is usually no problem when your car is moved to a reserve carpark. But there is less chance of any problem if it is not moved at all. It is also worth noting that if the Park and Ride Airport Parking carpark is not busy, they may not move your car at all.
I would recommend you read the details of the service you are about to book before you book, so you know which service you are booking.
Please note that these are the typical names of the different Airport Parking services. Some Airport Parking companies may use different names for their service and could be a slightly different service, so read the details before booking.
If you have not read the post Choosing Airport Parking? Don’t just book the cheapest! I recommend you read it before booking.
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