HomeCultureWhat's New at Heathrow This Summer: 10 Things Travelers Need to Know

What’s New at Heathrow This Summer: 10 Things Travelers Need to Know

people walking on a building — Photo by Tomek Baginski on Unsplash

For a great many visitors to London, the trip begins and ends at Heathrow — and the airport has rolled out a run of changes this summer that are genuinely worth knowing before you fly. With more than 23 million passengers expected through its terminals over the season, here are the ten things that actually matter.

Table of Contents

1. Your liquids and laptop can stay in the bag

The headline change for most travelers: Heathrow has finished its £1 billion (about $1.3 billion) security overhaul, and this is the first summer that all terminals are running the next-generation CT scanners. In practice that means you no longer need to pull liquids or large electronics out of your hand luggage at the checkpoint.

2. Security is fast again

Those same scanners have transformed the queues. Heathrow says the upgrade has helped 97% of passengers clear security in under five minutes — a world away from the bottlenecks of recent summers.

3. Children aged 8 and over can use the eGates

Kids aged 8 and up can now use the eGates at passport control, provided they have an eligible passport and are traveling with an adult. It is a small change that can save families a long wait in the arrivals hall.

4. Every terminal has a free Stay & Play area

Past security in every terminal you will find a free Stay & Play area, with soft play and separate toddler and junior zones — a genuine lifesaver when you are killing time before a flight with young children.

5. Free colouring books for younger flyers

Through July and August, colleagues are handing out free colouring books to younger passengers around the terminals — a small, welcome touch for families traveling over the school holidays.

6. A batch of new direct destinations

Heathrow has added direct services to a spread of new destinations, including Seville, Tivat on Montenegro’s Adriatic coast, St. Louis, and Guernsey. Whether you are connecting onward or planning your next trip, the map from London just got a little bigger.

7. New routes to Lahore and Islamabad

Among the new links are direct services to Lahore and Islamabad, strengthening Heathrow’s connections to Pakistan for the many Londoners with family and business ties there.

8. Two brand-new airlines

Alaska Airlines has arrived as a brand-new carrier at Heathrow with a daily service to Seattle, and in September Xiamen Air launches a route to Xiamen in China — two fresh options for long-haul travelers.

9. Kids Eat Free

If you are traveling with children, note the Kids Eat Free deal running from 20 July to 1 September: order an adult main at participating restaurants — Giraffe, Jones the Grocer, Co-Pilots Bar & Kitchen and Wild Olive among them — and children eat free.

10. New places to eat, drink, shop and relax

There is a wave of new openings across the terminals. Terminal 2 has gained a Bill’s and is getting a £3.5 million (about $4.6 million) Wetherspoons this summer; Terminal 5 adds a Wagamama grab-and-go kiosk, a new Pret A Manger in Arrivals, and a Miniso for last-minute plush toys and travel bits. At the premium end, Virgin Atlantic has reopened its refurbished Clubhouse with a redesigned cinema area, work pods and a Royal Box VIP space, and Air France has opened its first branded premium lounge in Terminal 4, complete with French-inspired dining and complimentary Clarins treatments.

The single most useful thing to remember from all of this: at Heathrow this summer, your liquids and laptop can stay in your bag at security. Everything else is a bonus.