On this page (4 sections)
Where to meet, terminal by terminal
Each Heathrow terminal has a designated meeting point landside in arrivals, after the customs exit. T5 has two because the arrivals hall is large enough that one point would force half of every flight's collectors to the wrong end.
| Terminal | Meeting point | Landmark |
|---|---|---|
| T2 Queen's Terminal | Level 1, opposite the international arrivals exit | The arrivals exit itself; passengers come through the sliding doors and the meeting point is directly across. |
| T3 | Ground floor seating area at arrivals | Signposted from the customs exit; central seating cluster in the arrivals concourse. |
| T4 | Beside WHSmith in arrivals, ground floor | The WHSmith unit is the unmistakable landmark; the meeting point sits immediately alongside. |
| T5 north | Opposite Global Exchange | Reached via the green staircase from the upper concourse. |
| T5 south | Near Costa Coffee | Reached via the orange staircase. |
At T5, pick the point closest to where your passenger will exit. T5 north sits at the north end of the arrivals hall and is the closer of the two for flights arriving at the higher-numbered A-gates (A12 to A23 in T5A). T5 south covers the lower-numbered gates and most arrivals from the T5B and T5C satellites, which feed into the southern end of the airside-to-landside flow. When in doubt, ask the passenger to text the gate number once they have landed; the gate number is on the boarding pass and on the seat-back screen during taxi.
If your passenger has booked arranging assistance for someone with reduced mobility, the assistance team brings them to the meeting point in arrivals rather than expecting you to find them airside. Pre-book the assistance with the airline at least 48 hours before the flight; on-the-day requests work but the wait at landing is longer.
The meeting point sign
Every meeting point is marked by the same sign: a square panel with an icon of four arrows pointing inward to a central dot, signifying "gather here". The sign hangs at ceiling level above the designated waiting area, visible from across the arrivals hall.
Once you are inside arrivals, look up first; the sign is the easier landmark at distance. At street level the shop names work as backup: WHSmith at T4, Global Exchange and Costa Coffee at T5, the central seating area at T3, and the international arrivals exit itself at T2. Heathrow's interactive terminal maps on maps.heathrow.com show each meeting point as a marked POI if you want to confirm the location before driving in.
Picking up by car
The meeting point itself is on foot, inside the arrivals hall. To reach it by car you park first and walk in. Two parking options work for a pick-up:
- Park & Ride at the relevant terminal: first 29min are free, then £9.40 for up to 2 hours. A free courtesy bus runs every 15 minutes between the Park & Ride and the terminal door, in both directions. Park, ride in, meet the passenger in arrivals, ride back to the car together.
- Terminal Parking (the car park next to the terminal): £8 for up to 29 minutes, £15.50 for 45 to 59 minutes, £20 for 1 to 2 hours. Faster on foot from the car park to arrivals (2 to 5 minutes, covered and step-free) but never free.
The forecourt outside each terminal is for drop-off only. ANPR cameras read the plate on entry and bill £7 even on a brief kerbside pick-up; the 10-minute maximum stay rule applies and waiting is not permitted. Cars left unattended are towed. For the full pick-up flow, where to park if you are collecting by car covers the cost comparison, the timing-the-arrival call, and the rideshare option.
How long after landing they will reach you
Landing is when the aircraft touches down. The passenger does not appear in arrivals at that moment. The gap depends on the flight type and the immigration channel.
| Flight type | Touchdown to arrivals hall |
|---|---|
| International long-haul | 45 to 75min |
| International short-haul (European) | 30 to 45min |
| UK domestic | 15 to 30min |
| Hand luggage only, eGate eligible | 15 to 25 min |
The biggest variable is passport control. eGate users (UK, EU/EEA, Switzerland, Australia, Canada, Iceland, Japan, Liechtenstein, New Zealand, Norway, Singapore, South Korea and US passport holders) typically clear in minutes; manual desks can take 30 minutes or longer at peak. The second-biggest variable is the bag. For typical first-bag and last-bag waits by terminal and flight type, see how long bags take to come out.
The cleanest sequence is to check live arrivals at Heathrow for the actual touchdown time, then add the relevant gap above before setting off. An hour after touchdown for a long-haul, half an hour for short-haul, twenty minutes for domestic. Driving in to meet the scheduled landing time and parking for forty minutes while passport control runs is the expensive mistake.