Helpful airport transfer information from Airports Taxi UK, with private booking support for journeys across the UK.
Brighton to Gatwick is one of the busiest airport corridors in the South East — a straight 25-mile run up the M23/A23 that a taxi covers in around 35–45 minutes. Whether you’re catching an early long-haul flight or arriving back into Gatwick late at night, this guide covers timings, terminal drop-offs and how a pre-booked fixed-fare transfer compares with the train from Brighton station.
Outside peak hours, expect 35–45 minutes door to terminal. Weekday rush hour (7–9am northbound) can stretch this to an hour, so early-morning flight pickups are usually scheduled before 6am — when the road is quiet and the journey is at its fastest. Coastal pickups either side of Brighton (Hove, Rottingdean, Shoreham-by-Sea) add 5–15 minutes.
| Pickup area | Approx. distance | Typical drive time |
|---|---|---|
| Brighton city centre | 25 miles | 35–45 min |
| Hove | 27 miles | 40–50 min |
| Shoreham-by-Sea | 30 miles | 45–55 min |
| Lewes | 22 miles | 35–45 min |
| Burgess Hill | 14 miles | 20–30 min |
Trains from Brighton to Gatwick Airport station take around 25–35 minutes and are frequent through the day — a genuinely good option for solo travellers with light luggage. The taxi case gets stronger for groups (one vehicle fare vs multiple tickets), early or late flights outside rail hours, heavy luggage, and pickups that aren’t near Brighton station. A door-to-terminal transfer also removes the platform-to-check-in leg at the airport end.
Your airline decides your terminal — easyJet flies from both, so always check your confirmation email. Both terminals have dedicated drop-off zones and your driver will take you to the correct one; terminal details and drop-off charges are published on the official Gatwick Airport site.
Fixed-price quotes for this route depend mainly on your exact pickup postcode, vehicle size (saloon up to minibus), pickup time, and optional extras like meet-and-greet for return journeys. Because the fare is fixed at booking, M23 delays don’t change what you pay — a key difference from metered or surge-priced alternatives, which we break down in our Gatwick taxi vs Uber comparison.
Add a return pickup with flight monitoring and your driver tracks your arrival in real time — if the flight’s early or delayed, the pickup adjusts automatically. Meet-and-greet means being met in the arrivals hall with a name board rather than finding the pickup zone with your bags. It’s the same system we run on our London to Gatwick and Reading to Gatwick routes.
Same-day bookings are usually possible, but for early-morning departures we recommend booking the evening before at the latest so your pickup time is locked in.
Yes — any Brighton & Hove address, including hotels, the Marina and university campuses.
Per vehicle. A family of four pays one fixed fare, which is where a taxi often undercuts four rail tickets door-to-door.
For a short-haul 8am departure, a 5:15–5:30am pickup from central Brighton comfortably beats the 2-hour check-in window.
Brighton’s calendar directly affects this route. During Brighton Festival and Fringe in May, Pride weekend in early August, and summer race days, city-centre traffic thickens and hotel pickups take longer to reach — book earlier in the day than usual and allow an extra 10–15 minutes to clear the seafront. Conversely, the A23 north out of the city is rarely the bottleneck; it’s the first mile from a central hotel that varies. Drivers who work the route daily will route around closures during event weekends, and a fixed fare means diversions never change your price.
Saloons suit couples and small families with standard luggage; estates handle surfboards, buggies and extra cases; MPVs and 8-seat minibuses keep hen parties, wedding groups and extended families together on one fare. Child seats can be added at booking, and wheelchair-accessible vehicles arranged with notice. For student moves between Brighton’s universities and Gatwick at term boundaries, larger vehicles with genuine luggage capacity beat dragging cases across three rail platforms.
Off the plane, allow 30–45 minutes for passport control and baggage at busy times. With meet-and-greet booked, your driver is in the arrivals hall with a name board; without it, you’ll get clear pickup-zone directions by text. From the South Terminal it’s straight onto the M23 southbound and the A23 into Brighton — most late-evening arrivals are at their hotel or front door within the hour of clearing customs. Landing after the last train removes the rail option entirely, which is why late arrivals are the single most common booking on this route: the fare is the same at 1am as at 1pm, with no night surcharges hidden in the price.
Instant fixed quote for any Brighton & Hove postcode to either Gatwick terminal — licensed drivers, 24/7 availability, flight tracking on arrivals and no hidden charges. See all routes from our Gatwick airport taxi hub.
