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Voykit pocket guide · United Kingdom
Crawley
Give Crawley one night only if you need a Gatwick bed; otherwise skip it and day-trip from Horsham, Brighton or London.
Crawley is a 1947 New Town beside Gatwick Airport, not a sightseeing town. Its value is practical: cheap beds 10 minutes from the terminals, a compact walkable centre, and a rail junction with fast trains to London, Brighton and Horsham. Come for the airport, the football or a base, not for the town itself.
- Country
- United Kingdom
- Best months
- May–Sep
- Avoid
- Dec–Feb (wet, dark early)
- Stay
- 1 night
Checked 2026-09. Prices, hours and rules change; anything marked (check) is not confirmed.
Essentials
- Currency
- GBP
- Money
- Currency is the pound sterling (GBP, £). Cards and contactless work almost everywhere; some places are card-only.
- Daily spend
- Budget £45–70 excl. bed · Mid £70–120 excl. bed · High £120+ excl. bed (estimate; check)
- SIM and data
- EE, Vodafone (merged with Three in 2025) and O2 run the networks; prepaid SIMs sell in supermarkets, phone shops and airport vending machines, no registration needed.
- Emergency
- Emergency 999 · Emergency (any phone) 112 · NHS non-urgent 111 · Police non-urgent 101
- Plugs
- Types G · 230 V · 50 Hz · Three-pin Type G only; European, US and Australian plugs need an adapter. Bathrooms have two-pin shaver sockets only.
- Tipping
- Restaurant with table service: 10–12.5% if no service charge is on the bill; check before adding more.; Pub or bar: Not expected; 'and one for yourself' offers the bartender a drink.; Taxi: Round up or 10%.; Hotel porter: £1–2 per bag.; Tour guide: £5–10 per person for a day tour; free walking tours expect £10–15.
- Water
- Tap water is safe everywhere. Free refills are common; restaurants will bring tap water if you ask.
- Toilets
- Public toilets are scarce and some charge 50p–£1 or are card-only. Stations, museums, department stores and pubs (if you buy a drink) are the fallback.
What things cost
| Item | Price |
|---|---|
| Coffee | £3–4.50 |
| Pub main course | £10–16 |
| Takeaway meal | £7–15 |
| Pint of draught beer | £4.50–6 |
| Taxi, station to airport | about £14 |
| Bus single, town centre to airport | about £2 |
| Gatwick Aviation Museum adult entry | £7.50 |
| Crawley Museum entry | Free |
Desk estimates, checked 2026-09; check locally.
Get in
By air
- LGW · Gatwick Airport
- On the town's north edge; 10 min by train or Fastway bus 10 to the centre.
Typical fares
- Gatwick → Crawley by train
- about £5, 10 min (check)
- Fastway bus 10, town centre → airport
- about £2, 20 min (check)
- Taxi Crawley station → Gatwick
- about £14, 10 min (check)
Show 7 more sections and the pocket cardHideGet around, See and do, Sleep, Phrase card, Etiquette, safety and scams, One and two days, Sources, Pocket card
Get around
The centre is walkable end to end in about 20 minutes. Metrobus runs local routes including the 10 Fastway to the airport; Three Bridges and Crawley stations cover the rest. Taxis wait at all three stations.
See and do
Known for
- Gatwick Airport
- New Town planning
- Crawley Town FC
- Tilgate Park
Day trips
| Where | How | Time |
|---|---|---|
| London | Direct train from Three Bridges or Gatwick to London Victoria or London Bridge | About 1 h |
| Brighton | Direct train from Three Bridges or Gatwick, about 30–40 min | About 45 min |
| Horsham | Train from Crawley station south, about 15 min | About 30 min |
| Arundel | Train towards the coast, change at Horsham or Three Bridges | About 1 h |
| East Grinstead | Bus or train via Three Bridges | About 45 min |
| Chichester | Train via Three Bridges and Brighton, or by car on the A24/A27 | 1.5–2 h |
Sleep
- Town centre (High Street, Queen's Square)
- Walk to County Mall, restaurants and Crawley station; best for one night without a car.
- Three Bridges
- Own station with direct trains to Brighton and Gatwick; supermarket and cheaper chain hotels.
- Gatwick / Manor Royal fringe
- Airport hotels with shuttle or 24 h bus links; pick this if your flight is early.
Phrase card
| English | Say or show |
|---|---|
| Single to Gatwick, please | A single ticket to Gatwick, please |
| Where is the bus stop? | Where is the bus stop? |
| Can I pay by card? | Can I pay by card? |
| Is this seat taken? | Is this seat taken? |
Etiquette, safety and scams
Etiquette
- Greeting: Handshake at first meeting; 'hi' and first names quickly; avoid: Cheek kisses with strangers
- Conversation: Weather is a safe opener; understatement and self-deprecating humour; avoid: Asking about salary or class
- Queues: Join at the back; avoid: Pushing onto buses or trains before others get off
- Apologies: 'Sorry' is said constantly, even when not at fault; avoid: Taking it as an admission of blame
- Pubs: Buy rounds in a group; wait at the bar without waving money; avoid: Clicking fingers at staff
- Nations: Call Scots Scottish and Welsh Welsh; avoid: Calling the whole UK 'England'
Scams and watch-outs
- The town is built for cars: pavements thin out fast away from the centre, and the airport area is not made for walking or cycling.
- Fastway bus 10 runs near 24 h but not on Sundays and public holidays: check the timetable before a late arrival.
- Gatwick is a working airport, not a resort: nothing in Crawley is worth a special journey on its own.
Crawley is an ordinary safe English town by day; the usual night-time caution applies around the High Street pubs and the station approach after dark. The real risks are traffic on the A23 and Manor Royal roads, and walking the airport perimeter.
One and two days
No timed day plan for Crawley yet. Suggested stay: 1 night. Build a day from the list below, mornings for the big sight.
- Gatwick Airport
- New Town planning
- Crawley Town FC
- Tilgate Park
Sources
Written by Voykit; facts cross-checked against these sources, last desk check 2026-09. Prices, hours and rules change: check on the day.
- Crawley Borough Council: crawley.gov.uk/
- Metrobus: www.metrobus.co.uk/
- Gatwick Aviation Museum: www.gamc.org.uk/
- Crawley Museums: crawleymuseums.org/
- Wikivoyage: Crawley, revision 5067541 (CC BY-SA 4.0): en.wikivoyage.org/w/index.php?oldid=5067541
Pocket card
Cut along the border and keep it in your wallet. Show the local-script lines to a driver.
Crawley
To this address, please
To this address, please
My hotel (write the name and address in the local script)
No embassies in Crawley; they are in London. The nearest US consulate-general is in London.
999 works from any phone, including mobiles with no credit.
Voykit · checked 2026-09
Printed from Voykit (/crawley). Written by Voykit; checked 2026-09. Estimates only: confirm prices, hours and entry rules on the day.