London Stansted Airport Reviews 

Accidentally went down the drop off lane at Stansted airport whilst meaning to go down the short stay exit. Automatically got charged for doing this although I did not stop to drop off anyone. Paid the £10 fee as did not want to receive a fine. On my return to the UK I challenged this and the airport refunded me. Requires better signage please or no fee if no stopping involved!

Have always considered Stansted airport ok but the last two flights from there going through security were awful,abrupt staff being frisked and made to feel like a criminal, felt very intrusive as I'm a woman of a certain age,hasn't been the same since upgrade

MAG should be ashamed, this Aiprort, used to be fantastic, it has been ruined, lack of seating, facilities.More interested in making it an over priced shopping mall. To top it all off arrived this morning and they have closed the Escape Lounge. Where do they expect us business people to sit and work ? No seats anywhere. Will only use this airport as a last resort. Heathrow or Gatwick only moving forward.

Horrible horrible money grabbing hell hole. Car parking charges to meet passengers such as unaccompanied children or elderly or assisted passengers extortionate. If I could give a minus star I would. RIP off Britain at its very worst.

First impressions arriving at Stansted bollards miles of the them rip of charge for dropping off not enough seats very messy bad for customer service one to afford

A very disappointing experience from start to finish.
When we arrived, we had to wait over an hour just to get through security because only a few security lanes were open. There were no seats available while waiting, so everyone had to stand in a very long queue. The staff were extremely rude and completely unable to manage the situation efficiently.
To make matters worse, a member of staff made me throw away a small can of dry shampoo, insisting that it was a liquid, even though I explained several times that it wasn’t. There was no willingness to listen or apply common sense.
Our flight was then delayed by more than three hours without any clear explanation. Because the departure gate was not announced, all passengers were forced to remain in a very small waiting area near the shops. There were nowhere near enough seats for everyone, so most people had to stand for hours. The area was also extremely dirty and overcrowded.
Overall, this was one of the worst airport experiences I have ever had. Poor organisation, rude staff, unacceptable waiting times, and a complete lack of care for passengers.

My first experience with London Stansted Airport, will hopefully be my last. I flew out of this airport to a recent holiday to Malta, & it is not an experience I ever wish to experience again. Being a disabled passenger, I have assisted travel, where you get assistance both through the airport & onto your flight, on both outward & inward journeys, well after checking in my luggage I was told that I needed to book in at the priority/assisted travel desk. I did this & in the time it took me to have a 5 minute breather, then get some money exchanged, my name was called I was in the process of doing the exchange as I was the only one at the currency exchange desk.
I was then taken straight round to the departure gate some 3hrs prior to the departure gate actually opening & just left there on my own. I never got the chance to go through duty free, get myself anything to eat, nothing.

Then when the staff were waiting on the boarding gate to open, the screen with my flight details on it suddenly changed to flight details for a Dublin flight, even the boarding staff had NO idea what was happening. We were then told to go to a completely different gate at both the other end & side of the airport. And had it not been for a very kind gentleman with the lady I was sat next to waiting to board the same flight offering to push the wheelchair I had been left in to the new departure gate & waiting with me I would probably have missed my flight as NO member of Stansted Airport came to assist me (or actually find me) I was prepared to walk before this gentleman stepped in.
Then even though I had priority/assisted boarding, as I can NOT climb stairs the porter that escorted all the priority/assisted passengers to the plane & the lift, tried to leave me at the steps at the front of the plane expecting me to climb those steps on to the plane. It took me telling him 4 times that I can NOT climb step/stairs before he actually listened to what I was saying & checked his paperwork to see my name there on it for lift transfer to the plane. Not an airport I will use again in a hurry

Don’t use Stanstead Airport unless you have to it’s an awful airport.The walk through the shops to the gates is very very very very long by and busy and hot and horrid. Expensive to drop, their security machines don’t work and 90% of the bags have to be checked and they pull out something that doesn’t even break their rules that they are shouting at you while you wait in their ques. Gates are very badly signposted and squeezed together so you can’t tell what gate is what. The airlines put up final call b fore they have even let 1 person through the gate, They put gate closed while hundreds of people where still not through the gate

Excellent support with my school party (28th June) The team allowed us to be together after security on one of the lines and supported us with an issue with one of our students which made the whole procedure very smooth. Was much appreciated.

Saturday 27th June 2026. We were flying to Rhodes in Greece. Airport parking was good at the mid stay car park and the transfer dropped us right outside the airport entrance. Check in was good as we where flying with TUI and then security which again was ok but when we then walked into the duty free area things went down hill very fast. The airport was PACKED with no where at all to sit down. NO air conditioning so it was over 30 degrees. The shops are over priced especially Burger King. Drinks did not taste of Diet Coke more fizzy water….. when we did find a seat by the train which takes you to the different gates two airport staff came round asking people to get off the floor and the way they spoke to people was very condescending…. That was the first time for 10 years that we had flew out of Standard and it will be our last. NEVER AGAIN

Its is 32 degrees inside the airport. No real air temperature control. All the water fountains are covered and out of use, all vending machines are out of stock of all drinks and there info phones are immediately disconnected if you try to place a call. There are babies, pregnant women and vulnerable folks here struggling along with staff

Having trvalled for 40 years I am still atonished by the total lack of shame and stabarss that Manchester Airport Group have for their staff and customers.

Sadly I am not surprised but I am shocked this is still what a UK business thinks is acceptable.

Shame on you all. Let me know if youd like me to post all the photos.

We travelled back from Athens a couple of days ago. The flight was an hour late which at 1 am in the morning is not good. However we were made to wait in the plane for another hour while they found a bus to take us to the terminal. To add to that the mid stay buses were non existent. The long stay buses were in abundance but for mid stay we waited a further 30 mins when they are supposed to come every 12-15 mins. By the time we arrived at our car from the time the flight touched down it was almost 3 am! Would never use Stansted again.

Awful airport. Overcrowded, nowhere to sit. Aircon doesn’t work. So hot sticky and just dreadful.
That said, staff are nice. Security took a long time, but they were just doing there job and the chap we spoke to was a good laugh too.
We normally use Luton and will again in the future.

I have been fined for the new Express Set Down with no barriers, even though I tried to pay after two days, as soon as I remembered. Now I have to pay £60 for giving my husband a lift, just for passing by in 3 minutes.

As a result, we will now only travel from Gatwick or Heathrow and will never depart from Stansted anymore.
This is absolutely a disgusting practice and I am lucky to be able to have other airports to depart from. Ridiculous

Disgusting experience. The airport is overcrowded, yet there is only one water fountain available. Dear Stansted Airport, maybe instead of focusing so much on selling bottled water, you should improve the water refill scheme by installing more fountains and signposting them properly.

This has been the worst airport experience I have ever had. I have been waiting for almost two hours just to get a boarding pass. This is my first time using this airport, and unfortunately, it will be my last.

The Ryanair check-in desk is extremely poorly organised, with only two staff members attending to hundreds of passengers in the queue. The process is painfully slow and has caused unnecessary stress and delays.

In 2026, it is unbelievable that such a disorganised system still exists. Passengers deserve better organisation, more staff support, and a more efficient service. This experience has been extremely disappointing.

I just want to get through, maybe relax and board my plane.
I don't smoke, I don't want to smell like Caitlin Jenner (some fragrance they seem to be heavily promoting) and I don't want to pay over £20 for a tiny Wetherspoons burger!
Stansted operates as an overpriced mall more than an airport. No one is buying the foul scents you insist on spraying at passengers as they shuffle through.
Security is slow but reasonably friendly (by airport standards)
Seating is uncomfortable and cramped owing to all the space being used to sell pointless stuff that no one wants/needs!

Desagradables. Pasaron hasta mis zapatos por scanner. Mala experiencia para ir de la t5 a la t3

Ordinary thieves.
I booked meet and greet parking with them by mistake. It was meant to be Luton airport. Rung them in 15 minutes and asked for a refund - they directed me to customer support website - no response from them.
Lost £180 as thy have no liability - but where are so called customer rights. Out of this county.