ON TOUR Plus: Heathrow T4 - A review

Heathrow Terminal 4 was reopened on 14 June this year after its closure in May 2020 due to the pandemic. 

It was originally opened by the then Prince of Wales on 1 April 1986 and is the airport’s smallest terminal with 9.4 million passengers in 2018 out of Heathrow’s grand total of 80.1 million for that year.  BA and Concorde were residents until the opening of Terminal 5 in March 2008. Air France has also departed from Terminal 4, but that leaves 30 airlines including six from Skyteam (ITA Airways, Kenya Airways, Korean Air, Saudia, TAROM and Vietnam Airlines) and a number of Middle East carriers including El Al, Etihad, Gulf Air, Oman Airways and Qatar Airways, the terminal’s largest carrier with seven daily services to Doha.  Editor-in-Chief Malcolm Ginsberg recently used the facility on his way to Oman.

"Getting to Terminal 4 by road is easy.  No tunnel to negotiate. There is a Piccadilly Line train every ten minutes from London (one way only – from the Central Area you need to go to Hatton Cross and change) and the Elizabeth Line every 30 minutes from Sunday 6 November all the way from Abbey Wood, through Paddington and with stops in the western suburbs.  On Monday 24 October Bond Street opened, something of a misnomer as the main entrance is in Hannover Square.

The Terminal 4 drop-off is out in the open (£5) but it is just a few steps into the terminal with the Oman Air check-in central just by the Fast-Track entrance for lounge/business class passengers.  

Eligible Oman Air guests are for now welcome at Gulf Air and will remain in that splendid lounge until their oneworld membership is activated when eligible passengers will be able to use Qatar Airways’ facilities.  El Al has not reopened the King David Suite since moving back to Terminal 4 after the pandemic and Plaza Premium will take it over into the new year and offer kosher food.  

Terminal 4 is in many ways the best terminal at Heathrow with most of the shops now open.  If you are not in a lounge Pret A Manger by Gate 6 offers sandwiches and light meals at sensible prices; not too far away is the Caviar House, rather more upmarket.  Harrods has a store, so has Hamleys and with all the Middle East airlines in the terminal (except Emirates) fashion is pre-eminent, Lacoste, Michael Kors and Tom Ford having their only shops at the airport.  When it comes to gate access the walking is less than the other terminals and if you have a problem electric carts are available”.

www.heathrow.com/at-the-airport/terminal-guides/terminal-4-guide

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