This Airport Has the Most Expensive Parking in the World

© High-Level/REX/ShutterstockIf the thought of leaving your car at the $20 (£15.22)-per-day lot or even a local parking meter makes your wallet ache, this one is guaranteed to make it shudder in absolute horror. Though New Yorkers and San Francisco-ans have long been griping about airport parking prices, London has them beat by a long shot. 

London City airport costs a whopping £17, which amounts to $22, to park for just one to two hours—and it only climbs exponentially from there. A full 24-hour stay at the airport surges to a staggering £61, or $79. And here’s the kicker: parking for 15 days mandates a fee of £915—that’s $1,186.75, folks.

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Those figures are ridiculously higher in comparison to major transport hubs around the world; short-term parking can be found at California’s LAX airport for around 4 bucks—less than five times the amount charged at London City—and $18 (£13.70) for an entire day at New York’s JFK location.

And the wallet-crunching prices don’t just apply to overnight or long-term vacationers; even if you’re just hurriedly dropping off or picking up a passenger for short-term parking, the airport charges a hefty £3, which equates to around 4 dollars, for 0-10 minutes.

Most other airports around the world do not charge for the first 20 minutes of parking. That means the only way to avoid the substantial fee is to hitchhike to the airport—which might prove quite implausible with 40 pounds of luggage. If you’re a penny-pincher and want to avoid dropping major bucks, we suggest getting to the airport as close to your takeoff time as possible to minimise parking costs. (If you do get there early, this is how to make the most of your waiting time).

With all those extra airline fees these days, maybe venture out of the U.K.? According to Daily Mail, seven of the the 10 most expensive airport car parks across the globe are in Britain, with London City Airport topping the leaderboard.

In comparison, airports in Greece have been deemed the winner as as some of the cheapest parking prices in the world.

Interestingly, it’s Chicago that takes home the gold medal for America’s most expensive airport parking. O’Hare features a rate of $60 (£45.67) for anything between 9 and 24 hours.

If you’re looking to save a few bucks and decide to opt for public transit (which we highly recommend based on these staggering stats), this chart reveals the cheapest way to get downtown from the world’s busiest airports.