5/5 - Excellent
If you are in Stansted with a car and have a few hours to kill then I recommend the Freeport Retail Village in Braintree which is a 15min drive away. It is a very underrated outlet centre.






Professional service and extremely comfortable.
Reviewed on 26 Feb 2026

Clean rooms. Good food , breakfast and most of all polite and helpful staff. Kyra was stand out .
Reviewed on 26 Feb 2026

We recently stayed at the Gem on a Saturday night and it was a fantastic experience. The hotel is stylish, well run and the staff can't do enough to assist you. Everyone was so professional. Also worth noting is that the Full English breakfast is excellent.
Reviewed on 2 Feb 2026




Travel back more than 900 years in time when you step into a replica of a medieval castle and its dwellings.
You can spend an afternoon browsing the exhibits at House on the Hill Toy Museum in Stansted. Visit the spas and lively bars in this relaxing area.
Enjoy an outing to Whoosh Explore during your stay in Stansted. Visit the spas and lively bars in this walkable area.

If you are in Stansted with a car and have a few hours to kill then I recommend the Freeport Retail Village in Braintree which is a 15min drive away. It is a very underrated outlet centre.
Busy but efficient
Perfect stay
Car parking much better than other London airports
The airport itself is fine. But the parking and taxi idiots all over the place make it stressful.
Not a lot to do
