Wanted to get people's takes on departing LHR vs LCY for the flight to AMS. We will be staying near Paddington so the Heathrow Express is very easy, and we'll have F check-in/lounge at LHR.. but could easily change to an LCY departure. Thoughts?
TfL overground - formerly the Heathrow Connect or something - offers a fast service from Paddington to heathrow for about £9, and you can use contactless payment with an Aussie CC. I used it recently and it was clean and quick. Actually pretty enjoyable. Plenty of space for luggage and not crowded. Would highly recommend.
Pros and cons of LCY... it can be easy to get to depending on where you originate in London. The check-in queues were horrendous a couple of weeks ago when I flew to AMS in the morning at 9am. The economy queue was way long, but so was the business class/OW elite. Took around 30 mins to get through five people in front of me (one was a family of four)... and it wasn't because of covid checking... just they were short staffed (1 desk for premium and two for economy).
Legroom on the E195 was WAY better than the A320 returning to LHR. I'd say the E190 was maybe 31 or 32 inches compared to just 30 on the A320. Even with a middle free on the A320 it wasn't a good flight with the tight legroom and poor service (which is very unusual in Club). However, the E190 will be 2-2, no blocked seat. Even though the flight was on time ex LCY it boarded a little late and the tiny waiting room was jam packed... they simply weren't designed for ~90 pax. In the mix gate staff were circulating taking cabin bags off economy pax... after checking boarding passes to see if you has status. So it was all just a bit uncomfortable.
All things considered if you are in Paddington and take the Tfl overground and use BA F check-in it'll probably be a much nicer experience than LCY.