Terminal
A single building, rebuilt in March 2012 — opened by the Secretary of State for Transport, 90 metres longer than before, with more check-in desks and security channels. easyJet flies over 20 European and North African routes from here under a hub agreement signed in 2011; Santa’s Lapland runs the seasonal Rovaniemi charters every winter.
Check-in opens two and a half hours before your scheduled departure. Most airlines expect online check-in; checking in at the desk instead can carry an airline fee. Arrive at least two and a half hours before your flight.
Since February 2026, CT security scanners let passengers carry up to two litres of liquids and laptops inside their cabin bag — but the airport still advises keeping a 100 ml/1-litre bag ready, both because other airports on your route may not have the same technology and because its own CiTX scanning “cannot yet guarantee 100%” availability. Security Fast Track is bookable from £8 per person, open from two hours before every departure.
The railway station is just 100 steps from the terminal, opposite the building through a covered walkway — Greater Anglia runs up to six trains an hour at peak times, reaching London Liverpool Street in 52 minutes. Board a train straight from the station forecourt: there is no shuttle to catch first.
Hearing loops cover the ticket desk, check-in desks and boarding gates; Southend is the UK’s first dementia-friendly airport, with a therapy-dog partnership alongside its Sunflower Scheme training. Assistance is arranged through the airline, which needs 48 hours’ notice before departure — arriving passengers reach a train, car or taxi seat in under 10–15 minutes on a completely step-free route (bar the aircraft steps themselves).