Flying out of Manchester?

I was thinking about sleeping in Conwy the night before heading to Manchester for the noon flight. 3 hours? That's a possiblity for sure. I'm just a little nervous of having such a long drive the morning of a flight. Traffic, etc.
Thank you for all of your advise!!!

Most airlines ask you to be at the airport 3 hours before an intercontinental flight. You would need to check with your airline whether this would apply at Manchester as it is a smaller airport. Travelling in from Wales (or anywhere) to get to the airport, by say 9 am, means dealing with commuter traffic (for Manchester and its extensive hinterland) so be sure to give yourself plenty of time.

United flies direct from Manchester to EWR, then to Atlanta. The flights are cheaper than going to Heathrow. Mi just checked and for SUMMER travel, outbound mid-June, return early July, United flights are $699! That is amazing and I assume it is a limited time offer. This showed up on Kayak.

Mark, It is a small, easily accessed airport. Yes, you can drive there from Wales in under 3 hours.

'you can drive there from Wales in under 3 hours' Wales isn't a dot, it's pretty big place. A couple of hours is enough from Conwy. From the far beyonds of Pembrokeshire it's more like five. Manchester's the all-time good airport. I bounce prices in/out of there all the time against both London and Scotland. With an early arrival, you can be in either area by noon.

I'm going to go check United's website to see if that $699 for summer travel is real. We were going to skip europe this year, with the high airfares, but I've always wanted to see Scotland! Of course it will be more from Seattle than from Atlanta, but anything under $1000 looks good from here. Edit: and of course now that $699 fare is gone; the United slights through EWR are now showing $1498. Oh well.

Yes I know that you need to be there several hours before your flight. Is there any nice town in eastern Wales or Western England to stay the night after doing the Conwy, Caernarfon loop that would be a little closer to the airport? The flight I'm looking at departs alittle after 11 am.

Mark: Sleep in Chester the night before...charming walled town with a lot more to choices for B&Bs and pubs than little Conwy, plus a least a couple hours closer to Manchester. We stayed in pub just west of Chester which was on the road to Conwy. The owner turned out to be an award winning chef. Sorry can"t remember name...just an example. Another time we stayed in B&B on "Hoole Rd" on the east side of town just after flying in to Manchester. Lots of places to stay at all levels. Check with Tourist Info Office in town center if still open.

Mark, Manchester Airport is a smaller facility (also a bit older), but very easy to get around. You should be able to return your car right at the airport. I've rented from there in the past, but it's been a few years. Regarding the drive, Chester would probably be a good choice as it's closer to Manchester. However, I've found that driving in the U.K. ALWAYS takes longer than expected, so be sure to leave LOTS of time for the drive. That should provide a bit of a "cushion" for any traffic issues you might encounter. Since your flight leaves at ~11:00, my preference would be to stay closer to the airport. For me that would be preferable to getting up at a dreadful hour in the morning to make the drive from Wales. Happy travels!