We will be flying into London and would like to spend the night in an airport hotel and fly out the next day to Paris where we will rent a car to drive through France (not the city of course). Any suggestions for an airline out of Heathrow? Also for a hotel in that airport? We could go to either airport in Paris.
Unless you will arrive at Heathrow quite late in the evening, I recommend that you spend the night in London and take the Eurostar to Paris in the morning. Even a short time in London is better than being in an airport hotel. And the Eurostar will whisk you from central London to central Paris in just over two hours. Book ASAP (up to 120 days allowed) at eurostar.com to get the best fare. However, since you asked about airport hotels, this page on the London Toolkit site has a list of Heathrow hotels with links to detailed information on each one.
You don't specify a budget. AirFrance, BritishAir fly Heathrow to Paris. Take a look at Kayak.com and see what airlines meet your budget http://www.kayak.com/Cheap-Flights-London-to-Paris.LON.PAR.co.html Make certain your choice is flying out of Heathrow, not Stansted or Gatwick. Can't help you with the hotel near Heathrow as I ALWAYS go into London for the night. Depending on your flight times you could easily do the same.
I'm with Tim. Take the Eurostar. It is a very good experience. I'd rather be moving on a fast train than standing in security lines and sitting for a couple of hours in an airport waiting to leave. The Eurostar is just so efficient.
I would not take the Eurostar based on the original question... OP is not going to Paris. So they get the Eurostar to Paris and then either have to rent a car and drive OUT of Paris (not something I want to do) or take some other transport to CDG or Orly to pick up the car AirFrance and BA sell round trip tickets from both major airports to Paris for around $200 (depending on dates) I have done this several times due to great sales or the use of Frequent flyer miles! I generally do this on the day I arrive allowing about 4 hours for the "connection" As for hotels.... One suggestion. If you fly into Heathrow you can easily go to Windsor for the evening which is nicer then an airport hotel. Heathrow has a "Yotel" . This is VERY VERY basic hotel (think closet with a shower :) ) All of your major chains are also near both hotels. I know there is an Ibis and Jurys in the more "budget" range near Heathrow
I am doing the opposite thing (have to fly round trip to paris to use my miles, but then i'm flying directly from CDG to Heathrow when i land, and returning to Paris via the Eurostar a week later). I was able to get a flight on British Airways for under $100 (this is for November travel). I will also ask, is your flight into Heathrow arriving late at night? If not, i personally would skip the airport hotel and just jump on a flight to Paris while you're already at the airport. i wouldn't want to spend any waking hours hanging out at an airport hotel - they're generally not very well situated to take in the sights. however, if you're arriving too late to hop on another flight, it is probably your best option.