Sit on the Right side of the plane for the best views on flights from Guangzhou to London. The right side wins overall. The Pearl River Delta departure is the visual highlight of the flight, and over Central Asia the right side also faces south toward the Himalayas and Tibetan Plateau as the route tracks northwest. The London approach on the left is good but relatively brief and often hazy.

During takeoff from Baiyun (CAN), sit on the Right side for the best views. Baiyun's primary departure to the north (runway 02L/02R) puts the Pearl River Delta's sprawling waterway network and Guangzhou's dense urban core on the right side. You get a clear view of the river channels fanning out toward the South China Sea as the aircraft climbs north. Notable sights include: Pearl River Delta channels, Guangzhou city center skyline, Baiyun Mountain (Baiyun Shan) to the northeast, Foshan urban sprawl to the southwest.

When landing at Gatwick (LGW), sit on the Left side for the best views. Gatwick predominantly lands on runway 26L/26R approaching from the east, meaning the aircraft tracks over the North Downs and the Surrey countryside. The left side gives you a clear view of the London skyline to the north, including the Thames corridor, while the right side faces south toward the relatively featureless Weald. Notable sights include: London skyline with Canary Wharf and The Shard visible to the north, Thames River corridor, North Downs chalk ridge, Crawley town directly below on final approach.

The flight from Baiyun (CAN) to Gatwick (LGW) takes Approximately 12 to 13 hours.

The route tracks northwest from Guangzhou over southern China, crossing the Tibetan Plateau's northern edge and the Kunlun Mountains, then over the Tarim Basin and Xinjiang's Taklamakan Desert. Continuing northwest over Kazakhstan's flat steppe, then across southern Russia and Ukraine or Belarus depending on routing, before crossing Poland and Germany and descending over the North Sea coast into England. The Tibetan Plateau and Central Asian desert basins are the most visually dramatic midpoint features.