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Original poster

What's the best airport you've been to?

169 replies

WeAreTheHeroes · 20/05/2023 16:33

I thought I'd start a thread on best airports as the flip side of the thread about the worst ones.

I'll start: Alicante. Rebuilt since I was last there thirty years ago. Very light and spacious. We were very quickly through bag drop and security. Lots of coffee and food places, including once you're through to the actual gates. Lots of staff for those passengers needing assistance. Very clean everywhere. Good aircon.

OP posts:
Vicliz24 · 20/05/2023 21:55

Palm Springs. It has local resident volunteers who welcome you to the area . It's almost like a series of conservatories too with pretty gardens in courtyard. Also Albuquerque. Very beautiful lounge overlooking the Sandia mountains.

alienslove · 20/05/2023 21:57

tailinthejam · 20/05/2023 16:43

Years ago and it has probably all changed now, but Mombasa airport. It was a large tin hut, and baggage claim was a roped-off area outside on the tarmac. Flocks of sparrows (of all things!) everywhere, and the air was that hot earthy smell of Africa. If you've ever been, you'll know what I mean.

Windhoek airport, Namibia was just like that!! Walked off the plane and across the tarmac before going into a big shed!!

Florissant · 20/05/2023 21:58

amicissimma · 20/05/2023 21:43

Savannah/Hilton Head. Their seating is rocking chairs. There are even rocking chairs outside at the bus stop for town.

I love that!

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Flying Holidays
TeaMistress · 20/05/2023 21:59

I liked Dublin airport. Very compact and easy to navigate

Pennina · 20/05/2023 22:02

BitOutOfPractice · 20/05/2023 18:35

Southend. Covid nearly killed it but slowly it’s coming back. Chilled, quiet, no stress, quick. Lovely!

Hope so, lovely airport.

FettleOfKish · 20/05/2023 22:39

Usually a very average & small airport but I was once in Jersey for 11 hours due to an incident on the runway, absolutely packed to the rafters with delayed passengers but they did everything to make it more comfortable.

The cafe kept running out of food, and then intermittently they'd announce that they now had pasta & sauce, or chips, or cheese on toast. Evidently someone was hopping down the road to the supermarket and clearing them out of something, until that ran out, then they'd go again for something else.

They opened an impromptu smoking area out of a fire door into a delivery bay.

It was quite fun, for such a long delay. When the runway eventually opened my flight was the last able to leave before the runway closed for the night. God bless my Grandad for trekking to Leeds Bradford at midnight to pick me up.

AllLopsided · 20/05/2023 23:21

About 20 years ago I used to fly from Düsseldorf a lot and it was great - recently renovated, very airy and always efficient. Don't know if that's still the case. In more recent years I really liked flying in and out of London City because it was so quick to get to from the part of London I was visiting, and so compact that it was fast to get through.

Changi - I wouldn't know, as although I've been through a few times I've only seen the gate area and a couple of lounges in transit to/from Australia! Lounges were lovely but gate area seemed pretty drab.

Seiheiki · 20/05/2023 23:22

Singapore

justasoul · 20/05/2023 23:37

Haven’t been in 10+ years but Barajas airport is (was?) so beautiful. Santos Dumont in Rio wins best runway for me, most beautiful landing and takeoff. I like Schiphol too.

Giselletheunicorn · 20/05/2023 23:41

Inverness - 11 minutes from plane doors opening through baggage reclaim to walking out the front exit with bags. Plus the shops in the airport sell both Harris Tweed handbags and Tunnock's teacakes...

trulyunruly01 · 21/05/2023 05:54

I like Funchal. One of the few airports you can still get outside after going through security and watch the plans landing and taking off.
Very compact too.

Neurodiversitydoctor · 21/05/2023 06:06

Lovepeaceunderstanding · 20/05/2023 17:11

Gibraltar’s

Seriously ?

Neurodiversitydoctor · 21/05/2023 06:07

Sapporo in Japan

selfishjeanss · 21/05/2023 06:16

Mumbai Airport for me. We had a 6 hours between flights there last year and spent a lot of that strolling around looking at the incredible art installations. I'd have been happy to stay longer - we were there in the early hours though when it was very quiet.

Ninjama1 · 21/05/2023 06:20

selfishjeanss · 21/05/2023 06:16

Mumbai Airport for me. We had a 6 hours between flights there last year and spent a lot of that strolling around looking at the incredible art installations. I'd have been happy to stay longer - we were there in the early hours though when it was very quiet.

OMG one of the worst views I ever saw in my life was from the windows of the lounge in Mumbai - a massive slum.

Abhannmor · 21/05/2023 06:21

WeAreTheHeroes · 20/05/2023 16:33

I thought I'd start a thread on best airports as the flip side of the thread about the worst ones.

I'll start: Alicante. Rebuilt since I was last there thirty years ago. Very light and spacious. We were very quickly through bag drop and security. Lots of coffee and food places, including once you're through to the actual gates. Lots of staff for those passengers needing assistance. Very clean everywhere. Good aircon.

Kerry. If there's a plane on the tarmac ; that's your plane!

marcopront · 21/05/2023 06:40

orangeflags · 20/05/2023 18:29

Best Dubai. Worst Tanzania

Are you aware Tanzania is a country with multiple airports.

Kilimanjaro airport is lovely but quite small

Zanzibar also small but nice

Dar the international terminal seems quite nice. The domestic is odd but hardly the worst.

TravellingSpoon · 21/05/2023 07:20

Singapore or Tokyo. Closer to home I like Copenhagen.

IbizaToTheNorfolkBroads · 21/05/2023 09:33

Humberside. Literally a shed in a field with a micro WHSmith. No queues for anything. Most flights are helicopters to North Sea rigs, or to Schipol, to transfer to transfer to North Sea rigs...

Violinist64 · 21/05/2023 09:34

Definitely Singapore.

TiredOfCleaning · 21/05/2023 09:35

847arc · 20/05/2023 16:43

Singapore Changi was by far the best I’ve been to.

I was going to say this as well. They have a walk through butterfly enclosure and a rooftop outdoor garden bar.

Plus noodle soups. Lots of noodle soups.

theDudesmummy · 21/05/2023 09:43

I also love Knock ( my local airport), but at the moment Shannon is better because you no longer have any restrictions on liquids in hand luggage and don't have to take your electronic devices out of your bag. (I believe this will soon be the case for all European airports).

DelphiniumBlue · 21/05/2023 10:57

Inverness - very relaxed, friendly and helpful staff, I wish all airports could be like that.
I loved Malaga airport back in the day when you could check in and then go and sit and have drink in the outside bar, and then run through the tiny duty free at the last minute. You could see your plane being lined up ready to go.

cannaecookrisotto · 21/05/2023 11:47

Charles De Gaul was my least favourite.

Changi was my favourite.

Lykia · 21/05/2023 15:34

Fiumicino, Rome lots of eateries, great shopping and the toilets were spotlessly clean. The whole place was spotlessly clean.

Southend - nice, small and functional.

Dubai - great shopping.

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