Does anyone have a favourite airport?

weringo said:
To those that said Gatwick, what are you smoking? I had the displeasure of visiting both the North and South terminals recently for the first time in years, and both were by far the worst airport experience I can remember.

The South terminal in the restaurant area is aboslute rammed with families and screaming children running around, and the North terminal looks like it's half finished? Half of the floor was untiled and just made up of bare concrete. Even if you head to a lounge you have to walk through the hellhole terminals. The lounges are also rubbish which the exception of the BA ones, which are pretty good to be fair. The boarding experience is also dire with a lack of room in the waiting areas.

Heathrow terminal 2 is pretty good. Terminal 5 is also OK if you go to the B gate lounge. London City is nice for a speedy experience. In terms of overseas airports, I quite like to Koh Samui airport.
Click to expand...

I went through Gatwick last week....the only comparison in England i have is BHX, Heathrow T2, T3 and T5. I went through T5 last week and T2 back in April.

First, the long stay car park in Gatwick, badly sign posted, if you manage to miss the turning, next thing you know, within seconds, it is the drop off...and then even if you don't stop, it cost you £5 !!!! Ask my how I found out lol

Then the actual airport itself, even though it was 4am and hardly anyone there, it was just a bad experience, starting off with the MANDATORY Duty Free corridor of crap you have to go through. If someone says "they all do that"...No, they really don't. Heathrow T2 or T5 doesn't. It's there, but it is doesn't make you walk in a meandering way through it.

It seems there seem to be more "lads" or groups of people travelling on holiday together in their 20's than Heathrow. So they are louder, rowdy, at 4am...last thing I wanted.

The lounge i went into was dated, but it did the job and I was too tired to really moan about it.
 
Last edited:
Housey said:
The most surprisingly bad is San Fran. Once airside it is really really poor with few shops or places to eat.
Click to expand...
True, the Virgin Atlantic clubhouse is landside so I've always stayed landside before heading off to board at the last minute as security is never that busy I've found.
 
Good:
- Denver
- Dallas
- Charlotte (although a bit tired, had very smooth connections passing through and layout means very quick and easy to transit through)
- Liverpool - in the shadow of Manchester airport, but been easy to travel through here when a flight is available, growing flight choice

Bad:
- Manchester UK
- Grenoble and Chamberry - both of these may have been influenced by trying to fly with heavy snow storm, people who have experienced this at chamberry will know how bad it clogs up during ski season when not running smoothly
- Milan Bergamo and Naples - both typically Italian and essentially chaos
- Stansted
 
I quite like Koh Samui airport, very small and mostly made from wood, very traditional style and loads of flowers everywhere making
 
poosemon said:
Good:
- Denver
- Dallas
- Charlotte (although a bit tired, had very smooth connections passing through and layout means very quick and easy to transit through)
- Liverpool - in the shadow of Manchester airport, but been easy to travel through here when a flight is available, growing flight choice

Bad:
- Manchester UK
- Grenoble and Chamberry - both of these may have been influenced by trying to fly with heavy snow storm, people who have experienced this at chamberry will know how bad it clogs up during ski season when not running smoothly
- Milan Bergamo and Naples - both typically Italian and essentially chaos
- Stansted
Click to expand...
I've flown into Bergamo and it's like an Italian restaurant - noisy, overcrowded, disorganised, lots of staff all doing nothing except getting angry with one another, shrugging their shoulders and walking off waving their arms about.
 
Alexandros Papadiamantis, as its got one of the shortest runways, requiring brakes, air brakes and full reverse thrust to stop you going into the sea when you land.
 
Copenhagen - for the Mikkeller bar
Dubai - for being impressive
Any of the Hawaiian- for being open air chill out zones
 
Chiang Mai airport, flown in and out a few times this year and 10 mins gate to tarmac.

Facilities aren't great but its so close to the city that you can leave home 2 hours before and make it with plenty of time.
Tallinn airport was unusually good too, especially the prices of stuff.
 
Speaking of airports that are easy to get to from the city.

Vienna, Fukuoka, Haneda, Lisbon, Copenhagen are all very close and convenient with public transport (trains). I don’t recall Oslo or Stockholm being that bad either but don’t have much memory of them.
 
Lopéz said:
Since they did Stansted up it's a lot better
Gatwick is a hole and should not appear in this thread.

Warsaw - awful
Click to expand...

Stansted is far better now for upgrade however it needs to upgrade more and become bigger, at peak times there no where to sit in the concourse it is so busy. They have way more flights and thats the problem it needs to expand to deal with passenger numbers. Oh and hopefully you don't get caught on a gate change because it annoying having to go to the other side at times.

As for Warsaw did you do Modlin that worse airport I have been to, staff shouting at you in Polish, small and horrible.

My favourites was Helsinki very smooth and they have new scanners so no need to get liquids out, and Singapore such a cool airport.
 
bingham67 said:
Stansted is far better now for upgrade however it needs to upgrade more and become bigger, at peak times there no where to sit in the concourse it is so busy. They have way more flights and thats the problem it needs to expand to deal with passenger numbers. Oh and hopefully you don't get caught on a gate change because it annoying having to go to the other side at times.

As for Warsaw did you do Modlin that worse airport I have been to, staff shouting at you in Polish, small and horrible.

My favourites was Helsinki very smooth and they have new scanners so no need to get liquids out, and Singapore such a cool airport.
Click to expand...

The terminal at Stansted has now received permission for expansion.
It'll grow out towards the aprons by three trees as such and the transit train will be removed as will the bussing gates.

Still no Satellite 4 mind.
 
Raymond Lin said:
Speaking of airports that are easy to get to from the city.

Vienna, Fukuoka, Haneda, Lisbon, Copenhagen are all very close and convenient with public transport (trains). I don’t recall Oslo or Stockholm being that bad either but don’t have much memory of them.
Click to expand...
Office
bingham67 said:
Stansted is far better now for upgrade however it needs to upgrade more and become bigger, at peak times there no where to sit in the concourse it is so busy. They have way more flights and thats the problem it needs to expand to deal with passenger numbers. Oh and hopefully you don't get caught on a gate change because it annoying having to go to the other side at times.

As for Warsaw did you do Modlin that worse airport I have been to, staff shouting at you in Polish, small and horrible.

My favourites was Helsinki very smooth and they have new scanners so no need to get liquids out, and Singapore such a cool airport.
Click to expand...
For Warsaw I've done both, and both are unpleasant.
 
Keflavik airport, properly chilled out. We even got told "This is not Heathrow, not need to be in a rush here" :cry:, a very relaxing experience.
 
I used to like Southampton as it was so tiny and compact, could turn up 40 minutes before the flight and get through. Heathrow T5 now as i've been through it so many times and know where I want to go straight away, even more pleasant when going through the first wing and bypassing the common folk :D

Majorca is pretty awful as you seem to have to walk so far to get everywhere and nothing seems to be connected.

HK I also remember as being a bit of a nightmare, flew in from uk andthen out to vietnam and almos missed the outbound flight due to the size of it.
 
Last edited:
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top Bottom