An essential part of travel - so which airport do you love, and which airport do you loathe?
There are a few favourites - but Hong Kong and Dubai stand out for me.
Though not that bad - Canberra in Australia is my least favourite - it is well below par for the airport of a national capital.
Reply to this Well, I haven't seen as much of the world as you guys, but so far I'd say:
Best: Heathrow, London, England.
Worst: Congonhas, São Paulo, Brazil. It's unacceptable that the biggest city in South America, and the 4th of the world, has an airport like that. Not to mention that it is literally in the middle of the city, surrounded by huge buildings - when landing, you can see what people are watching on tv - and was the busiest airport in Brazil until July of 2007. Now it's the second one. Huge queues, flights always delayed or cancelled and by far the most expensive snack I've ever had. The traffic around the area is terrible - you don't want to imagine it at rush hour! - so you have to watch out the time in order to don't miss the flight. But the flights are always late anyway. Oh well.
Reply to this Best - Hong Kong also - for a smoker, the lounges are amazing:p
Worst - Pakistan - Karachi- Jinnah Airport - Full of aggressive touts, horrible, uncomfortable smoking lounges
Trinidad - Port of Spain - - longest immigration lines, confusing to get around
Thailand - Bangkok - cockroach infested, dirty
Reply to this Best: Singapore - free net access everywhere - desks for laptop users with power points, loads of places to sit and even a free art gallery.
Worst: So many to choose from! - what I find really terrible are the brand new airports which completely miss the mark - so - the new Bangkok airport - Suvarnabhumi Airport - the management have stated that they want this to be the business hub airport for South-East Asia - but: there is no where to sit, the wifi has security on it - probably they want it to be metered, there are no power points (sockets) for use anywhere that I could find. So it's as bad as Miami airport without the excuse of being 30 years old...
Reply to this I hate airports, actually I hate the whole flying experience in general.
Dublin airport is the absolute pits, a real shockr for a capital's airport.
Reply to this Worst- Taipei, taiwan- dirty, old extremely confusing and long waits
Reply to this I like all airports which stay open all night and serve coffee 24/7 and dont hassle me if I fall asleep. I would prefer to spend a night at the airport than to get up at 3AM for an early flight and then trust the taxi to show up. Not to mention other things such as whether the guesthouse/hostel or will be locked up so I cant get out at that time. If the airport closes at night I cant spend the night there.
The worst was Charles de Gualle(Paris). Everytime I am there I have some kind of big inconvenience. Last time there were no toilets in the departure lounge. I had to go out and then had to stand in line and take off my shoes etc for the security check again.
Mel
Reply to this So far, my favorite has been Hong Kong. Unlike here in Los Angeles, they gave away free WiFi (which comes in rather useful when you have a 3 hour wait). My worst experience has been in Dallas/Fort Worth. I've been through that airport 4 times and EVERY time there are ridiculous delays.
Reply to this Best airports I have been to so far are Hong Kong and Copenhagen equally...for sheer elegance and style and customer service...and the worst must be Miami international arrivals/departures with snappy irritable staff and the looks of being stuck in a 70's timewarp.The facilities for passengers was very poor with uncomfortable plastic seating and drab rather dated interiors with limited passenger shopping oportunities or food outlets airside whilst waiting for flights.
Mike
Reply to this My travel agent has learned to avoid any and all flights that will put me through Chicago O'Hare Airport. The lines are always insanely long, the staff is always rude and sour, and I'm always delayed flying out of there. The kicker was the time that I lost my bags not once in a trip, but twice. Both times the luggage was lost at O'Hare.
Just recently, I started flying through the Minneapolis/St. Paul airport, and I've been shocked at how nice it is. No flight delays to speak of. No rude staff so far. And best of all; even though I fly internationally from there, it's never very crowded! I'm a fan.
I also like London Heathrow, but I think that has more to do with the fact that they have a pub 😊
Reply to this Havent travelled much, but i'd say I love KL international airport (not the low cost one) for its architecture.
the worst would be Gold Coast (coolangatta), which closes at about 10pm, uncomfortable seats and nothing very glorious about it despite the fact gold coast is one of the top tourist destinations in australia
Reply to this One more bad one to add to the list:
London Gatwick. I had the worst luck there, it's old, decrepit, and the signs are bogus. I kept getting lost, and it wasn't very traveler friendly (and the staff were not service minded at all). Usually it's pretty clear where you go, but I wandered for quite a bit there yesterday. Ick.
Reply to this Worst - KL airport (international).....apparently its won best airport 2 years running....I have no idea how. Complete lack of facilites and places to sit!
KL Low Cost - smells, queues, crap food
Bangkok - if your planes delayed don't expect to find a nice comfortbale chair to sit on. They are all metal and the airport is freezing!
Manchester - confusing
Hanoi - not enough seats
Sydney - so many queues!
Best - Dubai.....great shopping, food...comfortable chairs
Maumere - back to basics, 1 room, 1 short runway. Got my bags super quick
Reply to this Best - Amsterdam Schipol - allows you a long and energetic walk after that tedious plane journey! You've also got the fascinating spectacle of watching the smokers being forced into a glass enclosure the size of a phone box!
Worst - Durham Tees Valley - the security staff were trained at Auschwitz and the Fuhrer's memory lives on...
Reply to this Singapore's Changi Airport is among the best, I especially enjoyed the music bar lounge....music was mesmerised by the “Live” acoustic performance...this was really my best journey to singapore...watching and enjoying the scenary has never been so fulfilling...swiftvideos. they told me that changi airport has also attained an award for providing the best service.
Reply to this Best: I love Stockholm's Arlena airport. Imagine: it's smooth and efficient, everybody is polite, and while a lot of people is there, it still is silent! No creaky loudspeakers, no silly lounge music, no reverberating halls.
Worst: There are no limits to how bad they can get but I forgive the poor. Among the big rich ones that could do better, London's Heathrow: crowded, rude, passengers prodded like cattle. I go out of my way to skip it.
Reply to this Best -new Toronto terminal one
Worst -Moscow Sherymetevo
Reply to this Best - none really, although in LA the cops were handing out comfy blankets to stranded travellers.
Worst - Jakarta, where you are not allowed to actually stay in the airport, so you have to sleep/ wait outside.
Reply to this Best - Hong Kong and Singapore for the reasons mentioned by everyone else. Great food options, wifi and static internet with desks to sit at, power points for charging things, plenty of shopping opportunities and great public transport links to and from.
Worst - several here for us. Bangkok - so gray and miserable, no wifi, the food is ridiculously expensive and the air con is way too cold. Macau - terrible queues for whatever flight, really poor food options, no shops apart from high-end designer shops and a measly 15 minutes of wifi; the smoking box here doesn't work well so there is always a smell of smoke lingering near to it. Manila - where do we start...this has to be THE worst airport ever. You can't get into the terminal without showing a ticket, the security screenings are ridiculously strict with 2cm thick flip flops even having to go through the scanner! Taxis are overpriced and there is no public transport, the airport authorities have gated and fenced off the entire car park to stop people from trying to get normal priced taxis from outside and there are about 2 restaurants there serving terrible and overpriced food. Oh and no wifi.
Kuala Lumpur Low Cost terminal (or Cheap Charlie terminal as we call it) isn't too bad for what it is. A lot more selection for food has opened up and makes it a proper budget experience BUT it's the worst for sleeping overnight as so many people do it, so it can be difficult to find a free spot on the floor to kip on!
Reply to this Hmmm. My favorite has to be Washington DC. Regan Airport is so small and a breeze to get in and out of. Least favorite maybe Bogota, Colombia
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