What makes a good transit airport

markpb

IRLConor wrote: »

I tend to opt for the DUB-ORD-SFO route despite ORD being a terrible airport

brandon_flowers wrote: »

Most US airports are pants just like their carriers. ORD was once referred to by a fellow pax as the armpit of American airports

After this came up in two threads recently, I wondered what makes a good transit airports? Everyone seems to agree that American airports are pretty poor (although I found Atlanta and Philly okay) and European airports are better (except Heathrow).

So my question is... what makes a good transit airport? Why do you like/dislike particular hubs?

Thud

basically the services in the area you are trapped in, the international terminal in ORD has terrible selection of restaurants outside the security barrier and inside has none (two stalls and a bit of duty free). Other parts of the airport have a much better selection

A Primal Nut

Preferably short transit times between terminals and gates - Heathrow and Dubai for example are really long while Frankfurt is nowhere near as bad.

In Singapore and Copenhagen they have security check at each gate instead of one for all flights. This is good in one sense because it means you won't be caught in a long security queue and there is less chance you will have to rush or miss your flight. I think Amsterdam is the same if I remember correctly.

LXFlyer

Copenhagen does not have security checks at the gates normally - I've transited there numerous times and never had a check.

IRLConor

There are two things that make a great transit experience:

• The ability to transfer between any two gates without having to re-clear security.
• Some food that you might want to actually eat.

Apart from that, there are a few other bits and pieces that can make it nicer:

• Decent comfortable seating
• WiFi that's either free or worth paying for
• Power sockets near seats
• Showers. I've showered during layovers in Frankfurt twice and IIRC it was €7. Worth every penny to feel human again.

A Primal Nut

lxflyer wrote: »

Copenhagen does not have security checks at the gates normally - I've transited there numerous times and never had a check.

Actually the check is just for people flying from a non-EU country so in that case its not at the gates themselves - I'm thinking of another airport I transited through - might be Amsterdam.

knockon

All depends on are you changing airlines and/or terminals?

EWR is pretty painless - arrive in Terminal C - onwards to LAX etc from Terminal C. Even if you have a connection to PVD or BOS its a quick bus ride to Terminal A. Nice shops and Lounge Access (priority Pass holder).

Did LAX last Sept through JFK with Delta Terminal 2 (bit of a kip). However the a/c in from SNN was the same one going to LAX 90 mins later so you can be lucky.

YVR (Vancouver) - Real nice airport. Great shops, restaurants and terrific open spaces.

LHR - Terminal 1 (itself not great) but the hovel that EI operate out of is the worst dump I have ever been in. I was stuck there 2 months ago and once your there you cant even get back to civilization in T 1.

donvito99

One word.

Munich.

IRLConor

donvito99 wrote: »

One word.

Munich.

I'll be there at the end of May, so that's good to hear.

What in particular is good about it?

MuffinsDa

donvito99 wrote: »

One word.

Munich.

+1

A couple of years ago I arrived at MUC enroute DUB after an overnight flight from ORD (after missing a direct flight to DUB due to inexplicable inbound delay on a ****ty United DFW/ORD flight).

And by god the difference! It was such an oasis of calm and quite. I felt I've arrived home once I set foot there. Best Airport in the world - well in my world-I'm sure there are better ones!

MuffinsDa

IRLConor wrote: »

I'll be there at the end of May, so that's good to hear.

What in particular is good about it?

Quiet.
Civilised.
Microbrewery!!!
Quiet.
Quiet.
Spacious.
Bright.
Sensible Layout.
Quiet.

Did I say Quiet?

donvito99

Munich is found under Airport in the dictionary. It's that good.

IRLConor

MuffinsDa wrote: »

Quiet.
Civilised.
Microbrewery!!!
Quiet.
Quiet.
Spacious.
Bright.
Sensible Layout.
Quiet.

Did I say Quiet?

I'll be flying with a firearm, so I'll have to give the microbrewery a miss but the quiet, bright and sensible layout bits sound fantastic!

brandon_flowers

The open air square in Munich usually has some sort of show/exhibition on as well if you are bored of sitting inside. It is just well organised and never seems busy even though it is 30th in the world in pax numbers. Even the car rental is impressive.

I've used Munich about 10 times in the last year and I have to say it is up there with Changi and supposedly Incheon (which I should visit early next year) as the best in the world.

And also free wifi makes a big difference during transit if you don't have lounge access. Boingo - almost as annoying as "This is a drop off zone only"

cson

I've used ORD a good few times both Domestic and International and found it grand tbh. On the other hand I've had a couple of terrible experiences in MCO.

Overall;

Good
Free Wifi
Comfy seating
A reasonably priced Lounge
Good Pub/Bar
Efficient Security and Check In Staff
Reasonable transit times between clearing security and reaching your Gate.
Well equipped navigational systems so minor fog/weather events don't knock it out

Bad
Queues
Queues
Queues

pclancy

For me space and room to wander along with good rest and shower facilities makes a great transit airport. I usually do the 24-32 hour journey from Wellington-Dublin without a long stopover to save time.

Singapore feels like walking around a nice hotel, plush floors, lovely flower arrangements and gardens, transit hotel, free cinema, great shops, massage, restaurants and its huge enough to pass a few hours by just ambling around. Free bus tours of the city leave regulary and there is often some form of entertainment going on.

Bangkok is OK but not as nice. Feels more claustrophobic and the announcements are really harsh. Hong Kong is also good but very busy.

I personally hate Frankfurt but thats only because last time I was there I had to forfeit my 2 bottles of lovely Vodka to customs

Looking forward to seeing what Seoul is like this Summer, I hear and read great things about it and Korean Air so decided to give them a try this year. Used to always only fly Qantas or Singapore Airlines but when I found out about Korean's 34" seat pitch and excellent pricing I decided to book. They also put you up in a nice hotel for the night and give you lots of vouchers to use. Hopefully Kim Jung Un won't have done anything stupid by then....

Stovepipe

the ability to have a shower! Any airport that doesn't offer that is a tip! Also, good directions to the inevitable change of terminal/pier/other side of airport to catch your connecting flight.....multilingual signs. Dublin Airport is dire in this respect....any airport that does not feel the need to have intimidating soldiers or policemen every few metres. Security can be discrete without being ineffective. Also, the ability to cope with a crisis. I saw a perfect example of this in the USA when a huge storm caused an airport to be closed, stranding hundreds of pax and the hotels were overflowing. The management of the airport simply deployed hundreds of foldout cots, complete with throwaway pillows and blankets. Everybody got a decent sleep, watched over by armed police. result: happy customers.

regards
Stovepipe

Stinicker

Singapore for me ranks as the absolute best airport in the world. I've only been through it once but it stands out compared to all other airports I have been through in my life and I have traveled through over 30 airports over the last 5 years.

Bangkok is not great, queues for immigration can be chaotic and there are no showers there unless you go to the transit hotel and pay like 500bt (€12 ~ €15) but there is free wifi in Bangkok but you must present your passport to get code for security reasons.

Dubai is an absolute nightmare, no working wifi either and the only only positive plus is there is loads of duty free shopping but don't expect great bargains. I much prefer Abu Dhabi to Dubai and Etihad over Emirates anyday.

Kuala Lumpur is very good too and well ahead of both Bangkok and Dubai, the low cost terminal in KL (where Air Asia flys to) is an absolute tip though and I had to sit on the floor there for an hour last year because there is not enough seating and I gave my seat to a pregnant woman, also the a/c hardly cools it at all.

mikewest

Very tricky one to answer e.g. for the OP if you had the god luck to fly into ORD T1 and back out of T1 then it is an excellent transit airport however having to change terminals to T5 for most international makes it a kip imho.
Heathrow is excellent for any transit only using T5 otherwise a bloody nightmare.
What makes a good transit airport is the ability to change planes without having to revisit security and all that s***e followed by decent food & drink, place to sit quietly, free wifi and showers in that order.

Anecdote: One of the worst is Charles De Gaulle (a nightmare at the best of times) where a colleague was not allowed to transit due to the fact that he did not have visa for France and hence could not exit to get to his connecting flight in a different terminal. It cost him about a thousand dollars and a night sleeping on the terminal benches. He also had a struggle to get his luggage back as this was already outside the transit area. He now uses Frankfurt when he has to transit in Europe.

Yamanoto

Surprised Schipol hasn't been mentioned.

Gates can be some distance apart but facilites are great (2 hotels airside), ground staff are pro-active and don't hide from pax and there's no bus, train or frickin' monorail to deal with. Quiet areas with comfy seats up by the KLM Crown Lounge too.

In the US, MSP is decent by American standards, Ike's Food & Cocktails serving the best food I've eaten at an airport by some considerable margin.

mikewest

Yamanoto wrote: »

Surprised Schipol hasn't been mentioned.

Gates can be some distance apart but facilites are great (2 hotels airside), ground staff are pro-active and don't hide from pax and there's no bus, train or frickin' monorail to deal with. Quiet areas with comfy seats up by the KLM Crown Lounge too.

In the US, MSP is decent by American standards, Ike's Food & Cocktails serving the best food I've eaten at an airport by some considerable margin.

Haven't been through Schipol recent enough to comment but I was my preferred transit airport in a past life together with KLM as preferrred carrier. MSP gets great comments from some of my colleaguse that use it regularly.

pclancy

Yeah Schipol is excellent the quality of the Heineken at the bar is outstanding. Great place to relax in between flights and chat to other travelors

castie

pclancy wrote: »

For me space and room to wander along with good rest and shower facilities makes a great transit airport. I usually do the 24-32 hour journey from Wellington-Dublin without a long stopover to save time.

Singapore feels like walking around a nice hotel, plush floors, lovely flower arrangements and gardens, transit hotel, free cinema, great shops, massage, restaurants and its huge enough to pass a few hours by just ambling around. Free bus tours of the city leave regulary and there is often some form of entertainment going on.

Bangkok is OK but not as nice. Feels more claustrophobic and the announcements are really harsh. Hong Kong is also good but very busy.

I personally hate Frankfurt but thats only because last time I was there I had to forfeit my 2 bottles of lovely Vodka to customs

Looking forward to seeing what Seoul is like this Summer, I hear and read great things about it and Korean Air so decided to give them a try this year. Used to always only fly Qantas or Singapore Airlines but when I found out about Korean's 34" seat pitch and excellent pricing I decided to book. They also put you up in a nice hotel for the night and give you lots of vouchers to use. Hopefully Kim Jung Un won't have done anything stupid by then....

Emirates have been offering this hotel thing as well depending on your connections. So now Qantas do too because of their partnership.

whomitconcerns

muunich or schipol. great facilities and you control your own transit. not like in CDG.....bus...wait...bus...train...bus...etc nightmare....in us I found Atlanta ok...by their standards