Is there a purpose to this thread.
I mean , you could just go to http://www.world-airport-codes.com/
How about, instead, *rate* airports that you go through regularly, what you liked, what you disliked, should you avoid it. etc...
I'll start...
AMS, Schiphol - Amsterdam/Netherlands - Great for connections, well run, efficient, good for capacity, also great to have security checks at the gates which cuts down on queues. Baggage reclaim is painfully slow, especially for long-haul arrivals.
LAX, Los Angeles, not as bad as I thought. Quite boring and dull, immigration area is a nightmare.
LAS, Las Vegas McCarran Internaltion. Great for International Arrivals, you're through the immigration area within minutes, Shame there's only one flight to Europe.
EWR, Newark (Liberty International) - Bit depressing, long queues, but OK
JFK, New York - similar to EWR in my experience. Terminal 4 seems better than others.
ATL, Atlanta Hartsfield International - Avoid at all costs if you are arriving on an international flight. You have to pick up your bags on arrival, then drop it off again, the go through an arrival security x-ray, then take a metro thing, then pick up your baggage an hour later, that by that time has been thrown out onto the sidewalk
PHX - Phoenix Sky Harbor International - Less busy than most, good airport for international flights as there are not so many routes arriving at the same time
DTW - Detroit Metropolitan Wayne County - Depressing arrivals area but quite efficient in comparison to other airports. Departure area quite well run, good duty free shops and bars especially if your plane is late.
CDG - Charles de Gaulle, France. Bit of a concrete jungle, but seems to be run efficiently most of the time. Shame about the accident with one of the concrete terminal roofs.
LGW - London Gatwick, UK. Quite good for connections, train station on-site, frequent train connections 30 mins from London. Transfer between South and North terminals is often taken out of service so you have to get bus transfers sometimes, which is annoying. Shops and restaurants good in the South terminal.
LHR - London Heathrow, UK Depressing. Overcrowded in all terminals, including T5. Terminal 1 and 3 was my favourite for departures. T4 a bit quieter now BA have moved to T5. T5 seems to be going efficiently now, except for the massive queues at the under resourced passport control.
LTN - Luton, UK - Horrible place. Departures full of drunken people off on cheap holidays in the sun, Arrivals a depressing place with the roof falling apart and temporary desks everywhere, and building works that never stop.
STN - Stansted, UK
GLA - Glasgow, UK - not bad, quite efficient most of the time
EDI - Edinburgh, UK - not bad, quite efficient most of the time
LIN - Milan Linate, Italy. - quite a boring airport, OK for queues, but not good if your flight is delayed
MXP - Milan Malpensa, Italy - much better for shopping and people-watching. Good for connecting flights. Can be much busier though.
ARN - Stockholm Arlanda - depends on the terminal. I mostly use Terminal 5 which is efficient, but baggage reclaim quite slow.
SIN - Changi Airport Singapore - great airport, good sleeping areas, has a smoking balcony for those who just have to light-up between connections, things seem to work efficiently.
SFO - San Fransisco, was quite nice when I was there. Nothing special.
..... I had better stop there. With input from everyone else, we could really build up a useful list of how to cope if we ever have to pass through.
29 Apr 2012, 9:16 pm
