FabSwingers.com forum: Airports

By *obilebottom OP Man
over a year ago

All over

Part of a travelling experience. Why some of our airports are so abysmal compared to other intenational airports? Crammed spaces, makeshift extensions and ugly furnishings, despite often saying they spent millions on updating the airport. Even new ones are often just very ordinary to say the least and compared to some amazing spaces and facilities you see elsewhete. Limited facilities though here, including cafes and restaurants that are the usual chains and sports bars, with no independent ones as you see elsewhere. Look closely and are often quite dirty. There are often some horrendous queues, mainly down to not having enough stuff. Poor overall service, certainly from ground staff with poor customer service skills and bad attitude. Even those on board on the few airlines we have been left with often feels as they can't be bothered and some look as they just jumped out of bed and straight onto the plane. I flew recently from T3 at Manchester airport and to be honest I was embarassed how shabby it all was. Even T2 that is supposed to be new is still nothing special at all. The journey out was great though and attended by an international crew which was dressed to impress and were extremely effient and attentive. Coming back was nothing of the sort and sadly that was staffed by crew obviously returning back to their base in Manchester. The fact that half of the plane was full of loud and entitled morons did not help either. It is all rather sad really as I see all these things part of your holiday experience which is often marred by the behaviour of others, poor customer service and ill thought spaces and facilities.

My apologies for the long post but we seem to be accepting a lot of poor stuff in this country at the moment and this is for me just one of them.

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By *alandNitaCouple
over a year ago

Scunthorpe

Airports are generally just designed to get as much money off you as possible before they get you onto the plane. Is there really ANY need to keep people in the airport for several hours? No, it's just so they can get you to spend your money.

If the process was allowed to be quicker, it wouldn't matter what the airport looked like.

Cal

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By *ealitybitesMan
over a year ago

Belfast

I don't travel much but I've seen a number of airports in other countries that are shitholes. You would have to go a long way to find one as bad as Belfast International and I was in Bilbao a couple of months ago and it's a dirty hole, and don't get me started on the Delta terminal at JFK which was like something from a third world country the last time I was through it.

It's bound to be an impossible task keeping terminals spic and span and looking like new with so much footfall.

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By *obilebottom OP Man
over a year ago

All over

"Airports are generally just designed to get as much money off you as possible before they get you onto the plane. Is there really ANY need to keep people in the airport for several hours? No, it's just so they can get you to spend your money.

If the process was allowed to be quicker, it wouldn't matter what the airport looked like.

Cal"

That's true but when you spend so many hours there you really should expect better imo. And some, but of course not all, comparable international ones manage it so much better.

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By (user no longer on site)
over a year ago

I reckon the experience is varied between those with lounge access and not.

Some lounges are superb.

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By *icecouple561Couple
Forum Mod
over a year ago

East Sussex

Airports, train stations, bus terminals, motorway services None of these places encourage travel.

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By *rHotNottsMan
over a year ago

Dubai & Nottingham

"I reckon the experience is varied between those with lounge access and not.

Some lounges are superb. "

Virgin clubhouse at Heathrow T3 is my favourite. Most of the lounges on lounge-key or dragon pass are pretty poor now that Mastercard give access for free

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By *oubleswing2019Man
over a year ago

Colchester

Surely all you need is a portacabin or two, a loo, a vending machine, and a gate thingy with big burly guards with scanners. All this faff and nonsense turning the airport in to a miniature city, when most just want to transit quickly in and out of them to get to other places quickly ?

Roll on teleportation. Or flying cars

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By *obilebottom OP Man
over a year ago

All over

"I reckon the experience is varied between those with lounge access and not.

Some lounges are superb.

Virgin clubhouse at Heathrow T3 is my favourite. Most of the lounges on lounge-key or dragon pass are pretty poor now that Mastercard give access for free "

That is true. Most are no better than all the other areas. Some airline specific ones are still a bit better once you manage to get to them and stay there. Even the duty free shops are no longer offering competitive prices when for example you can find most stuff on the internet cheaper than what they sell them for. I looked for a cologne I use and it was over £40 more than I got it on the internet. A box of chocolates is nearly twice as much as on the high street. And all the stuff you get in the cafes and restaurants or on board are very low grade. Anyway, perhaps I should take my own egg and cress limp sandwiches with me instead

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By *inky_couple2020Couple
over a year ago

North West

Manchester Airport IS a total shambles. Liverpool is better in some ways, but still shabby round the edges.

Schiphol is pretty decent

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By *ophieslutTV/TS
over a year ago

Central

It's like much business in the UK, sold off to those who have limited long term interest, it's about the short term taking of cash.

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By *orthernJayMan
over a year ago

LHR

As with the vast majority of public interaction spaces in the UK, airports are privately owned, minimally invested, overpriced and entirely designed to maximise profit for shareholders.

UK airports are some of the worst globally, obviously you can find sub standard anywhere if you look hard enough, that said, the examples of what good looks like put us to shame; it’s embarrassing flying into the UK.

Five minutes in Singapore’s Changi airport is proof enough and before people spout about cost of living etc; Santorini in Greece is a tiny island, yes, entirely tourism but only for nine months of the year and the government invested half of the cost of its new airport which is superb.

Cross rail was meant to link LHR with central London, does it, yes, that said, have you used it and then realised it’s a half arsed solution to the problem that makes you walk needlessly (often with baggage), nowhere to store baggage on the trains which were apparently designed specifically and is so overpriced people still use the underground.

The UK’s infrastructure has been in decline for decades, it’s very very sad!

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By *ablo minibar123Woman
over a year ago

I also was hanging about terminal 3 in Manchester recently. Staff there were pretty miserable and occasionally just bark at you, in fact one ran off crying.

In their defense though if I had to put up with some of the shit they put up with on a daily basis, then I would be miserable too

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By *he PembertonsCouple
over a year ago

Haslingden

I've come to hate Manchester airport. Probably because it was all I knew of that size until I got a job with a German company, then had to fly regular into Munich. Was a joy to be in that airport, no matter how busy, little queuing time, great facilities, spacious, like a Mall. Landed during the European cup once and had a huge screen with temp seating stands set up in the atrium for folks to watch. Can't go wrong in the Airbrau Biergarten too

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By *obilebottom OP Man
over a year ago

All over

Yes, I used the Lufthansa business lounges (someone else was payiing

) a few times and certainly much more pleasant than anything we have on offer. As someone else though said, it is that the whole infrastructure is a total shambles. Our airports feel totally claustophobic to say the least and coupled with inferior facilities and some attrocious customer service. It saddens me to say all this as I want to be proud instead but how can I when they are at such state and no doubt an embarassement when not only ourselves but other internatuonal travellers expect better (and I know there are worse ones across the world but trying to compare like with like). What is more annoying is when they build something up like the investment at Manchester airport and the end result does not even 'touch the sides'. Leeds/Bradford was meant to have a brand new one but was blocked. Now they announced a sort of an extension. I am not holding my breath that anything impressive will be the result for that but happy to be proven wrong.

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By *TG3Man
over a year ago

Dorchester

I'm with you on this our airports are abysmal, sure they are geared to getting your money and sure they are used a lot but munich is a beautiful airport lets smarten up guys cmon

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By *octor ProdMan
over a year ago

working Overseas

Manchester is awful, the worst in the UK, its grubby and outdated. That said Charles De Gaulle and Dublin are as bad as any British airport.

Munich is my favourite European airport; clean, modern and with great transport links to the city.

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By *ayHaychMan
over a year ago

Leeds (Home) / Sheffield (Work)

"Manchester is awful, the worst in the UK, its grubby and outdated. That said Charles De Gaulle and Dublin are as bad as any British airport.

Munich is my favourite European airport; clean, modern and with great transport links to the city."

After experiencing the shithole that is Charles De Gualle is I think I’d only ever visit Paris again by train!

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By *ired_upMan
over a year ago

ashton

After saving air miles for a few years I got first class tickets from LHR to JFK and access to the Concorde lounge.

You know the people who say 'oh you must try it once, and it makes flying a different flying experience'. It's true and I'm one of those wankers now.

Going again next year and will be hammering the free bar in the lounge.

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By *ts the taking part thatMan
over a year ago

southampton

Bournemouth Airport is in the middle of nowhere, poor public transport links & extremely expensive parking.

Once airside the rip off continues.

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By *educing_EmCouple
over a year ago

Tipperary

Flew Dublin to Birmingham recently, Dublin isn't great but Birmingham was terrible

Em x

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By *obilebottom OP Man
over a year ago

All over

"Flew Dublin to Birmingham recently, Dublin isn't great but Birmingham was terrible

Em x"

From what I remembr the Birmingham one has no windows and is so claustophobic once you get into the waiting lounge you almost can't breath.

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