Worlds Worst Airports - LHR slumps to 6th
Thread Starter
Join Date: Apr 2010
Location: London
Posts: 7,072
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
Worlds Worst Airports - LHR slumps to 6th
10 Worst Airports in the World
10 Worst Airports in the World
Kirsten Klahn | More Articles January 09, 2014
Airports are not often associated with having fun — they’re simply a place for you to wait in order to make a flight. But some airports have separated themselves from the pack, and not in a good way. The worst airports in the world are known for their smelly bathrooms, long lines, and rude staff.
Take a look at the 10 worst airports in the world, and if possible, try to avoid them.
1. Sao Paulo-Guarulhos International
This airport is known for its long immigration lines, unannounced gate changes, and expensive food and drinks, according to CNN Travel. That’s all made worse by the fact that this outdated facility is understaffed, and only 59 percent of the Brazilian airport’s flights arrive on schedule, Forbes reports.
Source: Dmitry Avdeev / Wikimedia Commons
2. Chicago Midway International
Chicago’s Midway International Airport is ranked as the nation’s worst for on-time departures. “It isn’t a bad place to hang out, with a new food court and a frequent subway connection to downtown Chicago, but any airport is the worst airport if you’re stuck there and you aren’t getting on a plane,” Frommer’s writes.
Source: Chmpgnrose / Wikimedia Commons
3. John F. Kennedy International
New York City’s airport has made Travel + Leisure’s list of ugliest airports. “Today JFK is resolutely hellish; arriving passengers are often greeted with endless blank corridors and stairways,” Travel + Leisure says. What to look for at this airport? Keep an eye out for the newer JetBlue terminal, as well as Terminal 1, which may be old but isn’t as bad as some of the others.
Source: NRG07 / Flickr
4. N’Djamena International
Users of this airport in the tiny Republic of Chad in Africa have said that there are multiple bugs all over, according to USA Today. Travelers have also complained about the airport’s open-bag security check held outside, which only helps to draw in more bugs around the infested airport. If you can’t avoid it, bring bug spray.
Source: Rastrojo / Wikimedia Commons
5. Paris Beauvais Tille
The French airport opts for the basics and very little else. “It’s rated as one of the world’s worst airports by SleepingInAirports.net because of its lack of seating and services, and general half-tent, half-warehouse atmosphere,” according to Frommer’s. “It lacks a rail link to Paris and closes overnight, so hope that your flight doesn’t get too delayed, or you may be camping out on the lawn.”
Source: Mario Roberto Duran Ortiz / Wikimedia Commons
6. London Heathrow
Sadly, this London airport has also made Travel + Leisure’s ugliest airports list. In fact, the airport is described as “four shopping malls that have been smashed together.” Terminal 3 is the worst, distinguished by a system in which passengers are corralled into a central seating area and not permitted to pass through security to their gates until departure time.
Source: Billy Hathorn / Wikimedia Commons
7. LaGuardia
Those hoping for easy transportation should look elsewhere. According to a USA Today article, the airport isn’t connected to any meaningful transportation, only a slow bus. Check-in areas are small, security lines are overflowing, Wi-Fi isn’t free, and it’s hard to get cellphone reception. If that’s not enough to sway you, it’s also dirty and crowded.
Source: Carabaopower / Wikimedia Commons
8. Ninoy Aquino International
“Beleaguered by ground crew strikes, unkempt conditions, soup kitchen-style lines that feed into more lines and an overall sense of futility, NAIA brings the term ‘Stuck in the 1970s’ to a new level,” CNN Travel says. Despite overcapacity issues, Terminal 1 seems particularly crammed, and Terminal 3, which is new, is only occupied by minor carriers at the Manila-based airport.
Source: Mkimemia / Wikimedia Commons
9. Jomo Kenyatta International
Nairobi’s airport was built to support about 2.5 million passengers but now averages about double that, according to Frommer’s. In 2005, the Kenyan government announced plans to expand the airport but hasn’t accomplished that goal yet. Travelers describe this airport as hot, ugly, dirty, and confusing, as well as filled with scam artists.
Source: Tevaprapas Makklay / Wikimedia Commons
10. Tribhuvan International
“For a small airport in a pretty country, Tribhuvan has it all: the interminable weather delays of Boston Logan, the shoddy restroom maintenance of a Glasgow sports bar, the departure board sparsity of McMurdo Airfield and the chronic chaos of a kids’ soccer match,” according to CNN Travel. Also, print out your ticket. CNN Travel reports that those who didn’t have a printed version had to argue their way in to catch a flight at the Kathmandu, N
10 Worst Airports in the World
Kirsten Klahn | More Articles January 09, 2014
Airports are not often associated with having fun — they’re simply a place for you to wait in order to make a flight. But some airports have separated themselves from the pack, and not in a good way. The worst airports in the world are known for their smelly bathrooms, long lines, and rude staff.
Take a look at the 10 worst airports in the world, and if possible, try to avoid them.
1. Sao Paulo-Guarulhos International
This airport is known for its long immigration lines, unannounced gate changes, and expensive food and drinks, according to CNN Travel. That’s all made worse by the fact that this outdated facility is understaffed, and only 59 percent of the Brazilian airport’s flights arrive on schedule, Forbes reports.
Source: Dmitry Avdeev / Wikimedia Commons
2. Chicago Midway International
Chicago’s Midway International Airport is ranked as the nation’s worst for on-time departures. “It isn’t a bad place to hang out, with a new food court and a frequent subway connection to downtown Chicago, but any airport is the worst airport if you’re stuck there and you aren’t getting on a plane,” Frommer’s writes.
Source: Chmpgnrose / Wikimedia Commons
3. John F. Kennedy International
New York City’s airport has made Travel + Leisure’s list of ugliest airports. “Today JFK is resolutely hellish; arriving passengers are often greeted with endless blank corridors and stairways,” Travel + Leisure says. What to look for at this airport? Keep an eye out for the newer JetBlue terminal, as well as Terminal 1, which may be old but isn’t as bad as some of the others.
Source: NRG07 / Flickr
4. N’Djamena International
Users of this airport in the tiny Republic of Chad in Africa have said that there are multiple bugs all over, according to USA Today. Travelers have also complained about the airport’s open-bag security check held outside, which only helps to draw in more bugs around the infested airport. If you can’t avoid it, bring bug spray.
Source: Rastrojo / Wikimedia Commons
5. Paris Beauvais Tille
The French airport opts for the basics and very little else. “It’s rated as one of the world’s worst airports by SleepingInAirports.net because of its lack of seating and services, and general half-tent, half-warehouse atmosphere,” according to Frommer’s. “It lacks a rail link to Paris and closes overnight, so hope that your flight doesn’t get too delayed, or you may be camping out on the lawn.”
Source: Mario Roberto Duran Ortiz / Wikimedia Commons
6. London Heathrow
Sadly, this London airport has also made Travel + Leisure’s ugliest airports list. In fact, the airport is described as “four shopping malls that have been smashed together.” Terminal 3 is the worst, distinguished by a system in which passengers are corralled into a central seating area and not permitted to pass through security to their gates until departure time.
Source: Billy Hathorn / Wikimedia Commons
7. LaGuardia
Those hoping for easy transportation should look elsewhere. According to a USA Today article, the airport isn’t connected to any meaningful transportation, only a slow bus. Check-in areas are small, security lines are overflowing, Wi-Fi isn’t free, and it’s hard to get cellphone reception. If that’s not enough to sway you, it’s also dirty and crowded.
Source: Carabaopower / Wikimedia Commons
8. Ninoy Aquino International
“Beleaguered by ground crew strikes, unkempt conditions, soup kitchen-style lines that feed into more lines and an overall sense of futility, NAIA brings the term ‘Stuck in the 1970s’ to a new level,” CNN Travel says. Despite overcapacity issues, Terminal 1 seems particularly crammed, and Terminal 3, which is new, is only occupied by minor carriers at the Manila-based airport.
Source: Mkimemia / Wikimedia Commons
9. Jomo Kenyatta International
Nairobi’s airport was built to support about 2.5 million passengers but now averages about double that, according to Frommer’s. In 2005, the Kenyan government announced plans to expand the airport but hasn’t accomplished that goal yet. Travelers describe this airport as hot, ugly, dirty, and confusing, as well as filled with scam artists.
Source: Tevaprapas Makklay / Wikimedia Commons
10. Tribhuvan International
“For a small airport in a pretty country, Tribhuvan has it all: the interminable weather delays of Boston Logan, the shoddy restroom maintenance of a Glasgow sports bar, the departure board sparsity of McMurdo Airfield and the chronic chaos of a kids’ soccer match,” according to CNN Travel. Also, print out your ticket. CNN Travel reports that those who didn’t have a printed version had to argue their way in to catch a flight at the Kathmandu, N
Join Date: May 2003
Location: Israel, Kazakhstan, Spain
Posts: 306
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
Certainly missing CDG, it's a bloody awful hole 
Whilst T3 is not ideal, I seem to remember you have to pass through security before you get to the central seating area - so what this BS?
Whilst T3 is not ideal, I seem to remember you have to pass through security before you get to the central seating area - so what this BS?
Join Date: Apr 2010
Location: Somewhere up there
Posts: 358
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
A bit unfair on Heathrow tbf.
The experience has improved consistently over the last 5 years.
But where the hell is Paris CDG on that list? Possibly the worst transfer experience on the planet.
Or maybe there is a separate 'Worst designed airport in the World' list which it would of course come No1
The experience has improved consistently over the last 5 years.
But where the hell is Paris CDG on that list? Possibly the worst transfer experience on the planet.
Or maybe there is a separate 'Worst designed airport in the World' list which it would of course come No1
Join Date: Aug 2013
Location: London
Posts: 837
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
Very unfair on Heathrow. The passenger experience does differ from terminal to terminal but to single it out for perceived issues within T3 is very harsh. T5 is a joy to travel through but there's no mention of that
This is not journalism - it's simply fluff by someone who is too lazy to do any proper work but has a deadline for 500 words. I very much doubt the author has visited more than 2 of the airports with the rest based on what a Google search of 'worst airports' threw up with a bit of dramatisation in the choice of words.
I think it's fair. Always a miserable experience if entering from outside the EU, or transferring. Immigration queues enormous, transitting between terminals on par with CDG (Awful). Terminal 5 is lovely and BA are superb, but they can't paper over the real elephant in the room, delays caused by 2 runways at 98% capacity. Don't think JFK deserves to be there, but I only use the Jetblue terminal when there, which is quite new.
Join Date: Feb 2001
Location: In transit
Age: 70
Posts: 3,052
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
I suppose it depends on the criteria but in my view none of the 7 on this list (I have not had the pleasure of N'djamena, Beauvais, or Tribhuvan) that I've visited come close to qualifying as world's worst, although Guaralhos is an experience I don't wish to repeat.
For a country that calls itself civilised, CDG has to be the worst experience, dirty, smelly, inadequate facilities, inefficient and diabolically rude staff. Madrid Barajas comes close in terms of the staff and facilities. Berlin Schoenefeld must be an embarrassment to Germany.
MIA is awful, disjointed and over capacity, but I think the worst I've ever been to is Murtala Mohamed in Lagos, however it reflects the city it serves!
For a country that calls itself civilised, CDG has to be the worst experience, dirty, smelly, inadequate facilities, inefficient and diabolically rude staff. Madrid Barajas comes close in terms of the staff and facilities. Berlin Schoenefeld must be an embarrassment to Germany.
MIA is awful, disjointed and over capacity, but I think the worst I've ever been to is Murtala Mohamed in Lagos, however it reflects the city it serves!
I have had the "pleasure" of Beauvais, basically a barn with some garden chairs in the middle of nowhere. I suspect a lot of the negaitive reviews were influenced by the airline those surveyed were flying with, Europe's favourite indeed.....
Join Date: Jan 2014
Location: Manchetser
Age: 52
Posts: 8
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
I'm not even sure Judith Charmers or Michael Palin are qualified enough to quote the top 10 worst airports in the world? I've found some airports to be totally different for when arriving as a destination or transit pax. Whenever I've flown into NY as a fd pax, no problem - but, when I've flown in as a transit pax, completely different story, hideous experience at both JFK and EWK.
There's no way on gods earth that, ANY, British airport is within the top 10 worst in the world.
There's no way on gods earth that, ANY, British airport is within the top 10 worst in the world.
Join Date: Dec 2011
Location: Middlesex (under the flightpath)
Posts: 1,946
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
There's no way on gods earth that, ANY, British airport is within the top 10 worst in the world.
Load of subjective rubbish!
Join Date: Mar 2006
Location: Oslo, Norway
Age: 63
Posts: 500
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
There are some very strong candidates among the 46 UK airports I've flown to/from, but sadly I haven't covered the rest of the world to the same degree and therefore can't give you the correct ranking. This ranking can of course be coloured of a situation you have experienced. Leeds-Bradford got such a negative vibe for me. My first flight to LBA was in the evening of 9 August 2006. I stayed the night over at the nearby Travelodge. The next day I had a short full breaky at the airport, but the main purpose was to get the key to the rental car I ordered. No smiles at all that day, only nervousness, but considering this was 10 August 2006, day zero for the transparent 1 litre plastic bag for liquids, my bad feeling about the airport was only natural. LBA lost this bad airport rating on my next visit, but that is a different story.
The only UK airport I'd put on the really lousy list is Durham Tees Valley. Staff are pretty friendly but the ever pervading sense of impending closure and overall hopelessness gets to you - bit like Dementors if you've read a Harry Potter book.
At some point, if the capital expenditure on an airport is low enough per passenger or the building is sufficiently ancient, decayed, chaotic and over stretched, then any airport in the world can give the sense of a horrible experience.
At some point, if the capital expenditure on an airport is low enough per passenger or the building is sufficiently ancient, decayed, chaotic and over stretched, then any airport in the world can give the sense of a horrible experience.
Last edited by davidjohnson6; 3rd Mar 2014 at 10:17.
Join Date: Jun 1999
Location: world
Posts: 3,424
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
It's all subjective indeed. I think that people's experiences are relative to the day and the time of day they travel - and terminal used. This can make a significant difference to one's perception of an airport. As a frequent passenger not flying on business I often fly at off peak times of the day (and the week). Consequently my experiences tend to be pretty smooth at those times, including some of the airports mentioned above. I certainly have had no issues with JFK and LGA, and those mentioned by other posters such as CDG, LAX and ATL. I can't judge LHR as I personally gave up using it many years ago. The real test of an airport is departing early morning or late afternoon, especially on a Monday (morning) and Friday (late afternoon). That's when you can judge the efficiency of an airport a little more accurately.
Thread Starter
Join Date: Apr 2010
Location: London
Posts: 7,072
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
LHR has a couple of decent bits - T4 is passable and T5 is the standard reached by Changi 25 years ago - but T1 & T3 are abominable and the whole experience of terminals scattered at random across the landscape and that idiot tunnel is enough to put it on the list IMHO
LAX is dreadfull and we thought Denpasar was pretty grim last year (allowing for the fact that its under reconstruction)
LAX is dreadfull and we thought Denpasar was pretty grim last year (allowing for the fact that its under reconstruction)
Join Date: Apr 2010
Location: Somewhere up there
Posts: 358
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
Really Heathrow Harry if you think LHR is bad, you need to get out and do a bit more flying.
Admittedly LHR was a poor poor place not all that many years ago but it has consistently improved recently. The new T2 will continue that trend.
Not saying that it's great but there are much much worse places in Europe never mind the world.
It's just fashionable to knock it amongst the middle class chattering dinner party types. But boring really.
Admittedly LHR was a poor poor place not all that many years ago but it has consistently improved recently. The new T2 will continue that trend.
Not saying that it's great but there are much much worse places in Europe never mind the world.
It's just fashionable to knock it amongst the middle class chattering dinner party types. But boring really.