Happy Memorial Day! We just got back from our trip to Southern California and I’ll start posting on our lovely weekend there shortly, but as we get back into another week ahead, this is a post I’ve been wanting to do for a long time and have had a few requests for it over the previous months.
As we travel around the world, we spend a lot of time in airports. And while there are some great ones, there are also some not so great ones, so today and tomorrow, I’m going to be sharing some of the best and some of the worst that we’ve traveled through and that have made an impression on us.
Today, these are some of my favorite airports around the globe. While there are an endless list of airports to fly in and out of, these have ended up being my favorites for various reasons as I show below.
I’m really lucky to have a fantastic airport out of my home city. PDX wins awards every year for the best airports in the country and it’s a fantastic hub of airlines in the Pacific NW. The Portland airport not only is easy to navigate and quick to get to from anywhere in the Portland area, it also offers the fantastic light rail service direct to the airport via MAX throughout the Portland metro area and boasts a great grouping of in-airport services and restaurants including a Powell’s satellite as well as a Rose’s bakery (2 Portland favorites).
Heathrow got a major renovation a few years back due to London hosting the Olympics last year and I got the chance to fly through before and after the renovations a few different times to see the differences and they really did do a splendid job. To deal with the massive amounts of people flowing throughout the airport for the Olympics, the airport is now better equipped to manage large groups of travelers on a daily basis through this European hub. The renovation is beautiful and the terminals are full of light, lots of seating and fantastic shopping and restaurants like Giraffe, one of our favorite London chains. The efficient kiosk check in systems at security checkpoints makes it quick and efficient to get through quickly without having to go to counters and wait in lines and the efficient tray systems at security checkpoints are a couple of my favorite new features from the renovation at Heathrow.
Heathrow also has great options to get into London quickly. Our favorite option is the Heathrow Express that puts into the London city center in about 30 minutes.
Whenever we’re flying intra-Europe flights out of London, we try to fly out of Gatwick. It’s smaller than Heathrow and offers a more intimate airport experience, especially when flying budget airlines throughout Europe like EasyJet who flies out of Gatwick rather than Heathrow. The check in area at Gatwick is easy and efficient and though there are some long terminals to walk to flights, I think overall the layout is fairly easy to navigate. The transportation to get to the airport via Victoria Station on train is also easy and convenient from central London.
While I have mixed feelings on Charles de Gaulle (Paris’ main airport), Orly is a nice alternative. It’s Paris’ smaller airport, home to budget airlines like Easy Jet and Ryan Air but offers a great assortment of destinations to fly to. It’s super easy to get to from central Paris via the metro lines and takes less time to manage through than CDG, I love flying through Orly.
Sea-Tac is one of those airports that seems smaller than it actually is. While a fairly large airport hub for the Pacific NW, it always seems easy to navigate and is convenient and quick to get from one terminal to another. We fly out of Seattle a lot for both international and domestic trips and it’s always a favorite of ours. With lots of light from large windows throughout, good restaurant options and lots of great destinations on the list of where you can fly to, it’s an airport we enjoy.
When I was flying back and forth to Seoul for work a few years ago, I always loved my time at Incheon. Located about 45 minutes outside of Seoul, Incheon Airport is a dream when it comes to airports. As it’s trying to become more of a major hub in Asia, the airport is new and clean, with amazing food, flight options and comfortable lounges. Everything from spas to rooms to rest, Incheon has it all.