Anyone landing at Singapore Changi Airport will make it “from airport to taxi” within 25 minutes, “including immigration control, baggage collection and customs clearance”, writes Claus Schweitzer in the Airport Ranking 2018 published by “Handelszeitung”. It has been “the world’s best airport for years”, and the only negative Schweitzer could find was the complicated WLAN access.
In second place, Hong Kong International Airport boasts the “attractive new The Deck lounge with open-air terrace and view over the airfield”. But Zurich Airport too lays claim to an open-air area – and it is among the reasons the airport has once again scooped third place in the ranking. With “around 300,000 visitors annually”, the observation deck is “one of Switzerland’s most popular attractions”, writes Schweitzer.
While Zurich also scored well for its “clear signage, predominantly pleasing passenger flow and exemplary connection to public transport”, Schweitzer and the frequent flyers surveyed for the ranking were unhappy with the time-consuming new Automated Border Control gates and the Skymetro, which is often overcrowded.
However, Zurich Airport has “a great opportunity to climb in the ranking”, says Schweitzer, thanks to The Circle, which is due to open at the end of 2019. The service centre built around a hill close to the terminals will make Zurich “one of the only airports in the world with its own park”.
At Qatar’s Doha Hamad Airport, which ranked sixth, Schweitzer uncovered a touch of Switzerland. Of the three thousand artworks from around the world exhibited in the airport, one is Swiss artist Urs Fischer’s “big gold bear under an even bigger table lamp”.
