MASSIVE, beautiful, weird, wonderful, futuristic and fun.
Here are some of the world’s best – and the downright craziest – airport interiors, according to travel website Skyscanner.com.au .
1. Suvarnabhumi, Bangkok, Thailand
Ancient meets modern minimalism in the main concourse of Bangkok’s Suvarnabhumi Airport, designed by Helmut Jahn. Suvarnabhumi – “the airport of smiles” – has the proud claim to fame of the world’s tallest freestanding control tower (123 metres if you were wondering).
Suvarnabhumi, Bangkok
2. Beijing Capital International, China
Beijing’s Terminal 3, built in time to cope with the extra millions of passengers coming for the 2008 Olympic Games, is the second largest airport terminal in the world after Dubai International Airport’s Terminal 3 (more of that later).
Beijing Airport.
3. Chicago O’Hare, US
Moving walkways are cool, but colourful moving walkways, like this one in Chicago, are cooler. Along with going on the monorail back and forth between terminals, jumping off the end of “travelators”, as they’re sometimes called, is one of the most fun ways to spend your time at an airport.
Chicago O’Hare.
4. Singapore Changi
The departure lounge at Singapore’s Changi airport looks like it was modelled on an imaginary retro-futuristic fast food outlet. Or Universal Studios. Or maybe a flying saucer landed on the first floor food court? Check out the matching floor and ceiling too.
Changi Airport.
5. Dubai International, UAE
Terminal 3 at Dubai International Airport is, you guessed it, the single largest building in the world by floor space. It’s Dubai, what do you expect, small and subtle?
Dubai Airport.
6. Lyon St. Exupery, France
If you arrive at Lyon’s St. Exupéry Airport by TGV or the Rhône Express from the city centre, it’s a long walk to check-in, especially if you’re laden down with bags and you’re leaving from Terminal 3. But do look up to appreciate the architecture
If you can get over the sensation that you are under attack from a swarm of alien jellyfish, and that you have landed in Madrid in 1968, appreciate the wonder of the arrival hall at Barajas, which looks like an unused set from 2001: A Space Odyssey.
8. Munich, Germany
Horizontalators don’t come much more D.I.S.C.O. than this example at Munich Airport. They really should pump out Stayin’ Alive. You’ll catch Saturday night fever even if it’s Monday morning.
9. Charles de Gaulle, Paris
If, like the author, you missed your flight home from Paris because you were toasting your engagement with a bottle of champers on a bench outside Charles de Gaulle, then spent five hours drinking gin, slumped staring at the ceiling, this view will be familiar.
10. Shanghai Pudong, China
Asia boasts some of the world’s most architecturally-exciting airports, and Shanghai Pudong International is no exception. The exterior of Terminal 1 is shaped like waves, while arrival by escalator feels like an ascent into a sci-fi flick version of heaven
11. Ronald Reagan Washington National, US
There’s no mistaking which country you’re in, however jet-lagged you’re feeling. The Reagan’s classical style, redolent of tearful goodbyes in a 1920s railway station, eschewts the futurism of most major international airports.
Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport.
source::::news.com.au
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Vatican City is a landlocked sovereign city-state whose territory consists of a walled enclave within the city of Rome. With an area of approximately 44 hectares (110 acres), and a population of around 840, it makes Vatican City the smallest internationally recognized independent state in the world by both area and population. So, in a micro city-state like this, it would be physically impossible to fit a whole airport into the 0.44 km2 land area of the Holy city. But, there is a heliport in the western corner, which is used for visiting heads and officials of the city-state. So, the nearest airport to the Vatican City is Rome Ciampino Airport.
Andorra, a landlocked microstate in Southwestern Europe, is the sixth smallest nation in Europe with an area of 468 km per square and an estimated population of 85,000. It is located in the eastern Pyrenees Mountains and bordered by Spain and France. Its capital, Andorra la Vella, is the highest capital city in Europe, at an elevation of 1,023 metres above sea level. Although, the country is by far large enough for an airport, but the surrounding mountains that are located would make landing conditions rather challenging if one were to be built. As such, this nation does not have airport till date. But, there are three heliports operating in this country. The nearest airports are in Lerida, Barcelona, Toulouse and Gerona. Considering its both population and land area, Andorra is the largest country with no airport.
An alpine country in Central Europe, Liechtenstein is the only double landlocked country in the world without an airport. The country is bordered by Switzerland to the west and south and by Austria to the east and north. Its area is just over 160 square kilometres, and it has an estimated population of 35,000. It is the smallest yet the richest (in terms of GDP per capita) German-speaking country and the only country to lie entirely within the Alps. The entire populations of Liechtenstein just have access to a heliport located in the southern town of Balzers. The nearest international airports are located at St. Gallen-Altenrhein Airport in Switzerland and Friedrichshafen Airport in Germany, which have few scheduled flights. The nearest airport in Switzerland has rail services to Buchs and Sargans. From these towns, it is possible to catch a Postal Bus or a train to Liechtenstein.
Monaco is a sovereign city-state, located on the French Riviera in Western Europe. It is bordered by France and the Mediterranean Sea. With an area of just 2.02 square km and a population of 36,371, Monaco is the second smallest, and the most densely populated country in the world. Doe to its small and very compact geographical locations, theoretically there is no space for an airport in Monaco. It is one of the two airport free country that is not landlocked. The rich, famous, pretty, powerful and most of its masses usually fly to Cote d Azur Airport Nice in France and go by car, limo, bus, train or helicopter as that is the nearest airport. A heliport in the Monegasque district of Fontvieille, the Monte Carlo International Heliport, is the only aviation facility in the principality. It features shuttle service to and from the international airport at Nice, France.
San Marino is a cooperative microstate surrounded by the country Italy. It is situated on the Italian Peninsula on the north-eastern side of the Apennine Mountains. San Marino has the smallest population of all the members of the Council of Europe. It is claimed to be the oldest surviving sovereign state and constitutional republic in the world. There are no commercial airports in San Marino, but there is a small private airstrip located in Torraccia and an international heliport located in Borgo Maggiore. Most of the tourists who arrive by air, land at Federico Fellini International Airport, which is 9.9 miles away from San Marino itself and that is close to the city of Rimini, then travel by bus to reach to the main city.
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