UK. A report this week by the Consumers’ Association, publisher of Holiday Which? magazine, has rated London Heathrow airport’s terminal 4 and Gatwick South terminal as the best airport shopping in the UK.
Holiday Which? rated Manchester International Airport as the best airport overall, with London Stansted having the best check-in hall. Another BAA facility London Heathrow terminal 3 had the best food choice and Newcastle the best breakfast.
But travellers should head for the smaller UK airports to get the best pre-flight comfort, the Consumers’ Association revealed.
Some of these airports, such as Bristol and Liverpool, have “sleek modern terminals and a slick operation to go with it”, Holiday Which? said. Cramped check-in halls and a lack of natural light were more likely to be complaints at bigger airports. But at smaller airports, facilities such as food outlets and shops could still be “pretty limited”.
Liverpool’s John Lennon Airport was praised for being user-friendly with departure gates close to the lounges, but the report by inspectors who visited the airport in August 2003 described it as a “victim of its own success” and a work in progress with a lot of ongoing construction.
It said: “John Lennon International is to double its retail space just 18 months after opening its new terminal. One effect of this will be to lower the pleasing high ceilings in the check-in hall……The landside shopping area is nothing special and lacks natural light but is better than airside.”
Glasgow and Bristol airports were singled out for having “disappointing” restaurants. Glasgow also scored negatively for its transportation links (it has no rail connection) and for its food and shopping outlets.
“Food and shopping options are very limited compared to Edinburgh,” said researchers.
The magazine warned transport links to airports needed to improve while low-cost carriers, such as easyJet offered excellent fares but few did “anything more than deliver passengers to their destination”.
It also criticised the “hyphenated hateful hybrids”, referring to the low-cost carriers’ use of airports such as Barcelona Gerona or Bologna Forti, where the major city is some distance from the airport.
