Two airports that tower above the rest
If asked to name two airports that tower above the rest in the world, seven out of ten travellers are likely to say Dubai International and Changi International – and not without several good reasons.
Dubai International Airport
Serving 89.1 million passengers in 2018 – a one percent increase over 2017, Dubai International hosts more than 100 airlines that fly to over 260 destinations worldwide. An unbeatable location; within four hours flying of one-third of the world’s population and reaching out to two-thirds of the world’s population under eight hours, the airport has emerged as one the world’s leading ‘go-to transit / layover destination. Making it, in the process, the world’s busiest airport for international passengers – a title it has consecutively held during the past four years, after toppling London Heathrow in 2014.
We often talk of ‘location, location, and location’ in the hospitality industry, and, that’s exactly the reason why Atlanta has long been considered the busiest airport in the world. 80 percent of the US’s 300 million people can fly into Atlanta within two-hours, making the airport a major connecting hub and key port of entry into North America. Come 2021 and the prediction is that Dubai International will take away that title from Atlanta – a title it has held for 21 consecutive years.
Changi International Airport.
For a record-breaking seventh year in a row, the Asian Travel hub has been rated the top airport in the world by Skytrax, a customer service reviewer that has been ranking airports since 1999. (Incidentally, the world’s busiest airport – Atlanta in the US, ranked 36th in the world, whilst Dubai took the 24th place slot).
Changi International is currently the world’s seventh busiest airport for international traffic connecting 65.6 million passengers to 200 destinations worldwide, with 80 airlines making 5,000 arrivals and departures every week and a plane taking off or landing every 80 seconds.
You may actually want to build in a longer layover at Changi Airport – now more than before, after the airport opened its newest attraction; ‘Jewel’, which transforms the airport from an huge exciting waiting room to an undisputed tourist attraction. The nearly SG $ 1.3 billion dollar project, featuring a dramatic 135,700-square-meter space (around 1.46 million square feet), doughnut-shaped exterior framed in steel and glass is a multi-use complex designed to connect three of Changi Airport's four terminals.
The star attraction is the 40 meter (130 feet) tall Rain Votex which cascades through a huge oculus in the middle of Jewel and is billed as the world’s tallest indoor waterfall.
But above all, the April 17 opening confirms the long-held belief that yes, one of the world’s best airport is now even better.
Hospitality Sri Lanka. |
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