Revealed: Britain’s best airports, as ranked by passengers based on WiFi, shopping, cleanliness and more
Ah, summer… time to take break, sink your feet into some sand or see the sights of the closest city – after you’ve made your way through the stress of getting there, that is.
But there are some ways you can make that flight a little more bearable, and that’s by choosing the right airport to fly from (or at least you can manage your expectations as to how good or bad your nearest one may be).
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And it’s Newcastle which has been named the best airport in Britain to fly from, according to passengers themselves.
Londoners, shouldn’t despair though – City airport was named the runner up, beating local rivals Heathrow, Gatwick and Stansted.
Ranking
Country
1
Newcastle
2
City
3
Liverpool
4
Edinburgh
5
Bristol
6
Leeds
7
Glasgow
8
East Midlands
9
Birmingham
10
Manchester
11
Heathrow
12
Cardiff
13
Gatwick
14
Belfast
15
Stansted
16
Luton
In fact, City is the best option in five of the 13 factors each airport was ranked on, including travelling priorities such as WiFi and baggage wait. It also came top in Britain for security, immigration and lounge.
Newcastle was the highest flying for cleanliness, toilet facilities and check-in, and second for immigration and disabled access
Heathrow, the UKs busiest airport, landed at number 11 and Gatwick at number 13.
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“For many, Britain’s airports are seen as a necessary evil on the way to somewhere hot and sandy during the summer months, and our poll provides some clear signals on areas for improvement,” said Andrew Shelton, managing director of Cheapflights.co.uk which conducted the research.
“Once again our smaller, regional airports score highest – demonstrating that size isn’t everything and stressing once again that Brits just want to be able to board their flight with the minimum of hassle. That said, it’s great to see London City rank so well as it makes its first appearance in the poll.”
While some might find the choice of shopping an essential in an airport, others might friendliness the most important factor: here’s where they rank on each and more.
Factor
Winner
Runner-up
Cleanliness
Newcastle
Cardiff
Shopping
Manchester
Heathrow
Toilets
Newcastle
Edinburgh
Bars/Restaurants
Manchester
Birmingham
Check-in
Newcastle
Edinburgh
Friendliness
Liverpool
Cardiff
Family Friendly
Bristol
Glasgow
Security
London City
Cardiff
Immigration
London City
Newscastle
Baggage wait
London City
Liverpool
Lounge
London City
Glasgow
WiFi
London City
Edinburgh
Disabled access
Edinburgh
Newcastle