We spent some time in O'Hare yesterday on our return from Indiana. I've connected through but never had reason to check in/wait for more than 60-90 minutes. What a mess. The gates are entirely too small for the ticketed passengers to wait at. That results in spillover out into the hallways creating some pretty serious traffic jams. The way the concourses are laid out is pretty crazy too. Reminds me of how Hartsfield is done in Atlanta. If your connection is not in the same terminal, it can be a long hoof to the next gate. The other thing that struck me was the lack of space to wait. Besides the aforementioned gate situation, there are very few places to sit down and wait. I realize O'Hare is an old (and very busy) airport but still. I'll give out kudos here to Seattle and Houston. Both of those airports are very user friendly. DFW isn't too bad but sometimes it reminds me of Hartsfield.
As long as by Houston, you mean Hobby. George Bush Intergalactic is in no way user friendly ... Personally, I detest San Jose airport, and rather like the Nashville, Denver, and Las Vegas airports.
O'Hare is a nightmare for many reasons - including the old infrastructure pieced together with expansions, the sheer volume of people and the bad weather. The train to the airport from downtown is great, but O'Hare is a miserable place. I was stuck in the plane on the tarmac waiting for a gate to open up for over 6 hours one hot sunny day in Chicago. There was bedlam on the plane. I still hate United because of that, but unfortunately I am planted in another United dominated city (Denver). Denver International is a good airport, but halfway to Kansas.
Agree on O'Hare - it's a relic. I fly into Atlanta a lot (from DFW), and always use American, which makes it much easier getting into and out of Atlanta. Also fly to SoCal a lot - I really dislike LAX; it's a relic like O'Hare. Since my final destination is normally Palmdale, I find it much easier to fly to Burbank HornHuskerDad
IAH Terminal E is the bomb. I transferred many a time between Austin and Miami through there. DFW is big but pretty nice, especially with the rail system. For a city its size, Austin Bergstrom is freakin' sweet. San Jose really stinks. I'm surprised the companies in silicon valley haven't pooled their money to tear it down and build a new one. Seriously... how long is that construction gonna last? The barriers have been there for at least 3 years. Miami sucks. The airport is a reflection of the city. My old company was/is working on the new terminals though, and they'll be nice if they ever finish <-- the owner and architects were out of control when I left.
I personally dislike Oakland, especially if I have to get a rental car. It takes give or take a few, 25-30 minutes to get to the rental car center bcause of the traffic going in and out of the airport. San Francisco's int'l terminal is pretty nice. Internationally, my two favorite airports are Hong Kong and Singapore. Both of them are amazing, and Singapore's has alot to do.
Washpark, You need to start flying Frontier instead of United. They have Direct TV on every seat, you only need 15k miles for a free ticket vs 25k on United and they're not bankrupt. Has anyone ever flown into Midland's airport? Surprisingly nice.
5280 - I fly Frontier when possible (my brother works for them so I get the family discount/fly standby for a pittance). United's times are just better in some cases. Frontier is a very good airline. I worry that SWA's entry is going to make it difficult for Frontier to survive at DIA.
Yeah, but O"Hare has some pretty tasty grub, so there's that. And, sitting on the tarmac at night waiting for takeoff, and watching the LINE of planes in the sky coming in and out is amazing -- the amount of traffic there is almost beyond comprehension.
Sidetracking - International Airports: Singapore - unreal the accomodations they provide here - this airport will raise the bar in what you come to expect from an Airport: Free Movie Theatre (6) XBOX game stations The rest areas around the gates have sposnored HD screens from ESPN, Discovery, insert cable channel you like here. Oxygen Bar Pool/Showers Various Gardens (Bamboo, Cactus, Orchid, Fern. Koi Ponds) Top Notch Business/IT areas
Five Worst Airports I've Been To:Los Angeles International (LAX) : Don't try to connect from a domestic flight to an international flight--it's nearly impossible to do in less than two hours. The terminals are spaced widely apart, so walking is difficult. And there is no train connection between terminals, which means you have to take a bus. But the bus travels over the heavily congested access road, so it takes forever.Speaking of the congested access road, it is impossible to get in or out of the airport in less than an hour. Last time I was there, I sent my girlfriend to pick up the bags while I went to get the rental car. It took me an hour to catch the shuttle, pick up the rental car, and then get back to Terminal 5 to pick her up. Once I got her, it was another 30 minutes to get off the airport property. So let's recap: miserable connection airport + miserable destination airport = most miserable airport in the world. Tokyo Narita International (NRT): It's out in the middle of nowhere. Japan is so damn small, who would have imagined that they could put an airport so far from Tokyo and not have it in South Korea? Seriously, the cab from the airport to the city will cost in excess of $100. Inside the airport, it's a generic international airport (good and bad). And that's kind of a shame, I think. When you are at Bergstrom, you know you're in Texas. If I am at NRT, I should have a clue that I am in Japan other than the bunches of Japanese people running around. Kansas City International (MCI): This was designed just two years before D.B. Cooper, in the days when there was no airport security. When they put up security, there was nowhere to put it. The end result is that there is a separate security checkpoint for every two or three gates. There are no concessions or anything inside secuirty (a special problem in the post 9/11 era when noone wants to leave the security area). And it makes connections a hastle because you almost certainly have to go back through security. But the upside is that if you live in Kansas City, it is a breeze to get in and out. Once you get there, that is. It is half way to Iowa, after all. Las Vegas McCarran International (LAS): For all the aforementioned reasons. How they can make an airpor so enormous and yet so inadequately small is quite beyond me. When you get in, it is a marathon to get to baggage claim and then yet another marathon to get a taxi. But once you get to the taxi stand, the line is rarely less than 50 people deep. Lines are the hallmark of LAS. No airline has enough ticket counter space, so the lines at the ticket counter are legendary. Most airlines do a good job of moving the lines (Southwest and US Airways, especially). But they are still terrible. And the security lines are amazing. I don't think I have ever seen the wait less than 20 minutes. That I have to plan to be at the airport two hours before a flight is absurd. Lubbock "International" (LBB): I don't **** on LBB because it's small. Midland has an airport that is just as small, but a thousand times nicer. I **** on LBB because there are no amenities and because it looks as though it hasn't had new carpet or a new coat of paint in thirty years. Seriously--a city's airport is its gateway. If there is anything a city should spend money on to give visitors a favorable impression, it's the airport. But not in Lubbock. I guess they leave that job to Bobby Knight. Five Best Airports I've Been To: Dubai International (DXB): Convenient to the city and a ton of amenities both inside security and outside. Easy to get from your plane to a taxi and to get from your taxi to a plane with minimal waiting. Everyone bow down before Dubai and see what an airport should be. Singapore Chai Lop Kop International (SIN): Same as Dubai. Of course, it's Singapore--how far could you possibly put the airport from the city and still be in the same country? But that notwithstanding, it is an easy airport to get into and get out of. And the amenities rival Dubai.Frankfurt Rhein-Main (FRA) : Good freeway access and easy to connect at. The best part is the observation deck--for three Euros, you can go up on the roof of the terminal and watch all of the movements at T1 and the adjoining runway. It's all the more interesting because of the exotic airlines and aircraft (occasionally a Russian aircraft makes it in). Even if you have a three-hour layover, you can easily pass it in FRA on the observation deck. Bob Hope Burbank-Glendale-Pasadena Airport (BUR): A decent bar, but that's not why you go to BUR. The place is close to Los Angeles and, more importantly for an airport whose primary alternative is LAX, you can get out of there within ten minutes after your feet touch the jetway. Maybe BUR isn't that great, but the comparison with LAX puts it on my top 5 list. Tampa International (TPA): Now this is how you build an airport for convenience. Five terminals are connected by people movers to a central "landside." The terminals are each relatively small, so if you are going to Tampa, you don't have far to walk to the taxi stand or the rental car counter. If you are connecting (even between terminals), the walk is not far to and from the people movers. This is easily the best laid-out airport in America.
Charles De Gaulle is the worst airport I've been through, not counting the ones in Eastern Europe I have seen.
My thoughts: Agree on O’Hare – that place is a nightmare. In addition, if it is raining or snowing – it is a disaster. Airports I detest: San Jose – Long security lines, small gates, crappy enmities – that place sucks. Orange County – Long security lines. Denver – do not prefer to take a train to the gate. JFK – Old terminal (new American Terminal is nice), long taxi and wait for departure, long cab ride in traffic. Oakland – Small terminal with a bunch of SWA flights. Complete amateur hour at the security check-in and at the gate. Airports I prefer: San Francisco – Great international terminal, American terminal nice and compact, BART goes to the airport. Landing delays in the winter can be a problem. Austin – Easy to get to, security is OK. Great food. Works as a great first impressions to Austin. Frankfurt – Train to the airport, big terminal, easy to move around
LAX is by far the worst I've been to. San Fran has a great airport. Wonderful views, great local concessions, and BART stops directly there. Reagan/National is also a classic.
I flew to CDG from Zurich. From my arrival gate (from Zurich) I first had to find the line for the bus to take me to my connecting flight, then I had to wait 20 minutes because the line was so long. After traveling for what seemed an eternity on the bus, I had to wait in line again for 20 minutes to enter the other terminal. The 20 minute questioning by the French authorities before I boarded the plane really made my visit an especially pleasant one. In Moscow, Domodedova rocks...never fly into Sherementova.
Zurich is another winner. Spotless, I think they have a mall in the bottom of the Terminal, the train station in the terminal with quick access to the city centre. Also concur with the points concerning McCarran. Excellent analysis. How can an airport of that size be so small. And the Sunday security line for terminals C & D – is that the worst confrontation for a hangover known to man. Terminal D is nice, but you share the security line with C. I now fly out of Vegas at 7:00 AM just so I am not forced to deal with the Sunday comedy routine from the riff-raff in from Cleveland. It hurts to get up that early, but you breeze out of Vegas and get back to reality. What I like about the German, Swiss and Austrian airports – you can fly into any of them and then hop on the ICE/OBB/SBB train to your destination. I am flying to Dusseldorf on Saturday and it is just a quick hop to Koln.
I was through Midland Airport yesterday. Took about 5 minutes to get through security. Lots of places to sit while I waited for my flight.
