I dreamt last night I was flying around and departing from Copenhagen airport. Since it is one of the airports I spent most time waiting for connecting flights it is hardly surprising. However it made me think today of airports in general. Airports I have used and the list is pretty long, airports I like and airports I hate. Efficient airports, relaxing airports, comfortable airports. There is no secret I have enjoyed all these years jet setting so to speak. I have had extremely good experiences as well as a few horror stories.

I have fond memories of Copenhagen. I used the platform many times to travel to Scandinavia but also as the main platform to fly to north America. Living in northern Germany at the time, I never could accept flying south to Frankfurt for example to fly back due north on the route to the US.

Let us go through a few of them:

CPH Copenhagen

Probably still my favorite airport. It is uncomplicated, medium size with a nice scandinavian atmosphere. A lot of wood panelling gives a warm feeling. On the negative side, maybe somewhat expensive bars and restaurants. However they have great lounges especially the SAS one which I used extensively flying back and forth to the US. I always had a few hours to wait early in the morning flying back from Chicago for instance and the lounge had great showers as well as breakfast offerings. The hours waiting just went by very quickly.

AMS Amsterdam

Part of my favorite airports. Although a big airport it has this friendly feel. I knew my way around ever so well> The shops are nice, the lounges fairly good. I say fairly because they were usually fairly crowded. On my way to and back from South America I always had at least 3 hours waiting time so I had plenty of opportunity to look around and discover the place. Even on short European trips I tend to also use Amsterdam as a platform. The fact that Air France and KLM are one company so to speak, you have access to the largest European network via this airport.

ORD Chicago O’Hare

Spent a lot of time in this airport. I knew all the bars and restaurants by heart. Each terminal has a different atmosphere. At the time I was an avid smoker so to speak and that is simply impossible within the terminals. Standing outside in the middle of winter to enjoy a last cigarette before a transatlantic flight is no fun at all. The United lounges are not bad however drinks are not free as done in Europe. Coming into the country can be difficult with a lot of long queues at immigration. That is not specific to Chicago but to the US in general. Saying that, it has been known that I would get through within 20′ from the time I disembarked to the exit of Terminal 5.

FRA Frankfurt

Probably tops my list of my pet hate airports. Saing that, a lot of effort has been put in to revamp the place over the past few years. I guess that is part of the problem, there was no ending to the construction site and transiting from one terminal to the other took ages going up and down, underground etc etc. The place is too big and not welcoming enough. I have spent hours and hours in there waiting for overseas connections. It is almost always ever so crowded. If I have to use a turntable airport in Germany I would always attempt to go via Munich.

List of airports

I have been through these one way or another. It does not include smaller aerodromes when flying with private planes. Neither does it includes heliports. I am sure I have forgotten a few (there are a couple of names in China I cannot remember for instance)

142 and counting

AEP Buenos Aires (ARG), AGP Malaga (ESP), AGA Agadir (MAR), ALC Alicante (ESP), AMS Amsterdam (NLD), AOR Alor Setar (MYS), ARN Stockholm (SWE), ATH Athens (GRC), ATL Atlanta (USA), AJA Ajaccio (FRA), ANR Antwerp (BEL), AZO Kalamazoo (USA), AYT Antalya (TUR), BCN Barcelona (ESP), BFH Curitiba (ECU), BFS Belfast (GBR), BKK Bangkok (THA), BOG Bogota (COL), BOM Mumbai (IND), BOS Boston (USA), BRS Bristol (GBR), BRU Brussels (BEL), BUD Budapest (HUN), BVA Beauvais (FRA), CAI Cairo (EGY), CAK Akron (USA), CCF Carcassonne (FRA), CDG Paris Charles de Gaulle (FRA), CGH Sao Paulo (BRA), CGN Cologne Bonn (DEU), CLE Cleveland (USA), CLT Charlotte (USA), CMN Casablanca (MAR), CPH Copenhagen (DNK), CPT Cape Town (ZAF), CUE Cuenca (ECU), CUZ Cusco (PER), CVT Coventry (GBR), DAL Dallas (USA), DEL Delhi (IND), DPS Denpasar Bali (IDN), DTM Dortmund (DEU), DTW Detroit (USA), DXB Dubai (ARE), EAP Mulhouse (FRA), EDI Edinburgh (GBR), EWR New York Newark (USA), FCO Rome (ITA), FDF Fort de France (FRA), FRA Frankfurt (DEU), GIG Rio de Janeiro (BRA), GLA Glasgow (GBR), GPS Galapagos Island (ECU), GRU Sao Paulo (BRA), GVA Geneva (CHE), GYE Guayaquil EC (ECU), HAJ Hannover (DEU), HAM Hamburg (DEU), HEL Helsinki (FIN), HFE Hefei (CHN), HKG Hong Kong (HKG), HKT Phuket (THA), HLP Jakarta (IDN), HND Tokyo (JPN), HRB Harbin (CHN), HRG Hurghada (EGY), IAD Washington (USA), IST Istanbul (TUR), JFK New York (USA), JKG Jönköping (SWE), JNB Johannesburg (ZAF), KRP Karup (DNK), KUL Sepang / Kuala Lumpur (MYS), LAX Los Angeles (USA), LGA New York (USA), LHR London Heathrow (GBR), LIM Lima (PER), LJU Ljubljana (SVN), LGK Langkawi (MYS), LGW London Gatwick (GBR), LUK Cincinnati (USA), LUX Luxembourg (LUX), LYS Lyon (FRA), MAD Madrid (ESP), MAN Manchester (GBR), MEB Melbourne (AUS), MEX Mexico City (MEX), MIA Miami (USA), MFM Macau (MAC), MNL Manila (PHL), MPH Borocay (PHL), MRS Marseille (FRA), MSP Minneapolis (USA), MUC Munich (DEU), MSY New Orleans (USA), MXP Milan (ITA), NCE Nice (FRA), NCL Newcastle (GBR), NUE Nuremberg (DEU), OPO Porto (PRT), ORD Chicago (USA), ORY Paris Orly (FRA), OSL Oslo (NOR), PEK Beijing (CHN), PHL Philadelphia (USA), PIT Pittsburg (USA), PLZ Port Elisabeth (ZAF), PNH Phnom Penh (KHM), POZ Poznan (POL), PRG Prague (CZE), PTP Point a Pitre (FRA), PVG Shanghai Pudong (CHN), RAK Marrakech (MAR), SCL Santiago (CHL), SFO San Francisco (USA), SGN Ho Chi Minh City (VNM), SHA Shanghai Honqqiao (CHN), SIN Singapore (SGP), SMV St. Moritz (CHE), SSA Salvador da Bahia (BRA), STN London Stansted (GBR), STR Stuttgart (DEU), SXF Berlin Schönefeld (DEU), SYD Sydney (AUS), SYX Sanya (CHN), SZB Subang, SZG Salzburg, TLN Toulon (F), TLS Toulouse (F), TSA Taipei, TSR Timisoara, TXL Berlin Tegel, UIO Quito (EC), USM Ko Samui, VCO Venice (I), VIE Vienna (A),WMI Warsaw (PL), XIY Xi’an, XMN Xiamen, XZX Chavenay (F), YMX Montreal (CAN), ZRH Zürich (CH)