A New Zealand airport has landed a top spot on an international ranking that compares airports around the world for their punctuality, quality of service and passenger rating.
Auckland Airport came in at number nine in the research conducted by AirHelp, which also produces an annual airline ranking.
Top honours went to Signapore’s Changi Airport, which had a score of 9.07 out of 10, while Kuwait came in last place with 5.02.
Auckland was the only New Zealand airport on the list and received a total score of 7.80. While it rated highly for punctuality (8.6) and quality of service (8), it was passenger sentiment that let it down with a meagre 3.3.
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* Tips on what to do at Singapore, Bangkok or Hong Kong airport on a layover
* World’s best and worst airports for stopovers, food, shopping, hotels and lounges
This reflects previous research that found Kiwis rated the airport as one of the worst in New Zealand, behind Queenstown, Christchurch and Wellington.
According to the 2016 poll, Kiwis rated New Zealand airports on their cleanliness, range of bars, and bathrooms, with Queenstown International coming out on top in all categories.
BEST OF THE REST
Changi Airport is consistently voted the best in the world, and took top gong at this year’s prestigious Skytrax’s World Airport Awards – for the fifth year in a row.
It’s spacious and bright, with boulevard-like shopping arcades interspersed with butterfly gardens, a green wall, fountains, ample recharge ports, hawker food centres and a kids’ zone with the tallest slide in any airport.
High-end shopping brands are complemented with terminal hotels, spas and massage facilities and 24-hour cinemas in terminals 2 and 3. Free Wi-Fi is reasonably fast.
Pay-for-use lounges are located in all three terminals offering showers and buffet food. A charge of $S58 ($60) gets you in for up to five hours but given the terminal’s much better food options, the Snooze Lounges with lie-back seating and other free amenities, the value of these lounges is questionable.
Pick of the food outlets is the Singapore Food Street in Terminal 3, home to some of the city-state’s favourite hawker stalls. Go for the Hainanese chicken rice, or roasted duck.
Looking for a bar? Standout is Terminal 3’s rooftop Traveller’s Cactus Pub, set among succulents with a view of the runways over your Singapore sling.
Best rest and relax zone is the outdoor swimming pool atop Terminal 1 with its Jacuzzi, showers and a bar, a steal at just $S17.
BEST AIRPORTS IN THE WORLD
Singapore Changi
Munich, Germany
Hong Kong
Copenhagen Kastrup, Denmark
Helsinki-Vantaa, Finland
Cincinnati-Northern Kentucky, USA
Barcelona El Prat, Spain
Madrid Adolfo Suarez-Barajas, Spain
Auckland, New Zealand
Frankfurt, Germany
WORST AIRPORTS IN THE WORLD
Kuwait
London Gatwick
Manchester
Newark Liberty, New Jersey, USA
Stansted
Edinburgh
Mumbai, India
Dubai, UAE
Bangkok Suvarnabhumi, Thailand
Delhi, India
Where is your favourite airport and why? Tell us in the comments.
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