Welcome to the world's best airport, according to Skytrax, a consultancy that ranks and reviews airports. This is Changi airport in Singapore!
In a country obsessed with rankings, Changi stands out as a special point of pride.
Skytrax claims to carry out the largest annual global airport customer satisfaction survey, where travellers assess service and facilities across more than 550 airports. Changi has come out at the top 12 times in Skytrax rankings, including eight number-one rankings in the past decade. It regained its crown in March after trailing Doha's Hamad International Airport and Tokyo's Haneda Airport for the past two years, winning praise from Skytrax for its "unrivalled passenger experiences".
Before the pandemic, in 2019, some 382,000 flights took off or landed at Changi, ferrying more than 68 million passengers. While it is still recovering its passenger volume, Changi is no mere travel hub: it is an almost iconic hangout spot, beloved by Singaporeans.
Easily accessible by subway and bus, it is not unusual to find people spending their whole day at Changi. You can watch a movie, have a meal, buy groceries, even find a quiet spot to study for an exam. Over the years, it has also become a destination for wedding shoots and reunion dinners.
The airport even has its own scent: a custom-made fragrance with floral notes and spices that's diffused throughout Changi.
And just outside Terminal 4, there is a display of life-sized dinosaurs that stretches for a mile.
Other attractions include an air-conditioned rainforest, hedge maze and a 12m-high slide. If you're flying out and find yourself at the airport a little too early, the transit area is equipped with a spa, a theatre screening free movies and a swimming pool, not to mention massage chairs and a butterfly garden.
