Schiphol has dropped again in the ranking of the world's best airports. Last year the airport finished in ninth place, this year Schiphol has to make do with thirteenth position. Suvarnabhumi International Airport near Bangkok rises sharply: from 47th to 36th place. Singapore Changi Airport is the best airport in the world according to Skytrax's World Airport Awards.
Schiphol was overtaken by the airports Osaka-Kansai (9), Doha (10), Tokyo-Narita (11) and Frankfurt (12). It seems that Schiphol has ended up in a free fall because in 2013 the Dutch airport was rated as the third best airport in the world.
The list is compiled by Skytrax, an organization that conducts ongoing research into the quality of airlines and airports. The rankings are compiled based on the experiences of travelers who can leave a review on the website.
The World Airport Awards for 2016 were presented at the Passenger Terminal EXPO in Cologne. Munich Airport is the third highest ranked European airport.
Top 15 World Airport Awards 2016
1. Singapore Changi
2. Incheon Intl Airport
3.Munich Airport
4. Tokyo Intl Haneda
5. Hong Kong Intl Airport
6. Central Airport
7. Zurich Airport
8.London Heathrow
9. Kansai Intl Airport
10. Doha Hamad Airport
11. Narita Intl Airport
12.Frankfurt Airport
13. Amsterdam Schiphol
14. Vancouver Airport
15.Helsinki Airport
Check out the full list here: www.worldairportawards.com/Awards/world_airport_rating.html
Striking: many Asian airports. Only Vancouver as a North American airport.
Interesting to know. Thanks for this info.
As a Belgian, I was almost immediately interested in the position of Brussels Airport. Mmm… that was quite hard to find: 83rd place (dropping from 78th)… I think that is quite justified, even though I don't know those other airports. And if you want to go by train from Brussels, a journey of less than fifteen minutes, you have to pay an extra 'diabolo' tax of about 5 euros pp on top of the price of a ticket… Is that also the case in Amsterdam? I take the bus (De Lijn): it takes longer, but it costs about 1/10th of the price of a train ride…
Compared to most airports I've ever 'visited', I find some places in Brussels Airport quite boring, empty,… Sorry, but I can't find the right words for it. Especially the area where you, as an arriving passenger, have to collect your luggage, I find quite 'abandoned', 'dark'.
I hope to be able to fly via Amsterdam-Schiphol in the future.
Dear Daniel ,
You are indeed 100% right about that
Baggage handling is also much faster in Amsterdam than in Brussels.
During the weekends you can not even go directly to Brussels by train from Ghent, you have to change trains in Brussels itself ... But you can pay the 5,30 euros that actually serve to transport people from
Antwerp/Mechelen to drive directly to the airport with 15 minutes time saving compared to the past !!.
And which bus line do you take from Brussels ( Stations Midi, Nord Central ) to the airport, I also have one
my belly full of paying for EXTRA….
With thanks
Jan
Amsterdam itself is not a star in baggage handling. I have often experienced that it just took 45 minutes before the luggage was on the belt.
It is not surprising that Amsterdam drops on that list anyway, it has not become any nicer after the last few renovations.
If you have a transfer at Schiphol and get out after 12 hours of flying, you can then first queue again for security check or if it is your final destination for passport control. I'd rather light a cigarette for 10 minutes or get a drink after I've been on a plane for 12 hours, because you have to wait for the luggage, which doesn't move quickly either. For passport control they have those beautiful automatic boxes, which are off 90% of the time or even not available at all lately.
All in all, I think Schiphol is getting more and more annoying.
Dear Jan,
I take De Lijn bus 820 (Dilbeek – Airport) not far from my home, but it takes almost an hour to get there.
From Brussels-North you can take De Lijn bus 471 (about 45 minutes) or 272 (about 55 minutes). For more information, see the website of De Lijn.
If you come from Ghent, you can take the train to Zaventem to avoid the Diabolo tax and from there a De Lijn bus to the airport. Check Google Maps for the location of the stops and the De Lijn website for timetables.
Another option is the train to Vilvoorde and from there by bus from De Lijn to the airport…
“or even recently not available at all”. Not right. Two weeks ago I arrived at Schiphol and the automatic passport control worked fine. By the way, also when leaving almost two months ago. Waiting for the luggage didn't take more than fifteen minutes either.
The fact that Schiphol has dropped somewhat has of course everything to do with the major renovations in recent years. Gradually, the beautiful result is visible. If you are in thirteenth place worldwide, you are still a winner with very large airports of world cities behind you. Schiphol is simply a beautiful and pleasant airport, otherwise you cannot rank so high worldwide. But yes, for many Dutch people nothing is good in the Netherlands.
It is not called a Diabolo tax here, but is somewhat more insidious in the price, because routes on the Schiphol line contain more rate kilometers than kilometers.
Well, what is a top airport now. Quite difficult because often small negative things influence your overall opinion considerably. For example, Schiphol still does not have an Emirates lounge because another airline does not want it. This means that their guests often give Schiphol an unsatisfactory rating. I myself give lower marks if I have to land or take off via the Polderbaan. On the other hand, you often stand in a long line waiting to take off at airports in the US or Heathrow. On Bangkok Suv I often stand/stood in a long queue at the stamp post. That seems to be better now than, say, 2 years ago. I like clean toilets and showers. Yet you see things changing at various airports on our globe and then as an airline and airport you have to participate in new developments or things from Columbus that are normal elsewhere. You may find it nonsense as a down-to-earth Dutch director of Schiphol, but others do it to please their guests. An airport is never finished. It is nice that you no longer have to deal with oncoming traffic on the piers at Schiphol. Short-term parking to pick someone up was difficult this summer. Been to P3 several times instead of close by. Furthermore, it is a compact airport where you do not have to travel between terminals with a train. A lot of people often don't like that.