UK’s best and worst airports revealed

Manchester Airport’s Terminal 3 finished bottom of the annual airport survey by consumer group Which? for the third consecutive year, as neighbouring Liverpool John Lennon Airport was crowned best airport in the UK.

With a customer score of just 37%, Manchester’s Terminal 3 received just one star for seating, staff, queues at security, range of shops and prices in shops, and managed no higher than two stars in any of the remaining categories, including for toilets.

With some of its moving walkways out of action since 2021, and repair works still ongoing, as well as widespread complaints about queues and lack of seating, many people who were reliant on Manchester Airport for its range of international connections reported unhappy experiences.

One disappointed traveller summed up their time at the terminal as: “Queuing, queuing, queuing. Not enough staff, poorly trained, surly bordering on rude.” Another said: “Manchester T3 sums up everything that is bad about UK airports. Too many flights mean too many people crowded into a space not designed to take that many.”

Another said: “It’s just awful — the worst advert for anyone flying to the UK. It’s the worst airport I have ever used (and by quite a long way) compared to other UK and especially overseas airports.”

Which? surveyed almost 5,000 Brits about their experiences at UK airports in the last 12 months. Respondents were invited to rate the airports across 11 categories, including seating, staff, toilets and queues at check in, bag drop, passport control and security. A customer score was calculated based on a combination of overall satisfaction and likeliness to recommend.

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On the whole, smaller airports performed better than their larger rivals, with respondents reporting shorter queues, and a generally less stressful experience.

Manchester Airport told Which? that it disagreed with the survey findings in relation to customer satisfaction and security waiting times, and noted its own data shows 97% of people take less than 15 minutes to pass through security.

It said: “As in previous years, Which? is letting consumers down with over-simplified judgements based on the outdated and unrepresentative testimony of a narrow group of travellers, as well as publishing misleading statements and factual inaccuracies.

“Manchester Airport is proud to give people in all parts of the North easy and affordable access to nearly 200 different destinations across the world. We know our nearly 30 million passengers value the fact we make it possible for them to fly directly to places they otherwise wouldn’t be able to, whether that is for business or leisure, to study or visit friends and family.

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“We also know they value an experience that caters for all needs, tastes and budgets, and through our £1.3bn Manchester Airport Transformation Programme we are creating world-class facilities that give them just that. Due for completion next year, it is already winning awards and receiving high levels of customer satisfaction.”

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Manchester Airport Terminal 1, which is scheduled for closure next year, fared only marginally better, with a customer score of 40%. Meanwhile, Terminal 2, which is currently undergoing a multi-million pound upgrade, was the highest rated of Manchester’s terminals, tying with Heathrow Terminal 4 with a score of 51%.

Belfast International was the lowest scoring airport after Manchester Terminals 3 and 1, with a customer score of 44%. It is currently in the midst of a £100m redevelopment. One traveller said, “Miserable surroundings and luggage recovery is a joke.” In contrast, its neighbour Belfast City (George Best) Airport was in the top half of the table, with a customer score of 63%.

London Luton was ranked the worst-rated London airport, with a customer score of 47%, closely followed by Stansted on a customer score of 50%.

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At the top end of the table, Liverpool John Lennon received an impressive customer score of 81%, and was one of five airports this year to secure the prestigious Which? Recommended Provider Badge, alongside London City, Norwich, Exeter and Southampton.

It rated five stars for its “friendly”, “good-natured” staff, as well for queues at bag drop and security. It also received four stars for its toilets, wi-fi, seating, baggage reclaim and queues at the check in desk and at passport control.

As one respondent said, it’s a “smaller, friendlier, efficient airport, generally not too busy with smallish queues.”

London City Airport took a close second place with a customer score of 80%, and was the best-rated London airport overall. Multiple respondents enthused about the airport’s efficiency and lack of queues, noting the “seamless process from arrival to departure,” achieved without the need for fast track passes.

It received five stars for queues at bag drop, queues at security, and for its staff, as well as four stars ratings for queues at check-in, queues at passport control, baggage reclaim and airport wi-fi. Currently a relatively small airport, City recently saw its proposals for expansion greenlit.

Norwich (78%), Exeter (77%) and Southampton (75%) completed the top five.

Rory Boland, Editor of Which? Travel, said: “Our survey found many of the biggest airports fall at the basics – with passengers often unhappy about the availability of toilets and seats, and reporting long queues at times. Flogging fast passes and filling terminals with retail spaces and airport lounges is a money spinner – but judging by our survey results, it’s not what passengers need.

“Smaller airports in contrast may have few shops to speak of and the likes of City have no private lounges – but our survey shows what they can do is get passengers off on their holiday quickly and smoothly. Next time you’re booking a flight, it’s well worth considering not just your choice of airline but also your airport – it could make all the difference to the start of your getaway.”

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