We can all argue which airport is best, but really there is no one correct answer.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 The perfect airport would be very small and convenient, yet have non-stop flights to every destination.\u00a0\u00a0 Obviously that’s impossible.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 As someone who has visited a lot of airports, let me give you some of my favorite features of different airports:<\/p>\n
Most Convenient Location:<\/strong> Washington National Airport is in a pretty close race to some other great downtown airports like San Diego, Boston Logan, and Las Vegas.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Nothing is as cool as hitting the town moments after you land.<\/p>\n Best Non-Stop Flights<\/strong>: Atlanta Airport is the place that everyone loves to hate.\u00a0\u00a0 It is massive, and changing planes there can be intimidating.\u00a0\u00a0 Throw in a thunderstorm or even an ice storm, and you can have chaos that lasts for days.\u00a0\u00a0 That said, ATL is a great place to fly from if you happen to live in Atlanta.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Check out their Wikipedia place for a list of non stop destinations.<\/a> Seriously, if you need to get to Blountville\/Tri-Cities or Luanda, Angola, Atlanta has got you covered.\u00a0 Personally, I don’t even know where Blountville\/Tri-Cities is.<\/p>\n Best Architecture:<\/strong> Denver International Airport is a marvel to behold.\u00a0 Sure it is nowhere near Denver, and it barely has any international flights, but it’s towering translucent great hall has become an iconic symbol of the Mile High City.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Feelings are mixed on the giant blue horse outside the terminal, but at least it has an amazing story.<\/a><\/p>\n Best Airplane Watching Area:<\/strong> Las Vegas in known for many things, but did you know that it has a great place to watch airplanes land?\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 If you drive to the south\u00a0 side of the airport, there is a designated viewing area on Sunset Road.\u00a0\u00a0 It is the only one of it’s kind that I am aware of.\u00a0\u00a0 From there you can watch planes landing every couple of minutes.\u00a0\u00a0 There is free parking with a great view of the runway and they even broadcast the tower communications over the radio!\u00a0\u00a0 More details here.<\/a><\/p>\n Fastest Train System: <\/strong>Ideally, you would never have to take a train to get to your concourse, but it is very hard to design a large airport without a connecting train, which definitely beats a bus.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Unfortunately, most train systems tend to chug along, pausing interminably at each stop.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Not so in Atlanta.\u00a0\u00a0 Not only do the trains arrive and depart every 90 seconds, but they pause very briefly at each stop, before rocketing you to the next concourse.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 If you are not quick enough, they even have a display that shows you how many seconds until the next train arrives.\u00a0 Now maybe they could get the people who operate their trains to speed up the ones in Denver.<\/p>\n Shortest Walk To Your Gate<\/strong>:\u00a0 In Dallas, everyone drives everywhere.\u00a0\u00a0 Therefore, it is only natural that they designed an airport so that you would barely have to walk.\u00a0\u00a0 When arriving or departing from Dallas-Fort Worth Airport, you can pretty much drive right up to your gate.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Each concourse has a parallel road along side it, with security checkpoints arrayed near every gate.\u00a0\u00a0 You can get from your car to your gate in about 50 feet, just as if you were flying out of some minor regional airport.<\/p>\n Best Security Barrier<\/strong>:\u00a0\u00a0 At most airports,\u00a0 you will find barbed wire fencing between the secure and unsecured areas of the field. \u00a0 At the Orlando International Airport, they came up with a novel solution.\u00a0\u00a0 Between the main terminal and the four satellite concourses, you will find a series of lakes.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 What you say, what is to stop someone from swimming across the lake?\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Did I mention there are alligators there?<\/p>\n Best New York Area Airport<\/strong>:\u00a0 Sure you get to see some great looking aircraft at Kennedy, and La Guardia is somewhat convenient.\u00a0\u00a0 Yes, Newark is the most modern of the major airports,\u00a0 but there is kind of a secret back door to New York up in White Plains.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 The first time I flew into the Westchester County airport<\/a>, I was amazed by the convenient small scale of the airport.\u00a0\u00a0 It is only 33 miles from Manhattan, and the drive can often be quicker than the drive in from Kennedy.\u00a0\u00a0 Service is mostly limited to the major airline hubs east of Chicago and a few flights to Florida.<\/p>\n