We’ve all had a nightmare experience in an airport. The queue at security was long, your flight was delayed by several hours, and your go-to airport food kiosk was out of the one sandwich you wanted. You might expect the airport to be the worst part of any given journey, but it doesn’t need to be that way.
Any frequent flier will know that small airports generally offer more pleasant experiences than huge ones. Sure, they might only consist of one room, a WH Smith and, if you’re really lucky, a mini café, but their compact size often means that things run on time. All of that stands true for the airport which the Telegraph has crowned the best in the UK.
In order to determine the country’s best airport, the Telegraph took a closer look at the 30 biggest terminals in the country and compared them on a few different criteria: punctuality (percentage of flights arriving and leaving on time), average delay times, average security times, and flight cancellation rates. Once they had all of those numbers, they gave each entry an overall total score, the higher the better, and voila – you have your ranking.
So who took the crown? The small but mighty Liverpool John Lennon with a score of 888. Serving around 5 million passengers annually (for context, Heathrow sees more than 83 million each year), travelling through this mid-size northern hub will keep you well on time. Its cancellation rates sit at an impressive 0.7 percent, and 76 percent of flights arrive or depart on schedule.
Liverpool John Lennon is not as tiny as some of the others in the top ten – Inverness at eighth sees less than one million travellers in a year – meaning that it offers a perfect balance between the ease of a small airport, and the travel options of a larger one. This isn’t the first time Liverpool John Lennon has been recognised for excellence either, as Which? also named it the nation’s best earlier this year.
In second place was Belfast George Best, which is about half of the size of Liverpool John Lennon but nearly matches it in efficiency. It actually beat the winner in some categories: over 78 percent of planes take off or land on time here. With a score of 880, it narrowly missed out on the top spot because of its limited destinations, only flying to 22 different places.
In third was London City, the capital’s most compact terminus. It flew into the bronze spot with 878 points overall, losing out because of its 3.3 percent cancellation rate.
Here are the top 10 airports in the country according to data from the Telegraph
- Liverpool John Lennon
- George Best Belfast City
- London City
- London Heathrow
- Newcastle International
- London Gatwick
- Birmingham
- Inverness
- Aberdeen International
- Jersey
On the other side of the scale, Cardiff came in last place, scoring only 591. If you’re travelling on public transport, it’s often actually faster to get into Cardiff city centre from Bristol airport than Cardiff itself, so it’s incredibly inconvenient to even get to. Then, once you do arrive, you’re more likely to encounter delays and cancellations. Overall, it’s a deal a lot of us would rather pass on.
You can find the Telegraph’s full rating of all 30 of our biggest airports here.
Eyes on the skies
Wondering what else is going on in the world of British aviation? Low-cost airline Wizz Air is launching five new routes between the UK and Spain, and this is why British Airways might be scrapping the backseat screens. And that’s not the only news: several major British airports have officially scrapped the 100ml liquids rule. In fact, 10 UK airports have changed security rules around liquids in hang luggage –here’s everything you need to know.
Three regional UK airports are getting new flights and holiday routes
Could Concorde soon make a comeback in the UK?
Stay in the loop: sign up to our free Time Out UK newsletter for the latest UK news and the best stuff happening across the country.