And the winner (loser) is...well, read on.
Alright…this may be a bit of hyperbole, but not by much. At eighty years of age, and very well traveled through perhaps hundreds of airports (I had eleven different flights in August alone), I am a pretty good judge of airports. There are many factors to consider such as amenities, courtesy, ambience – and most important of all, convenience for the traveler. Using these criteria, I have now selected my “worst” airport. And the winner (loser?) is…London's Heathrow!
Aside from looking like a giant warehouse with minimal interest in people comfort, the convenience factor of this airport is atrocious. Witness my most recent visit there on or about August 15. My traveling partner and I were going to Rome from Dulles (Washington DC), when a delayed flight required us to adjust our plans and travel from Dulles to Heathrow, thence to Rome via British Airways. The flight was uneventful, and we arrived in Heathrow with approximately two and a half hours between flights – a nice respite for a leisurely cocktail in the United Club lounge. But not a Heathrow. Indeed, even with two and a half hours for transitioning, we barely made it to our next flight. In fact it was half boarded when we rushed up to the gate.
How could such a thing happen? It is a combination of the configuration of Heathrow, slow security lines, rude personnel, and a trip a mountain goat would be better suited for. First, we walked close to what had to be a mile from our landing gate to the main terminal. No signage, no mobile walkways, just a long long drab, featureless hall what went on forever. Then it was up stairs…down stairs…up escalators…down escalators (some not working)…up elevators…down elevators…and, well you get the idea.
Then comes security. Interminable waits from rude security folks. First passport. Next luggage. My companion had a prescription medication (cream) for her swollen feet, given her by a podiatrist. That cut no ice with the security folks – they put her luggage aside in a different line for another long wait. The American TSA officials had cleared this cream to pass security – the Heathrow security asserted they had different rules, and so they did. They confiscated the cream when my companion acknowledged she did “not have a letter from her doctor” (something rarely carried I would imagine for a foot cream). The fact that she was a 79 year old woman from Palm Desert, California headed for a Mediterranean cruise created no reasonable decision from this gentleman – apparently she clearly fit the profile of a terrorist to him.
At last…through security, and then? More stairs, more escalators, interminable bus rides, elevators – a train! Off the train, and was the gate in sight? No! More walking up and down, and finally, our gate. Loading, and our two and a half hours was not spent relaxing in cool lounge, it was spent in an exhausting trip trekking, trudging, climbing, descending. bussing, and more in the worst airport in the world. Heathrow is a disincentive to visit London, pass through London, or commute to London with any frequency for business reasons.
Oh…did I fail to mention they also lost our luggage which never arrived in Rome? It was sent to the cruise ship five days after sailing, on the island of Mykonos. What else would you expect from…the worst airport in the world?
Author's note: if you have a candidate that can displace Heathrow's losers rank, I am willing to listen and reconsider my selection.