Douglas Adams quotes usually hit the nail right on the head. And when I read in The Long Dark Teatime of the Soul the following remark about airports, I thought ‘well, that’s spot on’.
It can hardly be a coincidence that no language on Earth has ever produced the expression “As pretty as an airport.” Airports are ugly. Some are very ugly. Some attain a degree of ugliness that can only be the result of a special effort. This ugliness arises because airports are full of people who are tired, cross, and have just discovered that their luggage has landed in Murmansk (Murmansk airport is the only exception of this otherwise infallible rule), and architects have on the whole tried to reflect this in their designs.
Mind you, I think that was back in 1988.
Since that time, airports – well, some of them, have become a whole lot prettier. And more pleasant places to spend time in. Take Helsinki’s airport.
It has – of course – every facility you can imagine and its gorgeous lounges aren’t just for the lucky first class passengers. True, there’s an entry fee for you and I but that’s so worth it.
There are plenty of facilities that are open 24 hours a day but the airport has also taken into account the traveller who wants (or needs) to spend hours in the airport for connecting flights. So it has been designed to be comfortable as well as stylish.
Sleep pods are available for the seriously snoozy types. The cost is reasonable and the pods can be rented by the hour for short and refreshing recovery periods.
FACILITIES
- Airport Tours
- Art in the Airport
- ATMs / Cash Machines
- Beauty Salon and Barber
- Book Swap
- Currency Exchange
- Game Area
- Information Desk
- Luggage Storage & LockersMedical Services
- Mobile Charging
- Museum
- Observation Deck
- Pharmacy
- Postal Services
- Relax Lounge
- Rest Zones
- Security Check
- Showers
- Smoking Areas
- Relax and Fly Feel Good Lounge
- Weddings
- Work & Rest Station
