UK’s Rudest and Friendliest Airports

by Shabana Adam | 25 August 2012

At the opposite end of the scale, Edinburgh gets the thumbs up from summer travellers, coming in as the UK’s friendliest, with Newcastle a very close second.

Skyscanner asked more than 500 travellers to rate UK and European airports according to the friendliness of their staff. Across all airports, check-in staff appear bottom of the list, while things start to pick up after the security gates with staff in restaurants and shops typically the chirpiest.

Of the five airports serving London, four made the top five rudest list including Heathrow, despite immigration staff being asked to turn on the charm during the busy summer Olympic months as the capital was in the international spotlight.

London City bucks trend

London City Airport which now carries almost three million passengers each year, bucked the trend of low scoring London airports and only just missed out on a mention in the five friendliest, coming in a close sixth place.

Edinburgh voted most friendly airport

We like to have a good moan and grumble but overall, the average scores were positive for UK’s airports."

Edinburgh Airport, which was recently praised as the UK’s number one family friendly airport, hit the top spot once again, hailed for its customer service skills.

The study also shows a clear north-south divide with Newcastle hailed for its great attitude towards travellers, named as the second friendliest airport followed by Manchester (third), suggesting that perhaps people really are friendlier in the North.

Known for its charm and witty banter, Northern Ireland’s two main gateway airports; Belfast International and Belfast City, which between them carry more than six million passengers each year, ranked fourth and fifth respectively, both praised for their friendly welcome.

Paris is Europe’s most unfriendly

Looking across the Continent, Paris Charles De Gaulle; Europe’s second busiest airport carrying more than 60 million passengers every year, was named as the rudest in Europe, with Copenhagen Airport the friendliest.

Common complaints

Complaints about members of staff range from abrupt responses following the simplest enquiry, to the endless queues and manhandling at security; resulting in the airport experience for many travellers feeling more like cattle to market.

Victoria Bailie at Skyscanner said: “We like to have a good moan and grumble but overall, the average scores were positive for UK’s airports. Despite the summer rush, they’ve clearly been doing a good job to help kick start our holiday on a positive note. However, customers travelling in and out of Heathrow faced quite a few problems during the Olympics with ex-employees being drafted in, many of whom had only completed basic training. Clearly there is still room for improvement.“

Full results below.

Five Rudest Airports in the UK

1. Luton

2. Stansted

3. Heathrow

4. Gatwick

5. Birmingham

Five Friendliest Airports in the UK

1. Edinburgh

2. Newcastle

3. Manchester

4. Belfast Int.