It hasn’t been a great year for Manchester Airport and now it has scooped the dubious accolade of taking the three lowest spots in the rankings of Airport satisfaction
The consumer organisation Which found that that it at the very bottom of the charts with a customer satisfaction score of just 38 per cent was Manchester’s Terminal 3, which scored a lowly one star for queues at security, seating, prices in shops and the range of shops on offer.
It managed no higher than two stars in any of the remaining categories. Travellers dissatisfied with their experience at the terminal described it as ‘chaotic’, ‘heaving’, and ‘an end-to-end shambles’, with many expressing their disappointment at long queue times, not just through security, but even for refreshments.
Manchester Terminals 1 and 2 fared marginally better, with customer satisfaction scores of 41 per cent and 47 per cent respectively. Like Terminal 3, they scored just one star for queue times at security, though Terminal 2 distinguished itself as the only Manchester terminal to score 3 stars in any category, which it achieved both for seating and toilet facilities.
Small airports including Doncaster Sheffield, Exeter and Liverpool John Lennon have beaten their big-name rivals to be crowned best in the UK this year, with many larger hubs crippled by excessive delays and cancellations.
Doncaster Sheffield Airport topped the consumer champion’s survey for the fourth consecutive time, after almost 7,500 Which? members were asked to rate their experiences at UK airports over the past two years. The airport is however due to shut down imminently, with the last flight departing in the next few weeks.
With a customer score of 85 per cent, travellers praised the ‘fantastic, helpful staff’ and ‘faultless service’, awarding the airport’s employees a full five stars. The airport also scooped five star ratings for queues through security and at baggage reclaim, as well as for seating and toilet facilities, with one respondent enthusing their experience was ‘how air travel should be’.
The airport did however drop to 4 stars for queues at check-in and bag drop, while it received its lowest ratings for the shopping experience offered – rating three stars for the price of goods, and just two stars for the range of shops.
Exeter and Liverpool John Lennon Airports tied in second place in the consumer champion’s survey, with a customer score of 83 per cent. Both airports earned Which? Recommended Provider status for the first time. Exeter scored a near-perfect set of five- star ratings, dropping to two stars only on the choice of shops available. Multiple respondents commented on the ‘small, friendly’ feel of the airport, with travellers praising the ease and convenience they experienced, and notably, a lack of queues.
Liverpool John Lennon Airport also rated highly for wait times, achieving an impressive five stars across check-in, bag-drop, security, passport control and baggage reclaim. Respondents praised the airport as ‘uncrowded’ with ‘minimal queues’ while also singling out an intuitive layout which made the space ‘easy to navigate’.
