Singapore lost the ‘world’s best airport’ title. Here’s how it will get it back
Julietta Jameson
Singapore’s Changi Airport may have been relegated to the second-best airport in the world in the 2024 Skytrax World Airport Awards, falling short behind its arch rival, Hamad International Airport, Doha, but it doesn’t let the grass grow under its feet when it comes to striving to be number one.
Changi Terminal 2 and its Wonderfall.
Changi Terminal 2 and its Wonderfall.
Changi has taken out the best airport gong 12 times in the 25-year history of the awards, and its operator, Changi Airport Group, now has construction under way on Changi Terminal 5. When completed in 10 years, it will double the size of the airport – T5 will be as big as the four current terminals combined.
Meanwhile, Changi has unveiled its fully expanded and improved Terminal 2. Closed in 2020 as a result of the pandemic, Changi opted to renovate rather than mothball during the downtime.
Reopening progressively since May 2022, the now-completed terminal adds five million passengers annually to Changi’s capacity, bringing the total to 90 million. Airlines currently flying from Terminal 2 include Air India, Etihad Malaysia Airlines, Lufthansa and Singapore Airlines’ flights to other South-East Asian destinations and some South Asian routes.
Practically, the T2 expansion project has added more than 21,000 square metres to the terminal building to support additional infrastructure, new systems and more retail.
Live planting in Terminal 2’s Dreamscape area.
Live planting in Terminal 2’s Dreamscape area.
Key upgrades include a central common-use Fast and Seamless Travel (FAST) zone. The number of automated check-in kiosks and bag drop machines has almost doubled and the immigration halls have been expanded to support additional automated lanes, allowing more passengers to be served at any time.
Terminal 2 and its expanded retail options.
Terminal 2 and its expanded retail options.
T2 is also the first terminal in Changi to have automated Special Assistance Lanes and a new early automated baggage storage system has been installed with the capacity to handle up to 2400 bags. This is in response to more people checking in bags more than three hours before departure time.
But it’s the design flourishes that most airport users will find captivating. With an overarching nature-inspired theme, passengers travelling through may notice ceiling designs, wall finishes and carpet designs mimicking natural landforms.
Traveller Letters: The best airport in the world? I don’t think so
Immense live plantings feature throughout, with a large central garden in departures. The T2 departure hall has a spectacular 14-metre-tall digital display dubbed The Wonderfall. Set amid a vertical garden of its own, The Wonderfall runs through a mesmerising digital show portraying a waterfall cascading over boulders.
There’s also a digital ceiling displaying a sky that changes with the time of day. Another fun touch is the repurposing of the terminal’s old information board. Now a kinetic attraction, you can have your picture taken in front of it, then the letters and numbers will clack away to produce your face on the board.
Australians will see another familiar face in departures: Jones the Grocer, the gourmet food enterprise that began in Woollahra, NSW, expanded overseas, then went bust on home soil while continuing to flourish elsewhere, has a cafe outlet at Changi T2.
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