How many airports have you been to?

[Torie]

90 huh, muon2?  I am not quite sure I can get that high. And vis a vis myself, you are still a young man.

[Simfan34]

Nowhere near some of you... with some luck, maybe.

US:

New York - JFK
New York - La Guardia
Newark
Stewart
Atlanta
Washington (Dulles)
Washington (Reagan)
Orlando
Denver
Phoenix
Honolulu
Houston (Hobby)
Houston (Bush Intercontinental)
Austin
Detroit
Lansing
Chicago (O'Hare)


Abroad:

Toronto (Pearson)
Vancouver
Beijing (Capital)
Addis Ababa (Bole)
Bahir Dar
Gonder
Axum
Lalibela
Khartoum
Lagos (Murtala Mohammed)
Rome (Fiumicino)
Milan (Malpensa)
Geneva
Zurich
Amsterdam (Schiphol)
London (Gatwick)
Accra
Vienna

[Sol]

LaGuardia
O'Hare
Charlotte
Greensboro
Raleigh

[angus]

I'm not exactly sure how many I have been to.  Not more than 75 I'd guess.

Would also be curious to know what people's favorite airport is.  

My favorite ones are all really small, like Waterloo, Iowa or Columbus, Mississippi or Gilmer, Texas.  You can get there five minutes before your flight and no one hassles you.  

Some really small airports are no fun, though.  Especially if they're in the developing world.  Here's one I flew into in Honduras about ten years ago.  These airports have the disadvantage of not having any air conditioner in the waiting room (other than the breeze blowing through), and the planes are often late.  At least this one gives patrons a shaded area to sit.  Some don't even have that.



Among the big ones I like Schipol, in Amsterdam, for killing time.  Lots of stuff to do.  For jackboots with a sense of humor, I like Logan International, in Boston.  It's the only one where you can actually tell politically incorrect jokes to them while they probe you and get a smile out of them.  I've noticed this again and again, over many years.  Most places hire TSA agents with absolutely no sense of humor.  Logan is a refreshing change from that.

[Incipimus iterum]

5
Boise Airport
Salt Lake City International Airport
Spokane International Airport
Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport
Baltimore–Washington International Airport

[moderatevoter]

Would also be curious to know what people's favorite airport is.  Minneapolis/St. Paul is actually probably the best one I've been to, at least of the American ones.  Gets high marks for the layout, and number of dining/entertainment options for an airport that size.

In the United States, the best airport is easily Detroit, particularly if you're flying Delta or one of their SkyTeam partners. That terminal is insane.

Internationally, I'm going to go with Dubai. The European airports I've been to are fairly meh. The new terminals in Delhi and Mumbai are pretty impressive too.

[Starbucks Union Thug HokeyPuck]

LaGuardia International
Newark International
Philadelphia International
Orlando International
LAX
Pittsburgh International Airport
Brisbane Airport
Sydney Airport
Sky Harbor International Airport
Yuma International Airport
San Diego International Airport
Denver International Airport
Hartsfield–Jackson Atlanta International Airport
Louis Armstrong New Orleans International Airport
Chicago Midway International Airport
O'Hare International Airport

[Indy Texas]

Domestic
Atlanta
Austin
Boston
Charlotte
Columbus
Dallas (DFW)
Houston (Bush)
Las Vegas
Lebanon, NH
Nashville
Philadelphia
Washington (Dulles)
Washington (Reagan)

International
Amman
Amsterdam
Cairo
London (Gatwick)
London (Heathrow)
Paris (De Gaulle)
Tegucigalpa, Honduras
Tel Aviv

[Хahar 🤔]

My favorite airport is definitely Singapore, but now that Dragonair flies directly from Hong Kong to Dhaka I don't have occasion to go there anymore.

[Hifly]

Off top of my head:

United Kingdom:

LHR (my hub)
LGW
LCY
STN

Ireland:

DUB

Germany:

FDH
FRA
HAM (my second hub)
MUC
CGN

France:

CDG
NCE

Switzerland:

BRN
ZRH

Luxembourg:

LUX

Sweden:

ARN

Portugal:

FAO
LIS

Italy:

BLQ
FLR
NAP
PSA
VCE
VRN

Morocco:

RAK

South Africa:

JNB
HDS
Various small dirt strips and paved runways within South Africa

Dubai:

DXB

USA:

BOS
DCA
IAD
JFK
MSP
ORD

[Boris]

Among the big ones I like Schipol, in Amsterdam, for killing time.  Lots of stuff to do.  For jackboots with a sense of humor, I like Logan International, in Boston.  It's the only one where you can actually tell politically incorrect jokes to them while they probe you and get a smile out of them.  I've noticed this again and again, over many years.  Most places hire TSA agents with absolutely no sense of humor.  Logan is a refreshing change from that.

Hmm, I had sort of the opposite experience at Logan. Not with the TSA, but US Customs interrogated me, basically insinuated that I was either a heroin smuggler or had used heroin abroad (wut), and finally let me go after a solid 20 minutes of pointless dick waving. Same thing happened when entering the US through Sarnia-Port Huron; our beloved border protection service really doesn't like it when I come back home.

[angus]

Hmm, I had sort of the opposite experience at Logan.

Interesting.  Well, I've always found them to be smiling, which is sort of weird for TSA people.  I guess we all have our own unique experiences.  ModerateVAvoter mentioned Detroit as one of his favorites, which nearly made me choke.  I'd just about rather walk a mile across hot coals than have to hang out in the Detroit airport.  I guess our experiences there were very different.

To each his own, I say.  So long as I have a little piece of corrugated tin or aluminum over my head for the hot tropical sun, or a blanket for those times when the Polar Vortex dips my way in colder climes, and security either sufficiently loose that I might sock my pint, or sufficiently tight that they'll provide a cash bar at the terminal, then I can pretty much handle any airport.  

Free WiFi is also nice, but its absence is not a deal killer.

[moderatevoter]

Angus, you didn't like Detroit? I'm referring to the McNamara Terminal, with the monorail, fountains, etc. Not the other terminal where they have like everyone other than Delta.

[angus]

Angus, you didn't like Detroit? I'm referring to the McNamara Terminal, with the monorail, fountains, etc. Not the other terminal where they have like everyone other than Delta.

Well, I was flying from Boston to Phoenix via Detroit and had many hours to cool my heels there.  I was going to see the grand canyon.  This was in about 1999, and maybe it has changed since then, but I only remember that there was very little to do.  It wasn't like DFW or Schipol or even Tokyo Narita where there's lots to do (without having to take a taxi into town!) if you have several hours to kill.

The way back was far worse.  I was about 31 and with a woman that was about five years older than myself who was really keen on getting married.  We'd been over it before, and I was figuring it was time to break it off, but I had decided not to let any of that spoil our Grand Canyon adventure.  Still, as soon as we boarded the plane in Phoenix to go back home to Boston, she pressed me on the issue.  I had to be honest. 

Little piece of advice, boys:  never break up with your girlfriend at the outset of a six hour flight. 

I cannot even begin to describe what a horrible, horrible flight that was, and it was non-stop.  At that point I probably would have welcomed a stop in Detroit on the way home.  To be fair, I might be a bit jaded by the fact that the whole vacation is one which I tried to block out from my memory.

[Redalgo]

I think I can remember being to these sixteen:

Detroit Metropolitan Wayne County Airport
Glacier Park International Airport
George Bush Intercontinental Airport
Great Falls International Airport
Hartsfield–Jackson Atlanta International Airport
Hector International Airport
Kalispell City Airport
Missoula International Airport
Minneapolis–Saint Paul International Airport
O'Hare International Airport
Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport
Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport
Salt Lake City International Airport
Southwest Florida International Airport
Tucson International Airport
Washington Dulles International Airport

[Fmr President & Senator Polnut]

Way too many...

[Niemeyerite]

Madrid-Barajas (since yesterday it's called "Adolfo Suárez")
Barcelona - Prat
Paris - CDG
Paris - Orly
London - Stansted
London - London City
London - Heathrow
Rome
Amsterdam
Bruxelles - Charleroi
Frankfurt
Venice
Lisboa
Rio - Santos Dumont
Rio - Galeao
Sao Paulo - Guarulhos
Sao Paulo - Congonhas
Belo Horizonte - Tancredo Neves
Belo Horizonte - Pampulha
Porto Seguro

There may be 2 or 3 more I don't recall...

[Dave from Michigan]

Detroit
New York LaGuardia
Boston
Baltimore Washington

[Mr. Morden]

Free WiFi is also nice, but its absence is not a deal killer.

Ah yes, that's another feature that has to be taken into account in evaluating airports.  As I recall, on my most recent trip to the US over the Christmas/New Year's holiday, I noticed an increasing number of American airports were offering free wifi.  Though I now find that I can't remember which airports they were.  One of them was definitely Phoenix, but I can't remember which of the others I went through has free wifi.

[angus]

I noticed an increasing number of American airports were offering free wifi. 

haha.  I never can remember these sorts of things either.  It seems like most of the big ones do.  Then again, most of the big ones also have bars, shops, TV screens blaring out Cooper Anderson 360, and all the carboard-flavored chicken mcnuggets you can swallow.  (Did you want Ranch Sauce, Bar-B-Q, or Sweet'n'Sour with that?)  The little ones on tropical islands have none of those things.  Airports seem like an all-or-nothing deal these days.  It'd be nice, if we were going to legitimize this thread, if airports really were that different from city to city.  Like, if you were in Arabia, there'd be dancing girls and magic carpet rides, and in Amsterdam there would be ganja, in Texas there'd be mechanical bulls and waitresses in Daisy Duke shorts, and in New Delhi there would be guys pulling rickshaws and serving tea to you while you ride those rickshaws from terminal to terminal.  As it is, however, the main difference in airports seems to hinge on size more than anything else, and in my experience the smaller the better.  There are airports so small that all you have to do is show up just a few minutes before your scheduled departure, literally, and you're checked through all the way, no matter how many stops you might have before arriving at your home.  No anal probes, no removal of belts and shoes, and of course no WiFi.  In my humble opinion, not having WiFi is a small price to pay for not having to remove your shoes, or subject yourself to a full cavity search, or have to remove the flask of scotch from your sock and check it.  Therefore, I favor small airports over large ones, generally speaking.

[Mr. Morden]

I noticed an increasing number of American airports were offering free wifi. 

haha.  I never can remember these sorts of things either.  It seems like most of the big ones do.  Then again, most of the big ones also have bars, shops, TV screens blaring out Cooper Anderson 360, and all the carboard-flavored chicken mcnuggets you can swallow.  (Did you want Ranch Sauce, Bar-B-Q, or Sweet'n'Sour with that?)  The little ones on tropical islands have none of those things.  Airports seem like an all-or-nothing deal these days.  It'd be nice, if we were going to legitimize this thread, if airports really were that different from city to city.  Like, if you were in Arabia, there'd be dancing girls and magic carpet rides, and in Amsterdam there would be ganja, in Texas there'd be mechanical bulls and waitresses in Daisy Duke shorts, and in New Delhi there would be guys pulling rickshaws and serving tea to you while you ride those rickshaws from terminal to terminal.  As it is, however, the main difference in airports seems to hinge on size more than anything else….

True to a degree, but I think there are variations, even controlling for size.  Like I said upthread, Minneapolis/St. Paul has more amenities than you would expect, given its size.  Though part of it is also compactness.  If the terminals are all atomized into tiny pieces, and it's virtually impossible to move from one to the other, then your food/entertainment options can be rather limited, even if the airport as a whole contains enormous variety.

I would say that my worst experiences in terms of time wasted getting from Point A to Point B have been with Heathrow.  Oh, and of course Tel Aviv is a monster just because of all the security hoops you have to jump through.

[Smash255]

JFK
LGA
Islip- MacArthur
Charlotte
Orlando
Dulles
Las Vegas
Grand Canyon National Park Airport

[old timey villain]

LOL, it seems like everyone's been to Hartsfield. You know what they say, when you die, doesn't matter if you go to heaven or hell, you'll connect in Atlanta.

For me:

Atlanta - huge, perpetually busy, stressful
LAX- Loved the cool air traffic control tower lit up at night
Laguardia NYC- Trapped there on xmas eve day, very bad memories
Houston- was okay, would bang
Boston- Had chowder at legal seafood
Seattle- beautiful layout and good heavy rail accessibility
Dulles (DC)- pretty far away from the city, but green all around
Newark (NYC)- fuggedaboudit
London (Gatwick)- Healthrow's ugly cousin
Dublin- more state of the art than I imagined
Glasgow- greeted by bagpipers
Cincinnati- had skyline chili, was otherwise depressing
Pittsburgh- too young to remember
Cap Haitien (Haiti)- literally a shack with a slab of concrete next to it. Kids were playing nearby
Fort Lauderdale- had a good chilis nearby (just got back from Haiti so even chilis was good)
West Palm Beach- my first flight so good I guess
Birmingham- spent the night there the day before christmas


ahhh, airports

[muon2]

Here's my list (I'll add more if I think of them):

Airports (92)

International (16)
Winnepeg, Canada
Goose Bay, Canada
Mazatlan, Mexico
Rio de Janiero, Brazil
Sao Paolo, Brazil
Florianopolis, Brazil
London Heathrow, UK
Manchester, UK
Glasgow, UK
Paris CDG, France
Lyon, France
Geneva, Switzerland
Zurich, Switzerland
Frankfurt, Germany
Munich, Germany
Moscow, USSR

Domestic West (16)
Seattle, WA
Spokane, WA
Boise, ID
Missoula, MT
Kalispell, MT
Salt Lake City, UT
Los Angeles LAX, CA
San Diego, CA
San Francisco, CA
Phoenix, AZ
Tucson, AZ
Las Vegas, NV
Albuquerque, NM
Denver, CO
Aspen, CO
Gypsum, CO

Domestic South (21)
Dallas DFW, TX
Dallas Love, TX
Houston IAH, TX
San Antonio, TX
New Orleans, LA
Gulfport, MS
Nashville, TN
Memphis, TN
Covington, KY
Birmingham, AL
Atlanta, GA
Jacksonville, FL
Orlando, FL
Ft  Lauderdale, FL
Miami-Dade, FL
Charlotte, NC
Raleigh, NC
Blacksburg, VA
Newport News, VA
Sterling/Washington IAD, VA
Arlington/Washington DCA, VA

Domestic East (18)
Baltimore/Washington BWI, MD
Salisbury, MD
Pittsburgh, PA
Philadelphia, PA
Scranton, PA
Newark, NJ
New York JFK, NY
New York LGA, NY
Islip, NY
Newburgh, NY
Syracuse, NY
Ithaca, NY
Providence, RI
Hartford, CT
Boston, MA
Worcester, MA
Manchester, NH
Augusta, ME

Domestic North (21)
Columbus, OH
Dayton, OH
Detroit, MI
Kalamazoo, MI
South Bend, IN
Indianapolis, IN
Bloomington, IN
Chicago MDW, IL
Chicago ORD, IL
West Chicago, IL
Rockford, IL
Peoria, IL
Springfield, IL
St Louis, MO
Kansas City, MO
Des Moines, IA
Dubuque, IA
Omaha, NE
Lincoln, NE
Minneapolis, MN
Milwaukee, WI

[Joe Biden 2020]

Oklahoma City
Dallas/Fort Worth
Dallas Love
Norfolk
St Louis
Atlanta
Jacksonville
Houston - Intercontinental
Wichita
Minneapolis
Boston
Philadelphia
Detroit
Denver
Phoenix
Salt Lake City
JFK
Chicago O'Hare

Amsterdam
Jomo Kenyatta (Nairobi)
Kisumu Int'l Airport (Kenya)
Brussels
Kijali, Rwanda (plane only)
Zurich, Switzerland