For office managers tasked with managing business travel, scheduling airport layovers has the benefit of cheaper fares for your company at the consequence of making your employee’s trips longer.
But, your employees shouldn’t need to see a layover as a negative. Rather, they’re opportunities to do everything from sample top tier cuisine and visit museums to see the sights or simply relax.
Help them appreciate the time they’ll be spending during their layover by providing a handy reference sheet filled with the very best information about their particular airport. Our handy breakdown below is a great starting point for five of the more popular layover destinations for business travelers, the best airports to get the most from a layover. Dig in!
1. Heathrow Airport, London
As one of the most popular and well-traveled airports in the world, it makes sense that Heathrow Airport offers a unique combination of attractions and services for any
business traveler
.For one, shopping at Heathrow Airport is a pleasure. Terminal 5 is where Heathrow Boutique is located, offering complimentary personal shoppers to outfit travelers in the best duds or pick up a gift for a family, friend or colleague — one of the few airports in the world with a service like this. An 11,000-square-foot Harrods is another tempting option for those look to splurge a bit.
For those wanting a side of culture with their shopping, wander around Heathrow Airport’s cultural exhibition. There, the works of up and coming British sculptors, painters and photographers are on display and are a feast for weary eyes.
The sheer variety of restaurants at Heathrow Airport never fail to impress, either. Especially Gordon Ramsay’s sleek Plane Food concept, where chefs cook up mouth-watering dishes in a glass-enclosed kitchen.
With Heathrow Airport’s expansions in recent years, there’s more to do than ever before during a layover.
heathrowairport.com
2. Amsterdam Schiphol Airport, Netherlands
There are a few benefits to being the only airport in the world with 100 years at the same location, all of which lend themselves to this airport’s stellar reputation.
Business travelers with time to kill can check world’s only museum to be annexed in an airport, the Rijksmuseum Amsterdam. Here, works by Dutch masters are on display and provide an interesting, satisfying way to spend a layover.
Amsterdam Schiphol Airport also boasts the world’s first airport library, stuffed to the gills with both print and digital reading available in 29 languages and the armchairs to read them leisurely. This is a good idea after a business traveler relaxes with the help of Amsterdam Schiphol Airport’s multiple spas (complete with those tiny little fish that clean your feet) and showers at the Mercure hotel. To really disconnect, though, the Silence Centre forbids the use of devices for an ambiance of calm and peacefulness.
schiphol.nl
3. Munich International Airport, Germany
Yes, beer is a large contributing factor to Munich International Airport’s appeal. Specifically, the airport’s traditional tavern house Airbräu. Open from October to May, Airbräu has an onsite brewery, live music and a picturesque beer garden full of vegetation that makes it hard to believe the tavern house is in an airport.
To kick back, business travelers can head to the modern Terminal 2 and catch some shut-eye in individual sleeping pods complete with iPhone and USB ports. They’re about $20 an hour.
The Bavarian State Brewery Weihenstephan is also near by, perfect for those with a lot more time on their hands. A 20-minute
taxi
ride gets you a fresh pint, some succulent bratwurst and views over the charming town of Freising. munich-airport.de
4. Zurich Airport, Switzerland
An extensive renovation has made this super busy airport easier to navigate and much more enjoyable thanks to stunning rooftop terraces and plenty of amenities to make the layover life much more manageable. Think locker-styled phone charging stations, rooms for sleeping and showering, a wide variety of shops and restaurants, and even bikes and in-line skates for rent. Business travelers shouldn’t forget to indulge in the finest Swiss chocolate at the Sprüngli Café.
zurich-airport.com
5. Changi International Airport, Singapore
This airport is the part fun house, part business traveler’s paradise.
Terminal 1’s butterfly garden, free movie theaters, 40-foot slide, Balinese-themed rooftop pool, and entertainment area boasting the latest video gaming consoles co-exist with the over 200 service agents, 550 free internet terminals, 856 free USB ports and power sockets, and multiple business centers, among many other business-oriented travel amenities.
The airport’s selection of free, two-hour city tour tours will be a nice respite for business travelers with long layovers. And if all this sounds too good to be true, a fourth terminal is scheduled to open in 2017 — who knows what kind of interesting additions that expansion will bring!
changiairport.com
?)
?)
?)
?)