Manchester Airport (MAN)

We're regular flyers from Manchester Airport, using it at least once and year - maybe even more if it's the cheapest place to go from! We find that the airport is nicely located to the south of the city, just a few minutes off the M60 motorway that circles Manchester. Coming from Sheffield we have to negotiate the Pennines and their stupidly small roads - if the government built a motorway, it'd take us about half an hour to get to the airport, however with the Snake/Woodhead Pass it takes us more like 90 minutes. Stupid government. Anyway, the airport itself is probably the largest outside of London and provides passengers with short, medium and ...  Read the complete review

I see Manchester Airport as a means to an end. It is horrifically busy and absolutely massive but it does serve a purpose. Manchester is one of the only northern airports which flies to America, the Carribean, Australia and the Far East. Without Manchester Airport we would have to travel down to London for long haul flights. Not something you want to do just before a 10-12 hour flight or more. I flew to Australia from Heathrow and it was a hidious journey down on the train and then tube. Manchester was around £300 more expensive but looking back it probably would have been worth it. The airport is a little difficult to navigate as there ...  Read the complete review

Manchester Airport is changing at a fast pace. Terminal 1 in the summer can be very hectic whereas Terminal 2 (Where Emirates, Delta, Air France, Thomson, Virgin, Continental, Singapore, Onur Air, Qatar Fly out of) is in complete contrast... Terminal 2 is a long rectangle with check-in desks all in one straight line with all airlines clearly displayed on large LCD Wall Displays... After Check-in you have to proceed up an escalator or the small lift which fits about 4 people in...you then walk around a wall to security and then back down stairs into departures. On the Left of you is Alpha Retail selling Duty Free Liquor, Tax Free Cosmetics for EU ...  Read the complete review

Having transited through Manchester Airport on several ocassions now, I can say that it is a definite alternative to (mostly) grotty Heathrow and Gatwick. Like most things, there are positives and negatives. A lot of airlines fly out of here to many wide ranging destinations. Air France for example connect you with CDG and a world of destinations. Qatar Airways, Singapore Airlines, Delta, Continental and KLM do the same. If you live in the North of England, there isn't much need to go south for flying international (if you don't mind one extra flight perhaps). As for the airport itself, the connecting walkways are bright, spacious and airy, if a little long ...  Read the complete review

I have only used Manchester airport once, last November to Abu Dabi, and found it a dis-spiriting experience. Okay, it was undergoing extensive refurbishment and the place was like a building site in parts, but there are other aspects that are quite separate from that, and it was on a cold and sad November evening. Travelling there (I usually go from birmingham) was a nightmare, with delaying problems on the train to Sheffield, and a dodgy connection to Manchester. The airport itself looks good from the outside, and is pretty much a generic structure as in most airports share the same characteristics like your average high street, and are therefore cultural ...  Read the complete review