Manchester Airport is situated just outside the city of Manchester. It is very easily accessible to many cities in the North of England. Each terminal at the airport has its own motorway exit which is very clearly signposted, and there is an internal bus service to help you get around.
The airport boasts 3 terminals and 2 runways, and has new routes being added all the time, with airlines realising that people who want to travel from the UK don't always live in or near London. The airport itself is very easy to navigate, and is quite highly staffed, so there is usually someone there to help you.
Terminal 1 is the largest of the 3 terminals, where most of the charter flights (monarch, air 2000, jmc etc) leave from. In
this terminal there are a lot of shops and dining areas, so the wait for your departure goes quite quickly, there are the usual newsagents, fast food joints and duty free shops, but there is also a Harrods which as far as I know is the only one outside London.
Terminal 2 is where many of the scheduled airlines leave from (Virgin Atlantic, Cathay Pacific, Thai Airlines etc). This terminal has much less to offer than terminal 1, there is a small selection of shops to browse round, but not nearly enough for the 3 hour wait which most scheduled flights require nowadays.
I have never used terminal 3, however this is a base for many of the British airways flights and also the domestic flights which leave Manchester. As far as I know there is the usual selection of shops here, but with the flights being mainly domestic, there shouldn't be too long a wait at this terminal. All of ther terminals have smoking and no smoking areas, once you have gone through passport control, however this is a bit strange considering that now they have increased security, many airlines won't allow you through passport control with a cigarette lighter.
A lot of airlines seem to be adding experimental routes to their Manchester flights now, especially to various cities in the USA. However, many low cost airlines favour the nearby Liverpool airport, as the cost of landing fees, hangar fees and the like, are said to be very expensive at Manchester, whereas other smaller airports are willing to reduce these costs to offer a more varied and economical service. If you book a holiday departing from Manchester, there is nearly always a flight supplement which reflects this.
The airport itself has good and plentiful general facilities (toilets, seating areas, etc), however at certain times of the week (Sundays, late eveinings and early mornings) these can be a bit grubby. There are also a number of huge long stay car parks, many of which are available at a discount through tour operators, and the short stay car park is very easily accesible by lift, so if people come to pick you up from the airport they don't have to fight for a downstairs car park to help with your baggage. If people are coming to pick you up, one tip is to ask them to arrive at the airport about 30 minutes after your scheduled landing time (teletext and the airport's website both offer the arrivals service), otherwise it can be quite expensive on parking, as the baggage claim can take up to 90 minutes.
My personal opinion is that although this can be quite an expensive airport to use, weighed up against the price of a flight/coach/train transfer to one of the cheaper airports, it still offers good value for money, and with more charter airlines using this as a main hub airport package holidays from this airport only cost marginally (if anything) more than alternative airports).
Manchester Airport also has very close ties to the National Trust, who carry out environmental work in the vacinity, to try to counteract some of the environmental problems which the airport may cause. One way in which they raise funds for this work is through the aviation viewing park (AVP. The AVP has over 100 car parking spaces, and is a great place to take children for them to learn about aviation, there is a small educational centre, an aviation shop, toilets, snack bar and a few raised vantage points which help you get a better view. The AVP is parallel to both runways, so you can get a great view of the aircraft landing and taking off. I have also found through a couple of friends that coming here can help people who are scared of flying, as they an see how many people are travelling by air every day. The opening hours of the AVP are seasonal, so it may be a good idea to call first, the charge is usually around £2.50 per car and 50p per passenger other than the driver.
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zoe_page 25.09.2002 ·
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Review of Manchester (MAN)
Jun 14th, 2003
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