Aberdeen Airport

I read the reviews about the airport and found them to be a reasonable reflection after having listened to the taxi driver who took me to the hotel about allowing plenty of time for the security checks on departure I am glad I did. There was a queue but it was moving and there is no long route march to the departure gates at the other side. The staff seemed friendly and helpful, and the food at Ganite City was well priced and tasty.

This airport gets worse on a monthly basis. They have spent 3 million pounds on a new front door when it needs bigger and up to date security. Anymore than one plane makes the queue terrible. Arrivals is so small you queue outside if you are sat at the back of the plane and then wait for the smallest baggage belt I have ever seen (I travel every week). It is by far the poorest airport I have had the unfortunate pleasure to use. I recommend using Edinburgh and commuting!

Small airport, our arrival was on Saturday, June 13, 10:30 PM. Unfortunately, there were three planes landed at the same time approx, and ours was the third, So we had to wait in lane in a crowded tiny corridor for frontier controls, but staff was efficient. Than we stayed in lane to get a taxi to reach city center for 45 mins. Departure was on Monday, June 22, at 12:10 PM, much better, smooth drop-off and security controls, no problem. Limited offer for eat/ drink and shopping, not overpriced, The Granite-City Restaurant in the main hall seemed to be OK!

I've been coming through Aberdeen airport for a few years now and can't figure out how they can be so lethargic in making drastically-needed changes to improve passenger experience except of course where it can make them money like the new drop-off charge! Flew in last week from Amsterdam and used the Arrivals toilet which was more like a construction site portaloo cabin; cramped and unpleasant not a great welcome for visitors. Then leaving on an early flight on Saturday no food or drink facilities open landside queued for over 20mins to go through the security scanner (note this was at 5am for only the 2nd flight of the day) to find only 1 scanner in operation. Made it through for final boarding call so no breakfast for me! They really are kidding themselves calling it an international airport for the "Oil capital of Europe". I know many Aberdonians are ashamed of their airport and justifiably so.

Airport is small and convenient when flights can actually leave and the check in and security I experienced were fine. The airport lounges are OK too if you are frequent flyer. However the airport is not equipped for all weather flights apparently the runway is too short so delays or cancellations due to weather (a little bit of fog) occur as happened the only 2 times I visited and I understand this is not infrequent. A taxi driver who took me to a hotel (which I paid for myself) told me that when delays occur all the local hotels are full so I had to find a hotel way out of Aberdeen. The positive side for taxi drivers is that the one who took me said he'd had a passenger who was so desperate to get to Heathrow he paid £1000 (yes one thousand GBP) to get there. They staff at BA with whom I'd flown are unable to cope with queues very long at desks. Its more like a third world airport in that respect. One would have thought that with the importance of the oil industry etc that arrangements would have been made to improve capacity and capability.

Aberdeen is my local airport for 40 years and has grown from a quaint airfield to a merely adequate airport. Facilities are only ok you don't want to be hanging around any longer than strictly necessary. The food (you can't call it dining) options are very poor and very expensive by any airport standard. Then the transport links which are a whole subject on their own but the next bit is typical. If you have a late flight don't rely on getting a taxi as the drivers tend to just go home when they've made enough money to go golfing. Also don't ask them to go too far more than 15 miles into the country as that is too much bother for them and they will turf you out of their car even at 23.30hrs. If you can get basic civility from them then you're lucky. Opening the boot for you is a special treat. £16 for about 7 miles is the fare but they will take £20 from you. The 727 bus is fine but you can have a half hour wait in the freezing "shelter" and it only runs to the city centre and ends at 22.30(?). Long term (more than a day) off site parking is really your best/only option. Aberdeen where they built the terminal on the opposite side of the airport to the train station to give taxi drivers a job.

Waiting for security check is a nightmare here don't understand why this airport is not taking measures to improve the wait time for passengers.

Truly awful airport. Toilets in airside arrivals are porta cabins! Baggage handling facilities very primitive. If delayed passenger seating virtually non existent. Eating facilities poor and very expensive. Security checks must be the slowest anywhere. Aberdeen is supposed to be Europe's oil capital? Well it's about time they had a decent airport.

I believe 2013 was a record year for ABZ in terms of passenger numbers 2014 is up on that - and it shows. Dreadful crowding - airside landside check-in baggage handling security passenger facilities - everything is operating at way beyond its design capacity. Happily I only have to spend an hour there on Departure and 30 mins on Arrival. I feel sorry for the people who have to work there.

As a regular user of Aberdeen airport I can safely say its one of the worse airports I have experienced the toilets airside are disgusting and usually smell quite appalling also the Servisair lounge is extremely poor and the choice of snacks / food is very basic considering the amount of footfall and the claim of international status it is extremely poor. Security and baggage reclaim is inefficient and far too small.