Moscow Sheremetyevo Airport

Customer Reviews

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Terminal Seating 12345
Terminal Cleanliness 12345
Terminal Signs 12345
Queuing Times 12345
Food Beverages 12345
Airport Staff 12345
Customer rating from 140 reviews
4/10
No Skytrax Rating
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2/10

Moscow Sheremetyevo Airport customer review

(New Zealand)

We were leaving from Moscow to Auckland via Hong Kong and our only choice was Sheremetyevo. This airport is a real shambles. We arrived at around 7:30pm local time to check into our flight. Staff are impatient and have no idea what they are really doing. The whole airport looks more like a cave and I look forward to when the new terminal will open. Passport control is the next marathon. Warning - block your ears when the officer stamps your passport. His/ her aim is too scare you with the loud bang on the passport. After passing control we had some time to look about in the airport. This is boring. Seriously half of the shops are not even open and cafes sell food at rip-off prices. After a while our flight was boarding. Security check is a pain. There is one x-ray for two gates and while our flight was boarding another flight was boarding in the other gate so this meant queues. Big ones. So big that we nearly missed our flight. So when we board our flight is cancelled because a dodgy Ilyushin can't get it's engines to work properly. This meant that everyone had to get off and wait till another plane was available. The airport gave us coupons to buy food with but in the whole of the airport two only two cafes/restaurants we're open. So we had to wait till the plane fed us. Staff didn't tell us anything at all so we used newspapers laid them on the floor and went to sleep.3 hours later the grumpy staff finally announced that there was a plane available and everyone boarded.
Queuing Times 12345
Terminal Cleanliness 12345
Airport Shopping 12345
no
1/10

Moscow Sheremetyevo Airport customer review

(United Kingdom)

I stayed in SVO twice while in route to and from Hanoi once in terminal F (SVO-2) and once in F being transferred to D (SVO-3). There is a world of difference between both. Terminal F is quite unclean and lacks services but in exchange there are many benches some of them in quite areas where you can stretch and take a good nap. There is plenty of space to camp in the second floor where no one ever goes for anything else. Proof of that is that there are several homeless people or stranded immigrants living there. In general it has the same quality that you would expect in a rail station if you would be backpacking on the cheap. Knowing that I had a long stopover I packed plenty of good food which was a great decision since the available one at the airport is bad expensive and you need to manage to pay in roubles (the ATMs usually don't work). In addition to that there are huge queues for any process and you will be required to do things by staff that won't identify themselves or explain why you need to do what they require. You will be asked to hand your boarding pass your passport you will be asked to follow them to any other place (don't lose sight of them or you are screwed). No one will tell you why your flight is delayed or when will it really fly. You will be boarded onto buses and forgotten in a parking lot for half an hour. The passport check process in terminal F was hilarious in its slowness and unefficiency. Amazingly in the end they will manage to get you into the flight unlikely enough they seem to have some kind of control below the chaotic mess. The new terminal D is much nicer clean and more staffed. It doesn't have many services yet and you are likely to have the same problems than in terminal F regarding being herded without explanation from one side to another. One important thing to take into account is that travelling business won't make any difference to all the previous issues. In my first time in SVO my flight was delayed for 13 hours so at the end they sent us to a hotel. Aeroflot had arranged only for double rooms and single travellers were asked to find someone to share a room with. The only business traveller was not happy with having paid $3000 to share a hotel room with a stranger and the result is that she had to wait until everyone else got a room and fight hard with the hotel personnel to finally be granted a single room around 2am. I chose this airport for my trip because Aeroflot was the cheapest option by a 25% and the trip back was really convenient. I don't think I would risk it again with a short transfer time I would be scared of getting lost or stuck in a queue and if the staff is not aware I could join the homeless people in the second floor and a long transfer time is never good much less in SVO. From my second trip I think 3h is a reasonable transfer time for this airport. I wouldn't recommend it to anyone who isn't hard enough to stand soviet style travel conditions. Otherwise give it a try you could have stories to scare other fellow travellers in the future.
Queuing Times 12345
Terminal Cleanliness 12345
Airport Shopping 12345
no
4/10

Moscow Sheremetyevo Airport customer review

(Germany)

As an international transit-passenger I only used the transit-area of brand-new Terminal D. The staff attitude was kind of a revolution for Russia - addressing passengers and offering help was never heard about before. Transit desk sufficiently manned. The same for the transit passport and security check. Most shops in Terminal D were still under construction but bars and restaurants open. Just one disappointing thing: Bars and Restaurants only accept payment in cash roubles.
Queuing Times 12345
Terminal Cleanliness 12345
Airport Shopping 12345
no
4/10

Moscow Sheremetyevo Airport customer review

(Norway)

This is a review of the new Terminal D! New terminal D built by Aeroflot for itself and SkyTeam partners is a great step forward compared to the old terminals of Sheremetyevo. Almost every part of my experience was above the average expectations. However there were some disappointing problems. At the time of my trip terminal navigation signs were somewhat a mess - handmade and quite unclear. Very few cafes or restaurants were actually opened. There seemed to exist no WCs at the general admission areas (check-in zone on the 3rd floor and arrivals waiting area on the 1st floor) - instead one had to spend well some minutes to find its destination on the "technical" 2nd floor. Boarding area for domestic flights was clearly too small for the given number of passengers but OK for 1 hour waiting time. But the most horrible part of all the journey involving Sheremetyevo airport was a transfer from terminal D to terminal F (formerly known as 2). We had to wait for the bus over 40 minutes because the first ones were fully packed by passengers behaving like they were fighting for their very lives. To summarise I have to admit that terminal D is a decent long-expected improvement but SVO and Aeroflot have to do more to reach the level of similar-sized airports like Prague Oslo or Santiago.
Queuing Times 12345
Terminal Cleanliness 12345
Airport Shopping 12345
no
1/10

Moscow Sheremetyevo Airport customer review

(United States)

This is the worst airport I have ever visited in my life. Going there to visit relatives I step out of the plane into a brown colored air terminal that has clearly not been updated since Soviet times. I walk to Customs that takes an hour to get to and staff rude unhelpful and know no english. Fortunately the man behind me knew Russian and English so he translated and for reasons I don't know they ask me where I was born. I reply Bandar-Gaz Iran and they pull me aside (even though I came with a US passport) start searching me and take me to the Chief (the only one who knew English apparently) and start asking me ridiculous questions such as my home town my alma mater my affiliations where I got my tickets have I served in any military my university major what countries have I visited in the last six months. When I answer all these questions they deliberate a little longer and check my name on several computers. Finally they let me go after an hour. When I get out I find my family in a mess of people whom security gives no effort to control (they worry about finding terrorists more like people from Iran). Store in Arrivals area is expensive and costs more to get a bottle of water than a Glass of Vodka and cigarettes. Restrooms filthy.
Queuing Times 12345
Terminal Cleanliness 12345
Airport Shopping 12345
no
2/10

Moscow Sheremetyevo Airport customer review

(Switzerland)

The annoyance already starts at the immigration control point: endless queues the passport check lasts an eternity the border control staff is unfriendly and incompetent (unable to communicate in English); the services at this airport are unsatisfactory at all points. The restaurants available are extremely expensive and the food offered miserable - my advice: try to avoid SVO for arrival/departure during your trip to Moscow DME (Domodedovo) would definitely be a better alternative.
Queuing Times 12345
Terminal Cleanliness 12345
Airport Shopping 12345
no
1/10

Moscow Sheremetyevo Airport customer review

(United States)

Staff in Sheremetyevo Airport mean prices in the stores are high and limited places to eat walk and relax. I had to pay $20 for phone card to call my husband and made only one phone call I talked only 2 minutes and my phone card was expired. I bought a bottle of water for $4 and never opened yet when security throw my water to the garbage. Security went through my baggage and checked each my close and presents that I bought for my family. I didn't like this airport and I hope that I never have to fly through this airport again.
Queuing Times 12345
Terminal Cleanliness 12345
Airport Shopping 12345
no
1/10

Moscow Sheremetyevo Airport customer review

(United Kingdom)

What a dire airport. No fruit or vegetables in sight. Nothing but Alcohol Cigarettes and perfume. In fact a bottle of water would set you back $7 US compared to a bottle of alcohol costing $4. Ridiculous is the word to use! Full of cigarette smoke. I thought it was illegal to smoke in public places now - not in Moscow Airport obviously.
Queuing Times 12345
Terminal Cleanliness 12345
Airport Shopping 12345
no
1/10

Moscow Sheremetyevo Airport customer review

Indeed one of the worst airports in the world at least when talking about an international major hub! I hope to see improvements when terminal 3 comes into operation but don't hold your horses on that one - they been promising it for years. The worst thing about this place is the endless waiting just because someone cannot be bothered to do their work! Some survival tips for transfer passengers - don't allow less than 2 hrs for transfers (within the same airline terminal) - ensure you are the first to exit the plane - run for the transfer desk (staffed by one lady and her younger colleague who thinks its more important to chat on her mobile than serve 3 plane loads just arriving) - be polite patient and don't ask questions. Smile a lot! (seriously hard but try). If you need water be prepared to spent 5 Euros for a tiny bottle.
no
1/10

Moscow Sheremetyevo Airport customer review

This is an old dirty and horrible airport. Okay so they are undergoing renovation at the time but the impression is like going back in time to the soviet era! Staff unwilling to make any efforts to help you out - you better have some money because neither one of the two money machines were willing to give out any currency at all! Toilets are filthy only redeeming feature of Sheremetyevo is the new train station across the road - which is still under construction but at least there you find clean modern facilities and new coffee shops and seats to rest in. But otherwise be aware - this is an old battered and run down place! let's hope the renovations will eventually improve some of the most horrible aspects- the toilets!
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