Once a common lay-by for passengers taking off and landing, today airports have become places to live. A few hours to a few, days or months in borderline cases, see under Edward Snowden, the NSA Deep Throat currently blocked at the Moscow airport for diplomatic reasons. Spaces where you can play, work, daydream. And the places of a thousand and one nights, as usual, are in the east.
Indeed, Asia is the Mecca of airports. This was announced by Skytrax, the British site which for 14 years has drawn up a ranking of the best airports every 12 months, based on a survey of 12 million passengers. In first place in 2013 is Singapore's Changi, boasting a rainforest-inspired setting, the Rainforest Lounge. A few hours by flight, the silver medal: the Incheon International of Seoul, equipped with a golf course, an ice rink, a casino and a museum of Korean culture. On the lowest step of the podium is Europe, with Shipol, Amsterdam's airport, where shopping is king.
Everything else is Asian dominance. In fourth place is the Hong Kong airport, which houses the best airport hotel in the world: the Regal Airport Hotel. Beijing, fifth, shines for the efficiency of its services, such as the return of baggage.
Already this last parameter – lost suitcases – is an excellent litmus test to understand that Italy is not doing very well. There are 100 airports in the rankings – the last one is Tel Aviv – and none of these airports is located on the peninsula. And if once upon a time Milan Malpensa and Rome Fiumicino managed to peep out, today the tricolor flag is not received.
