84fiero

MNL and PEK sound like the pits of hell so I guess my personal experiences for the worst are pretty good in comparison.

Having flown to and connected there more times than I care to remember, IAD is among my least desirable. It's somewhat better than the days where United Express used that awful temporary "terminal" (G or whatever it was) but the current United Express A gates are still likely to be overcrowded, noisy, hot, smelly. The rest of the airport basically reflects the "temporary" nature of C & D in their inconvenience.

Had a long layover (I think it was 4-5 hours) at TXL and I have never been so bored and uncomfortable. Just an oversized metal shack basically with limited options for food or anything else.

CDG can definitely be a hassle depending on your specific connections.

BuildingMyBento

RUH at least has seating, some semblance of a/c, and space to move around. Try JED, it's miserable (specifically the SV terminal, but the other one isn't pleasant either. This excludes the hajj terminals - they are both open air - but I also haven't used either one.)

As for MNL, ah yes, those are the doldrums. Only airport where I've been hit up for a bribe (though I think an officer at SGN was also looking for one). Then again, the last time I was at T1 at MNL the terminal had functioning wifi, and...a whole lot of stains.

Oh, and US and Chinese airports are by and large, depressing.

emma69

Ah, but the AC is inside at LAX... and when you are forced to walk outside (god knows why) with your luggage to re-check it for your connection, and have to queue outside to get in to the part where you re-check the bags, having AC inside is irrelevant!

a330boston

kuwait international airport

krazykanuck

MNL and CDG were the ones that came to mind for me, glad to see many others feel the same way.

herzmeh

Both at EWR... One time CBP differ decided to does off to my wine and was a complete dick to me. It was yesterday so, I don't remember the details. More recently, when I went through, the inspector didn't say a word to me besides "hello" but I saw one guy walk into the US citizen like while staring at his phone... random CBP dude came up and yanked it out of his his hands. He was a better person than me and remained cool. I probably would've lost my ....... it's not like they can deny me entry.

maortega15

But MNL doesn't even have a/c inside.

Try transiting through different terminals at MNL. Either you have to force yourself to take the shuttle bus or worse, take a taxi yourself in the mess of traffic regardless on time of day.

I've walked through LAX. Did an In-N-Out run last year with luggage. While a people mover could've helped, I enjoyed my walk. Not to mention it was a bit chilly! The terminals are in a U shape with sidewalks. The terminals in MNL are literally in different cities! LAX beats MNL. LAX has a/c inside. MNL doesn't even have it inside.

invisible

They can't comprehend it unless experience on their own... I walked from T1 to T7 at LAX on landside - it was fun. Try to do the same at MNL.

As mentioned above, PEK and PVG are hell in terms of international-international transfer. Last time 3y ago APEC card saved me 70m wait time in the transfer line. Since that I am not transiting thru any Chinese airports.

mmff

It's telling that this even needs to be written down. Some people here have clearly never been to (let alone connected at) large airports in poor countries.

IMO, CDG is the worst in Western Europe. MNL takes the World Cup.

emma69

I've been in airports without AC, but not MNL. I would take CDG any day of the week over LAX mind you!

Long Train Runnin

Sometimes I feel like I flew in to and out of a different MNL. Arrived on UA from GUM. Took an Uber to the Conrad took maybe 20 minutes. Then the next morning took another Uber to the ANA terminal again took about 20 minutes. Reading about going to MNL on FT its like you can't get near the airport without spending an hour in the car. Maybe I got super lucky on my one visit there, but it was far from the horror show people talk about here.

acidicsystems

What's CDG like? I did hear that their PARAFE passport control system is pretty efficient compared to other automated passport systems in the UK but not as good as the ones in Schiphol or Helsinki. Being a non-French but EU citizen, I would need to register.

I'm thinking of taking a layover there. Is it a mistake?

pushmyredbutton

MNL still tops the list for me, but it's actually not as bad anymore as others describe.

Terminal 1 used to be absolutely nightmare-ish, but the 'renovation' is now complete so it's a bit more brightly lit and the AC works, at least. Also, the elevated highway has opened which greatly improves access; but is by no means great.

Transiting between terminals, while ridiculously far and across cities if you take a taxi, isn't that bad if you use the transfer bus. It cuts across the tarmac and only takes 10 minutes last time I've done it. But the whole feel of Terminal 3 leaves me with the impression that funds were pocketed instead of developing the terminal...

mdkowals

Most disappointing layover: LAX circa 2009 (Flying MSY to SYD). Just would have guessed that airport would have been better. Talking to one employee they said they didn't have the infrastructure to upgrade the facilities to international hub standard.

Worst time in airport: 6 hour delay at PEK on departing international flight circa 2015. They built plenty of stores for the Beijing olympics but forgot to build bars/restaurants. I think I counted 3 bar stools at an unmanned bar as the only non-gate, non-lounge placed to sit and hang out. Would later learn they PVG >>> PEK for sitting and waiting for an outbound flight.

The only non-hub developing country airport I've been through so far is DSN which is a fairly nice place to wait for your flight to be cancelled and be shuttled to a roach motel, so I don't have experience yet with full on dumpster fire airports.

mmff

Does your itinerary with a connection at CDG involve changing terminals? Do you have checked luggage? If yes, I would certainly pay more to connect at a different hub.