MUNICH, Germany -- Five hours of speeches and fanfare seemed more
apt for a king's coronation than the opening of an airport
terminal.
Yet the Bavarian capital's $1.72 billion Terminal 2 certainly
gives Munich airport authorities a cause to celebrate, and
travelers are also likely to benefit from the airport's effort to
become a leading European hub.
The glass and steel building has 124 check-in counters and a
capacity for 25 million passengers annually.
Terminal 2, run by the airport authority and Lufthansa, is the
first terminal in Europe to be specifically designed as a hub
airport. It caters exclusively to the German flag carrier and its
Star Alliance partners.
Airport officials tout Terminal 2's record-breaking passenger
transfer time of 30 minutes, reportedly the lowest in Europe.
Munich already has achieved unique success since opening its
first terminal more than a decade ago: Through July, it was one of
only 10 hub airports to post positive passenger growth.
From the traveler's perspective, an expanded Munich Airport's
advantage over an older airport such as Frankfurt -- Germany's
other hub -- may be its smaller size, efficiencies and newer
facilities.
For example, transfer passengers making tight connections are
directed to separate passport control desks.
A guidance system makes it easier for passengers to reach
connecting flights, with special transfer monitors leading
passengers to their gates.
In addition, seven service centers are set up at central
points.
For security reasons, North American travelers have their own
arrivals and departures area. First-class and business-class
passengers also have access to curbside check-in and their own
security clearance area. These 10 curbside counters have a direct,
high-speed link to the baggage system , according to officials.
Then there are the details: The 20 restaurants and 90 shops
offer city prices that are no higher than what similar
establishments would charge downtown.
Diners can choose from traditional Bavarian cuisine and beer,
sushi and other Asian specialties. For kids, there is the Legoland
playground and Legoland safari.
The airport has a festive atmosphere thanks to its shopping
center and beer garden, which attract people from nearby
communities.
Another surprising innovation is the AirportClinic, aimed at
attracting medical tourism from countries where medical standards
are not as advanced as Germany's. The clinic offers travelers a
free medical test to check their risk of developing deep vein
thrombosis (flying may increase the chance of getting this
potentially deadly condition). The tests are administered by
airport medical staff at a "Check-It-Point" located near gates
H25-32.
The older Terminal 1, home to Europe's only airport
micro-brewery, will now focus on point-to-point traffic.
North America is one of Munich's most significant markets,
sending approximately 767,900 passengers a year to the airport,
said officials; more than half of these arrivals are transfers.
Munich offers connections to 12 North American cities via
Lufthansa.
Coincidentally, the region of Bavaria -- with its storybook
castles and pristine alpine landscapes -- is the top destination
for travelers to Germany. (See "Lake region is unspoiled" for more on the
region's Tegernsee area.)
Munich Airport received 23.2 million passengers in 2002 and,
through aggressive marketing, plans to more than double that figure
by 2015.
A pain to the plane?
The airport has one major disadvantage that even its boastful
managers acknowledged: There is no high-speed transport link to
Munich.
Taxis for the 24-mile ride cost upwards of $50 to $60, and the
express train crawls to Munich's Central Railway Station in a
45-minute journey.
Germany does produce a high-speed magnetic-levitation rail train
that it sold to Shanghai, but political squabbles have prevented
airport authorities from introducing the train at home in
Bavaria.
The Transrapid, as the train is called, would in theory cut the
travel time between airport and city to eight minutes.
The Bavarian government still hopes to get it operating in
2009.
For more on Munich Airport's Terminal 2, visit www.munich-airport.de/EN/.
To contact the reporter who wrote this story, send e-mail to
[email protected] .