Bristol Airport is transforming its Departure Lounge

Bristol Airport is about to start work on the next exciting phase of its £400 million transformation plan with new facilities and more shops and restaurants.

The Airport is investing more than £60 million to improve its customers’ experience. There will be more space and almost double the number of shops and restaurants, with 17 new units being incorporated into the design, including some premium retail brands and dining options as well as a hidden speakeasy bar. There will also be space for island retail units and more seating, designed with comfort in mind.

The assisted travel lounge will also be double the size and include tables, so that customers are able to sit, eat and work comfortably. It will be located in the heart of the departure lounge and include accessible toilets and changing places facility, which is a much larger washroom with equipment including a hoist, height adjustable changing bench suitable for adults, grab rails, shower and curtain, with plenty of room for carers and wheel chair users.

As part of the transformation there will also be a baby feeding room and more washrooms, all being designed with input from the Airport’s Accessibility Forum that meets regularly throughout the year, and also offered valuable input into the Public Transport Interchange that opened this summer.

The arrivals hall is also benefitting from a new domestic arrivals reclaim area with an additional baggage carousel. Capacity will increase by 20%. Accessibility in immigration will also be improved with new lifts and stairs.

Kate Gwyther, Head of Retail, Bristol Airport, said:

“We’re excited about what’s coming. The new departure lounge will be bright and spacious where customers can relax, explore a variety of new shops, and enjoy a wider range of dining options to suit every schedule, taste and budget. It’s all designed to make the holiday feel like it starts the moment passengers arrive.”

Customers will notice hoarding as the Airport begins work on the terminal transformation in the departure lounge, which will take place over the next three years. Soul and Grain has temporarily closed while it relocates from the upper level to the lower level. Tortilla has also temporarily closed with both re-opening mid December.

And the assisted travel lounge will relocate, but remain close to the exit of World Duty Free. Customers should expect some construction noise, but it will be kept to a minimum where possible.

As part of the terminal transformation plan, next generation security was installed last year. Since then, the average queue time during the first wave of flights in the morning is less than 13 minutes. And this summer the Public Transport Interchange opened with more than double the amount of bus bays, dedicated bus stops, digital information boards, a second multi-storey car park, more spacious toilet facilities including a family room and a new, bigger and better M&S. And the departure lounge has seen Alembic, a new world tapas pop up restaurant, and Escape, a new executive lounge, open.

Visit Bristol Airport website here - https://www.bristolairport.co.uk/