Most Amazing AirportsBeijing Daxing/Capital International Airport

(Beijing, China)

At two miles long, Terminal 3 of the Beijing Capital International Airport is one of the largest buildings in the world. Opened just in time for the 2008 Olympics, this structure features a striking design—created by

architects Foster + Partners—that uses the traditional Chinese color scheme of red and yellow and a dragonlike form to celebrate Chinese history and culture.

The terminal building and transportation center together enclose a floor area of 1.3 million square meters and were designed to accommodate 50 million passengers each year by 2020. The picture on the left is of

the Beijing Daxing International Airport which will be operational by September 2019.

Changi Airport

(Changi, Singapore)

The biodome component of the airport as seen in the picture on the right will open in 2019.

Chhatrapati Shivaji International Airport

(Mumbai, India)

Designed by Skidmore, Owings & Merrill (SOM), Mumbai’s new Terminal 2 building opened in 2014 to accommodate the city’s growing influx of visitors. A gigantic roof canopy references the form of vernacular

Indian pavilions and is the centerpiece of the design.

In total, 30 mushrooming columns connect to the canopy overhead, with patterns inspired in part by India’s national bird, the peacock. SOM also sought to respect the traditions of local cultures—curbside drop-off zones are “designed for large parties of accompanying well-wishers [to] accommodate traditional Indian

arrival and departure ceremonies.”

Denver International Airport

(Denver, Colorado)

Airport architecture in the United States often leaves much to be desired, but Denver’s fabric-covered tents are a highlight in a sea of boring design. Designed by Fentress Architects to mimic Colorado’s snow-capped Rocky Mountains, the tents look striking at any time of day—but their soft glow at sunrise and sunset is especially captivating.Recent construction added a new Westin Hotel to the airport, and travelers can also now take a train directly from the airport to downtown Denver.

Dubai International Airport

(Dubai, United Arab Emirates)

Five times larger than Chicago's O'Hare Airport, the international airport in Dubai is basically its own city. One of the busiest airports in the world for international travelers, total travelers and freight traffic, it covers more than 7,200 acres and has seen continued and modern expansions ever since opening in 1960. The

airport has swimming pools, zen gardens, and its own flower center.

Haneda Airport International Terminal

(Haneda, Japan)

Heydar Aliyev International Airport terminal

(Baku, Azerbaijan)

This airport terminal features giant wooden cocoons designed by Turkish architecture studio Autoban.

Light streams in through the concave external glass walls, and each cocoon houses cafes, bars, stores,

and amenities, like a children’s play area. Diamond patterns on the atrium floors mimic the wooden

shingles of the cocoon. The airport can handle more than 5 million passengers each year.

Hong Kong International Airport

(Hong Kong)

Incheon International Airport

(Seoul, South Korea)

Conceived by renowned airport architect Curtis Fentress (who also designed the iconic peaks of the Denver International Airport), Incheon publicly spotlights the best of traditional Korean design -- while still emerging as a futuristic model of efficiency. Before he started building, Fentress traveled throughout the country, visiting ancient landmarks and studying the design of traditional religious buildings. Thus, the roofline of the resulting terminal mimics that of a Korean temple, and throughout the building, you’ll find precious artifacts that date back thousands of years.

Kansai International Airport

(Osaka Bay, Japan)

Opened in 1994 to relieve overcrowding at Osaka International Airport, Kansai International Airport was designed by Italian architect Renzo Piano. Built on an artificial island in the Bay of Osaka, it’s the first

“ocean” airport in the world and can handle 100,000 passengers a day.

The extra-long terminal—the longest in the world at the time it was built—stretches 1.7 kilometers with 42 boarding gates and a large curving roof shaped like an airfoil. The structure was specifically designed to

handle Japan’s frequent earthquakes, and just four months after opening, the airport survived the 6.9 Kobe earthquake with minimal damage.

Kuala Lumpur International Airport

(Sepang District, Malaysia)

One of the largest airports in Asia, the Kuala Lumpur airport, designed by Japanese architect Kisho Kurokawa, incorporates an Islamic-style shading roof anchored by massive columns. The roof is also reminiscent of a common tree in the Malaysian rainforest, and the lights on the canopy represent the filtered sun that shines between leaves. Kurokawa’s “airport in the forest” design demonstrates how

modern design—the shell-like roof is made with sleek stainless steel—and cultural traditions can blend together. The airport also features a series of prayer rooms throughout.

Lyon–Saint-Exupéry Airport

(Lyon, France)

Whether its twin steel arches remind you of a bird in flight -- or something that alighted in Lyon from a universe far, far away -- you can definitely spot some kind of avian-theme in France’s fourth busiest airport, designed by architect Santiago Calatrava. At 130 feet tall and nearly 400 feet long, the main

arches that compose the terminal allow just the right amount of light to enter the main concourse. The airport is a popular hub for skiers heading to one many resorts located in the nearby region, such as

Courchevel, Meribel and Val Thorens.

Madrid Barajas International Airport

(Madrid, Spain)

Located just 12 kilometers from the center of the Spanish city capital, the Barajas Airport received an upgrade in 2006 thanks to an addition by architect Richard Rogers that doubled the size of the airport.

The structure’s unusual wave-shaped roof is supported by central “trees” that punctuate the roof to provide natural light throughout the upper level of the terminal. Bright reds and yellows offer a welcome departure from the standard gray and white used in most airport color schemes, and the roof also provides much-

needed shade to combat Madrid’s hot summers.

Pulkovo Airport

(Saint Petersburg, Russia)

Completed in 2014, the Pulkovo Airport in St. Petersburg is expected to receive about 12 million passengers each year. London-based architects Grimshaw designed the airport with a large flat roof that can withstand the weight of heavy snowfall. The roof’s underside is a series of folded surfaces that help

distribute the weight to different parts of the structure.

Inside, golden metal panels reference the gilded spires of St. Petersburg churches, and lighting fixtures run along the folds of the panels. Voids between the panels reveal skylights that provide light and help

guide passengers from place to place in the terminal.

Queen Alia International Airport

(Zizya, Jordan)

Inspired by Bedouin tents, the Queen Alia International Airport in Amman, Jordan, features unique concrete domes designed by Foster + Partners. The tessellated concrete roof canopy spans the entire

terminal and also hangs over the facade to provide shade from intense sunlight.

The underside of each dome is embossed like the surface of a leaf, and browns and creams match the color scheme of the surrounding desert. Each dome provided a modular unit for construction and will allow

the airport to easily expand in the future.

Shenzhen Bao'an International Airport

(Shenzhen, China)

The first airport project designed by the Rome-based architects Massimiliano and Doriana Fuksas, the new Terminal 3 building at Shenzhen Bao’an International Airport in China was built to look like a manta

ray from above.

The three-level concourse and roof are wrapped in a white double-layer skin perforated by honeycomb-shaped metal and glass panels. This allows natural light to filter through to the inside, and the honeycomb

pattern and futuristic white coloring are consistent throughout.