Corporate Traveller, the flagship SME division of Flight Centre Travel Group (FCTG), has revealed its Travel Manager’s 2025 rankings of the world’s top airport stopovers, lounges and transit services, revealing the facilities that best support productivity, comfort and ease for business travellers.
Tom Walley, Australian-based Global Managing Director at Corporate Traveller, says: “Our Travel Managers work closely with businesses and business travellers, so they have a deep understanding of what they value most at each stage of the journey. Business travellers spend hours in transit and days or weeks away from home, so airports, lounges and other services that have comfort, productivity and efficiency at their core can make all the difference.”
“With itineraries tighter than ever, our clients tell us time predictability and knowing exactly how long each air-side process will take, now outranks champagne bars and sleep pods. That’s why airports investing in biometrics to slash queue times and lounges with purpose-built work pods and guaranteed Wi-Fi bandwidth, topped our list.”
Singapore’s Changi tops airport stopovers
Singapore Changi Airport topped the hotlist for airport stopovers, landing almost two-thirds of votes from Corporate Traveller’s Travel Manager poll when asked which hub delivers the most productivity-boosting layover for business travellers. Having been repeatedly named the best airport in the world, it offers vast entertainment, dining, and wellness options that make it a formidable contender to beat.
Tom says: “Business travellers don’t need to sit idle between flights at Changi Airport, but if they want to, there are multiple ways to do so. Changi Airport has everything from movie theatres, art displays and day spas to a butterfly trail, sunflower garden, and the Jurassic Mile – an outdoor display of life-sized dinosaurs. And that’s just in Terminal 2.
“All four terminals have their own experiences, and they are linked to Jewel, a nature-themed, multi-use complex of gardens, retail, dining and hotel facilities. The sheer size and unique nature of Changi Airport have made it a destination even for those who are not flying.”
Dubai International Airport came in at number two, boasting an array of first-class, business, and family lounges, with a focus on rest and relaxation. Doha Hamad International Airport ranked third, having recently celebrated its tenth anniversary and an expansion that is expected to increase capacity to more than 65 million passengers annually. The placement is timely as Virgin Australia will launch flights from Sydney, Brisbane and Perth to Doha from June 2025 under its expanded alliance with Qatar Airways, funnelling even more Australian corporates through Hamad International.
Emirates Dubai number one in international lounges
With fully catered shower spas, complimentary spa treatments, fine dining and dedicated quiet areas, Emirates First Class Lounge Dubai is focused on getting travellers to their destination refreshed and ready for business. When asked which international lounges offered the best amenities, experience, food and beverages, almost half of travel experts chose this one.
Tom says: “Everything about this lounge promotes style, ease and relaxation, making it number one for those who are travelling for business and need to be at their best en route to continue work, and when they arrive. Entry into the lounge is fast and seamless via contactless facial recognition. Once inside, travellers can choose to take a break, refresh themselves in the showers, or get down to work in the business centre. The options and the style in which Emirates supports its travellers make the first class Lounge Dubai a favourite.”
Qatar Airways’ Al Mourjan Business Lounge in Doha came in second with almost a third of the votes, with its two-level infinity pool-style water feature and dedicated nap rooms. Qantas First Lounge in Sydney rounded out the top three, praised for Neil Perry-curated dining, showers, spa treatments, meeting rooms and private suites.
Efficiency valued most in airport services
Tom says: “You can have all the style and comfort you want, but when it comes to business, travellers are there to get a job done. Security and immigration checks can sometimes slow down transit, but automation, self-serve facilities, and electronic travel authorisations, such as those recently introduced in the UK, are expediting this part of the process. Our travel managers know that business travellers value efficiency, so it’s little surprise that fast security and immigration processes rated number one.”
Half of the expert panel prioritised fast security and immigration processes, a factor that attracted almost three times as many votes as state-of-the-art lounges, which ranked second. That focus is hardly surprising. Singapore Changi’s end-to-end biometric clearance, fully rolled out across all four terminals in October 2024, has slashed average passport-control times from 25 seconds to 10 seconds, a 60 per cent improvement.
“When we ask clients what makes an airport exceptional, it’s knowing you can be through immigration in minutes,” says Tom. “Changi’s 60 per cent cut in wait time explains exactly why it tops our rankings. Baggage tracking and handling came in third, ahead of premium shopping, dining and wellness perks.”
