A few pointers about my experiences flying to and ...

A few pointers about my experiences flying to and from Stansted:

The way the airport is designed is not good for the amount of people it accommodates. At least, if the airport was instead spread over 2 or more terminals there would be less confusion and chaos in terms of the queues, crowds, and boarding areas.

The check-in area is chaotic and it can be confusing especially if it's your first time ever at the airport.

The security check can also involve a really long wait, especially because not all the lanes are opened at the same time. As a result there are usually frequent bottlenecks in the influx of passengers.

After security, you have to walk a long way through a seemingly endless duty free area.

When you get information on your boarding gate, you have to sprint to arrive there on time. The time between when you get your gate number and when the gate closes is too short. To add to this mess, the distance between the duty free area and the gates is relatively very long and can involve going up and down escalators. Imagine what a hassle this causes if you can't walk very fast for whatever reason.

Quite often, after going through the boarding gate, passengers are left to wait to board the aeroplane. I can recall one occasion where I and other passengers were left waiting outside in the rain before we could board the plane.

With regards to flying to Stansted Airport, it is also an adventure of a lifetime. You have to walk a long distance to get to a shuttle train which more often than not, can just fit in everyone, and so everyone is packed like sardines.

Passport control is also a chaotic mess. Sometimes the e-passport machines don't work properly which then result in longer queues. The queues are also usually very convoluted and slow paced. I once missed a National Express bus that I'd booked because the passport queue was dead slow.

I use this airport not because I want to, but because I have to. If I could, I would fly to and from Heathrow and Southend only!