Airport Experience® News - Customer Service Issue 2025

BRINGING THE Airports Provide Post-Security Outdoor Access To Improve Traveler Well-Being BY DAVID GORDON

Airports have always been about transitions, the choreography of moving people from one place to another with exacting rhythm. In recent years, terminals have become destinations, places where travelers pause, reset and connect to the culture of a region. Few design gestures capture that shift more clearly than the rise of post-security outdoor spaces. Once considered impractical or ornamental, terraces, courtyards and patios are now emerging as some of the most distinctive and valued areas in new and redeveloped terminals. They tie together health, hospitality and commerce in a single gesture, and they give travelers something rare in air travel: a breath of fresh air. That breath takes many forms. At San Diego International Airport (SAN), a glass-enclosed terrace frames the bay and downtown, its colors and tiles pulled from the city’s early architecture. “The terrace is primarily intended to serve Terminal 1 restaurant patrons,” says Deanna Zachrisson, director of terminal business development at SAN, who describes it as part of a “Heritage District” where furniture and finishes connect passengers to place.

Right: The outdoor deck at the new Terminal 1 at San Diego International Airport serves as an extension of the terminal’s dining offerings, with extensive seating for guests to utilize while enjoying the city’s temperate climate.

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AX NEWS OCTOBER/NOVEMBER 2025