AIRPORT REPORT : HELSINKI bus gates and immigration and security enhancements to ensure that it can continue to offer impressive 35-minute connection times for transfer passengers .
Ground transportation to the airport is also set for a major boost , with the anticipated 2015 opening of a new high-speed train service to downtown Helsinki .
And it is not only the Quality Hunters initiative which proves Helsinki is on the ball when it comes to online communication with its passengers – the airport also won SimpliFlying ’ s Best Airport on Social Media in 2012 .
“ We like to think that smooth travelling starts online ,” says Markus Haapamäki , head of social media at Finavia . “ What we would like to see in our social media channels is an interaction with our passengers to improve their travel experience .
“ But we also want to share accurate information with the public , allowing people to become aware of who we are and what is on offer for them when they get to Helsinki and any of our other Finnish airports .
“ The best result has got to be if we can invent something new via interaction with our passengers via our social media channels . “ Quality Hunters was born out of our decision along with Finnair to hire eight people to travel the world and come up with suggestions for making air travel more convenient . This has now snowballed into a truly global community .”
Helsinki is certainly out to impress its business travellers , with Savolainen saying the airport wants to do more for its hard-working passengers .
There are already neat little touches around the airport , such as wireless charging points for passengers ’ mobile phones , a hairdressers , and art exhibitions for those with a longer wait between flights .
The airport ’ s free Wi-Fi is a huge success , too , with the number of users increasing by an impressive 3,000 % in four years . There are 30 times more users now than there were in January 2009 , and the figure has rocketed by 168 % in the last 12 months .
There is also Suvanto , a new lounge introduced in May last year . Finavia , with partners such as Clear Channel , launched the concept , giving passengers separate spaces to work and relax .
There are currently three Suvanto lounges in the airport and they each provide ergonomic workstations , as well as power points for various electronic devices .
Traffic It is fair to say that the gateway ’ s passenger numbers were not great last year , with a slight decline on 2011 figures . The dip was particularly alarming in the final quarter of the year with a 2.3 % fall , meaning the final total dropped just short of the 15 million mark . However , the airport still maintains it is in a good position – both economically and geographically speaking – to see growth in the coming years .
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