Heathrow doesn’t make the top 10 cut of the best global airports for business travellers, despite having the most lounges in the world, according to a new study.
The Booking.com for Business study analysed 50 of the world’s busiest airports based on key factors, including the number of business class routes and proximity to the local business district, revealing the destinations that offer the best experience for corporate trips.
This comes as global business travel spending is forecast to climb to £1.2 trillion by the end of 2025, before accelerating with 8.1% growth in 2026 and continuing this upward trajectory through 2028 and beyond.1
You can view the report in full here: Business Travel Airport Index.
The best global airports for business travellers:
|
Routes with direct flights |
|||||||||||
|
Rank |
Airport |
Location |
Country |
Total |
Business- class |
Business- class (%) |
Lounges |
Skytrax rating /5 |
3-star hotels within 1 mile |
Driving distance to central business district (mins) |
Business Travel Score /10 |
|
1 |
Dubai International Airport |
Dubai |
United Arab Emirates |
271 |
238 |
88% |
35 |
3 |
9 |
19.0 |
9.55 |
|
2 |
Singapore Changi Airport |
Singapore |
Singapore |
156 |
104 |
67% |
36 |
5 |
7 |
27.5 |
9.01 |
|
3 |
Frankfurt Airport |
Frankfurt, Hesse |
Germany |
283 |
142 |
50% |
27 |
4 |
9 |
19.0 |
8.62 |
|
4 |
Tokyo Haneda Airport |
Tokyo |
Japan |
102 |
97 |
95% |
33 |
5 |
4 |
39.0 |
8.37 |
|
5 |
Seoul Incheon International Airport |
Seoul /Incheon |
South Korea |
165 |
131 |
79% |
25 |
5 |
6 |
47.0 |
8.28 |
|
6 |
Hamad International Airport |
Doha |
Qatar |
184 |
174 |
95% |
19 |
5 |
0 |
22.0 |
8.27 |
|
7 |
Shenzhen Bao’an International Airport |
Shenzhen, Guangdong |
China |
162 |
133 |
82% |
19 |
5 |
5 |
40.0 |
8.18 |
|
8 |
Toronto Pearson International Airport |
Toronto, Ontario |
Canada |
192 |
146 |
76% |
17 |
4 |
13 |
41.5 |
7.49 |
|
9 |
Charles de Gaulle Airport |
Paris, Île-de-France |
France |
282 |
159 |
56% |
22 |
4 |
13 |
57.5 |
7.29 |
|
10 |
Amsterdam Airport Schiphol |
Amsterdam, North Holland |
Netherlands |
269 |
184 |
68% |
10 |
4 |
4 |
33.5 |
7.25 |
|
11 |
Heathrow Airport |
London |
United Kingdom |
208 |
114 |
55% |
46 |
4 |
15 |
82.5 |
7.24 |
London Heathrow Airport narrowly misses out on a top 10 spot with a business travel score of 7.24 out of 10. The airport has the highest number of lounges out of all airports analysed at 46 – nine more than Suvarnabhumi Airport in Bangkok, which has the second highest number of lounges.
Handling nearly 83.9 million passengers in 2024, Heathrow’s high passenger volumes make lounge access key for productivity.2 Lounge access is often included with business-class tickets or travel cards, but even pay-on-entry options (from around £36) offer a worthwhile upgrade for professionals facing long waits.
Heathrow offers 114 direct business-class routes, representing more than half (55%) of all its direct flights, as well as showcasing a Skytrax rating of 4 out of 5. This high level of performance helps ensure that business travellers flying through London experience fewer missed connections and shorter delays.
Nadine Blokker, Booking.com for Business expert, comments on how to get the best experience when travelling for business: “As this research has demonstrated, some airports and destinations are more suitable for business travellers than others. However, as your destination is sometimes out of your control, there are steps you can take to achieve a smooth corporate travel experience:
