“Suvarnabhumi“ or fly with me to the Golden Landby Annette Romming | 12.06.2011

Suvarnabhumi Airport

Holiday in Thailand is something that makes people think of exotic food, foreign smells and the huzzle and buzzle of the metropolis of Bangkok. Nearly 30 km East of the capital, the gate to holiday paradise can be found for approx. 45 million tourists per year – Suvarnabhumi Airport. Some may already be impressed by the building designed by Murphy/Jahn already when seeing it from the plane. Spread across 3,100 hectares are two runways as well as 120 gates, five of which are already conceptualized for the new A380 Airbus. The passenger terminal is encased by a half-timbered roof, curved from end to end. The building’s interior is open and spacious and displays the preferred materials steel and glass. White is the dominating color here. The cohesive passenger terminal has an area of nearly 563,000 m² and provides 360 check-in counters, 120 entry check points and 72 departure check points under one roof.

Tropical Garden at the Airport

Since, unlike with most other well-known airports such as Frankfurt, Hong Kong or Atlanta, a satellite solution was not the pick of the day, making distances between check-in counters quite long. However, on their way passengers are supported by 107 walkways and numerous relaxation points. A special highlight is the tropical garden in the inner courtyard. Trees here and there and little temples are a contrast to the sterile and modern visual appearance and remind a bit of the old Don Mueang airport, presenting Thailand’s traditions in all their facets. However, it was forced to make way for the new 2.4 million Euro airport in 2006 due to capacity issues. His royal highness Bhumibol Adulyadej picked the new premises for the future air link-up of his country and gave the building the name Suvarnabhumi (pron.: "su-wan-na-poom"), meaning “Golden Land“ in English.