Top 10 Spotting Hotels for Summer 2016

Park Royal Hotel, Melbourne Airport

Park Royal Melbourne Airport

You can walk directly into this hotel from the terminals via a covered walkway. Rooms can be a bit pricey, but some have excellent views over the airport. Ask for those in the ranges 800-825 and 900-925. You can also get views from the ends of the corridors.

+61 3 8347 2000 www.parkroyalhotels.com

NH Vienna Airport Hotel

NH Hotel Vienna Airport

The best hotel at Vienna Airport for views of movements. Odd-numbered rooms on the third floor will give views over the apron. Some other higher rooms have views over the 11/29 runway. The hotel is one of the more affordable at the airport, and it is a short walk from the terminal.

+43 1 7015 10 www.nh-hotels.com

Ibis Hotel, Rio de Janeiro Santos Dumont

Ibis Santos Dumont

With the summer Olympic Games coming up this summer, there’s going to be a lot of great traffic to be seen. At this spotting hotel the views can be restrictive, however odd-numbered top floor rooms facing the airport have limited views of the parking ramps and aircraft taking off.

+55 21 3506 8500 www.novotel.com

Sheraton Gateway, Toronto Pearson

If you’re heading to Toronto this summer, book a room at this great spotting hotel. It is connected to the terminals with views across the ramp and some of the runways. Terminal 1 is not visible, however most aircraft will taxi into view. Ask for a high level room facing the airport.

Here’s a review of the hotel.

+1 905 672 7000 www.starwoodhotels.com

Lara Hotel, Antalya

View from the Lara Hotel in Antalya. Photo (c) Paul Moiser

Away from the tourist resort hotels, the Lara is still a comfortable and affordable place to stay on the cliffs to the south of the airport. All rooms face the sea, with balconies, and aircraft approaching can be seen on either side, depending on the runway in use. Additionally, the pool area is also a good place to watch aircraft, but you may need to use an SBS to tie up some – especially if departing over the hotel towards the sea.

+90 242 349 2930 www.larakaprisotel.com

Larnaca Flamingo Beach Hotel

A popular resort hotel on Mackenzie Beach, to the north east of Larnaca Airport. This beach is great for spotting and photographing arrivals, and rooms in the hotel looking towards the approach are perfect (301 and 401 reportedly the best). The hotel also has a rooftop area which is good for watching aircraft.

+357 24 828208 www.flamingohotelcyprus.com

Hilton Helsinki Vantaa

The hotel is located directly behind the airport’s main terminal complex and is a couple of floors higher than the terminal buildings. There are only outward facing rooms on two sides of the hotel, facing northeast and southwest (the rest face an inner courtyard). For spotting purposes, you will need rooms facing southwest; rooms facing northeast have views blocked by an adjacent building. The top two floors are best, with rooms on the southwest side overlooking final approach to runways 04L/R and many of the terminal stands.

+358 9 73220 www.hilton.com

Corfu Holiday Palace Hotel

The best place to watch the action at Corfu is around the end of runway 35, where aircraft approach or depart over the sea. The Corfu Holiday Palace is a hotel with an elevated view over this end of the runway, so asking for a room with a view facing the lagoon should allow you to sit and watch the aircraft come and go from the comfort of your window all day.

+30 2661 036540 corfuholidaypalace.gr

Hotel Jen Male, Maldives

Hotel Jen Male

This hotel is in the city, on the island opposite the airport. As it is quite tall, some rooms on the top floors, as well as the rooftop terrace, have views towards the airport and final approach from both directions. Aircraft can clearly be seen with binoculars, but are too distant to read off registrations or photograph.

+960 330 0888 www.hoteljen.com

Barceló Fuerteventura Thalasso Spa, Canary Islands

Barcelo Fuerteventura Thalasso

One of a number of hotels in the Costa Caleta resort to the south of the airport. Aircraft on final approach pass directly overhead the airport and its pool area, and are easy to read off but too distant to photograph.

+34 928 54 75 17 www.barcelo.com

Want More Spotting Hotels?

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