The World's Best Airports When It Comes To Passenger Service

Sometimes, when you're in an airport, you couldn't care less about fancy amenities or impressive dining options. If you're dealing with a travel snafu, the most important thing is usually how well airport staff help you get where you're going. That's why Airports Council International's newly released rankings of its Airport Service Quality awards is so important. They determine which airports in the world offer the best passenger service to travelers.

“Airports are more than simply points of departure and arrival,” Angela Gittens, the general director of ACI World, said. "They are complex businesses in their own right. A ... focus on serving the passenger has become increasingly important to ensuring success."

ACI, a nonprofit based in Montreal with member airports in 177 countries around the world, breaks the rankings down by region and size. To determine the best of the best, ACI surveyed more than half a million passengers before they boarded their flights and asked them to rate their satisfaction with their airport experience that day. The survey included 34 service indicators such as airport access, check-in, facilities and more at 300 airports worldwide.

The best airport in North America, as ranked by ACI, is Indianapolis International Airport in Indiana, while Iceland's Keflavík International Airport took the top spot in Europe. Amman's Queen Alia International Airport in Jordan ranked first in the Middle East, Seoul's Incheon International Airport in South Korea was tops in Asia, Ecuador's José Joaquín de Olmedo International Airport was the best in Latin America, and Sir Seewoosagur Ramgoolam International Airport (SSR International Airport) in Mauritius took first place in Africa.

The full rankings are below.

Best Airport By Region

• Africa: SSR International Airport -- Mauritius
• Asia-Pacific: Incheon International Airport -- Seoul, South Korea
• Europe: Keflavík International Airport -- Iceland
• Latin America-Caribbean: José Joaquín de Olmedo International Airport -- Guayaquil, Ecuador
• Middle East: Queen Alia International Airport -- Amman, Jordan
• North America: Indianapolis International Airport -- Indiana, U.S.

Best Airport By Size

• 2 million-5 million passengers per year: José Joaquín de Olmedo International Airport -- Guayaquil, Ecuador
• 5 million-15 million passengers per year: Haikou Meilan International Airport -- Hainan, China
• 15 million-25 million passengers per year: Gimpo International Airport -- Seoul, South Korea
• 25 million-40 million passengers per year: Indira Gandhi International Airport -- New Delhi, India
• More than 40 million passengers per year: Incheon International Airport -- Seoul, South Korea

Best Small Airport By Region (Fewer Than 2M Passengers A Year)

• Africa: Upington Airport -- South Africa
• Asia-Pacific: Langkawi International Airport -- Malaysia
• Europe: Murcia-San Javier Airport -- Spain
• Latin America-Caribbean: Culiacán International Airport -- Sinaloa, Mexico
• North America: Victoria International Airport -- British Columbia, Canada

Best Improvement By Region

• Africa: SSR International Airport -- Mauritius
• Asia-Pacific: Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose International Airport -- Kolkata, India
• Europe: Pulkovo International Airport -- St. Petersburg, Russia
• Latin America-Caribbean: Las Américas International Airport -- Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic
• Middle East: Queen Alia International Airport -- Amman, Jordan
• North America: San Antonio International Airport -- Texas, U.S.