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You are here: Home / Passenger Experience / Manchester Airport Terminal 3 to get a glow-up

Manchester Airport Terminal 3 to get a glow-up

13/05/2025 by Kevincm Leave a Comment

If there’s one airport terminal I was always happy to get out of in a hurry, it’s Manchester Airport Terminal 3. From its tight corridors, sluggish security and limited roaming areas, it isn’t a great passenger experience (especially when I used to go through here on long-haul, or ending journeys with short-haul flights).

Thankfully, Manchester Airport Group has announced a multi-million pound investment in Terminal 3

Manchester Airport Terminal 3 Refurbishment. Rendering, MAG
Internal Render of the updated Manchester Airport Terminal 3 – Image, MAG 

According to the airport, the project will remodel the entrance to the terminal, the security hall and the departure lounge – creating extra space for passengers and for new retailers, as well as updating the look and feel of the building.

Manchester Airport has been in a state of modernisation since 2015, which has involved doubling the size of Terminal 2 and closing Terminal 1. The airport now intends to work on Terminal 3 by using some of the space in Terminal 1 once it shuts down.

Key elements of the investment in Terminal 3 are:

  • A new entrance to the terminal with more space, easier access and better facilities
  • Brand new security equipment
  • 40% more seating capacity in the departure lounge
  • New shops and food, and drink outlets
  • A new 500-seat bar area with airfield views
  • An expanded dining area with 200 extra seats
  • More shops and facilities landside in the arrivals area of the terminal

All this is dependent on Terminal 2, which has been going through a £1.3 billion upgrade programme. The first phase of the programme saw an extension added to the existing Terminal 2 building to double its size. That extension opened in 2021 and has now served more than 30 million passengers. The second phase of the project is due for completion later this year and brings the existing part of the building up to the same standard as the extension, with the addition of more than 20 new retailers, bars and restaurants.

Once it is complete, the new terminal is set to become the heart of the airport, with more than 70% of all passengers eventually using it.

Terminal 1, as it currently exists, will close, but it seems that parts of the building will be retained to give Terminal 3 a bigger footprint. Both terminals are joined together.

In Quotes

Manchester Airport Managing Director Chris Woodroofe said:

“We are proud to connect the people of the North to the world – and our transformation programme means that our passengers will be able to enjoy an airport experience that rivals that of any European capital city.

“The work we’ve done in Terminal 2 is there for all to see – and we’ve already won the prestigious Prix Versailles award for its architecture and design. But until now we haven’t talked about our plans for Terminal 3.

“Moving to a two-terminal airport is giving us a great opportunity to use some of the existing Terminal 1 space to increase the footprint of Terminal 3. We’re doing that as well as making some all round improvements to Terminal 3 – so passengers will enjoy new security technology, more space, more seats, new retail and food and drink, and more.

“It’s another exciting step towards delivering an even better experience for our passengers and I can’t wait to see it progress.”

Well, it can’t get any worse

When going through to Manchester Airport Terminal 3 (and if you’re approaching from the station), it is a lousy passenger experience. In the dim and distant past, you could cut through Terminal 1 to Terminal 3.

Manchester Airport
Trundling around the outside 

Manchester Airport
Manchester Airport Terminal 3

Instead, you have to go through the skywalk, down some elevators, and follow the signs to Terminal 3, heading into the open air.

It’s a bit bleak, to put it mildly. And that’s before you get to the terminal.

That’s just the first issue to be addressed. With poor access inside, it’s not the best experience. Once through that (and security, you’ve got corridors that are an afterthought, breaking out into shopping and the waiting area.

More space for passengers would be a welcome thing at Terminal 3, especially in the corridors that link the airport together.

And a better airside experience wouldn’t go amiss, too.


Welcome to Economy Class and Beyond. Your no-nonsense guide to network news, honest reviews, in-depth coverage, unique research, as well as the humour and madness I only know how to deliver.

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