HEATHROW'S Terminal 5 is fine now, really. No hold-up for your bags, and the terminal is quite well sign-posted with all amenities in full swing.
Call it perverse curiosity, but with so much bad press when it first opened in March, one just wants to see what it's like.
The thing is British Airways (BA) flights departing from Singapore and heading to London don't land there, but at Terminal 4 instead, and eventually at Terminal 3.
But the 4.3 billion pounds (S$11.6 billion) Terminal 5 serves inter-Europe flights, so you'd have to pass through it if you're taking a connecting flight to another European city.
To have a stopover in London en route to Moscow, BA was naturally my airline of choice since other options just didn't make sense.
One which offered a chance to check out Terminal 5 in all its high-tech glory (not counting the first run of its automated baggage system of course). And it is state-of-the-art - from its check-in systems to the designer furniture that it has at the business class lounges such as Marcel Wanders' horse lamp.
Check-in is now computerised, so you just key in a few particulars at the 96 check-in kiosks within the departure hall to get your boarding pass. A tip: Head to the far right of the hall to use the other kiosks to avoid waiting in line, at the entrance that's nearest to the subway connection.
Then you just drop your bag at one of the more than 100 desks before making your way to security and into the departure area.
The whole process is quite fast, with none of the long queues you find at usual check-ins.
Once inside, members of First, Club World, Club Europe, Gold and Silver Executive Clubs would probably head to the six BA lounges in the terminal - all with ceiling-to-floor glass walls that afford a view of planes landing and taking off.
And those lounges are swanky, with spacious layouts and well-stocked drinks sections, with modish decor and furnishings.
The highlight, however, is the free 15-minute massage at Elemis spa, which is available to First Class and Club World passengers or Gold Executive Club members.
BA has teamed up with the skincare company for the new Travel spas, which is a perfectly great idea and which more airlines should definitely emulate.
If you prefer to browse around rather than sit at the lounges, there are a number of shops in the hall - though not as extensive as the choices you'd find in Singapore, of course.
Harrods, Dixons and Links of London are your typical Brit stores, while there's also Thomas Pink and Paul Smith for designer wear, and the good old Boots for the necessities.
F&B choices include a Gordon Ramsay outlet and Wagamama - so there you have the two spectrums of dining. That said, the Ramsay outlet is fairly casual food rather than fine dining.
Or how about taking advantage of your waiting time to view eight artworks specially commissioned for the airport. There's a Christopher Pearson 3D animation of the BA crest, and a moving 8m wallpaper. Artist Troika developed a 22-m-long art wall that functions as a "world clock" using the latest electroluminescent technology; and at different intervals, works from BA's 1,500-piece artwork collection will be displayed at the galleries.
One can only hope that Terminal 3 - where BA flights from Singapore will land, by early 2009 - will be refurbished to a similar standard and without operational glitches. There's nothing like a designer terminal to perk you up a little
after a long-haul flight, or alleviate the dreaded anticipation of one.
This article was first published in The Business Times Weekend on July 19, 2008.
