Melbourne Airport has been voted best in the Asia-Pacific in Skytrax World Airport Awards

Melbourne Airport has been voted the best airport in the Australia-Pacific region, but the gong was met with disbelief from regular travelers who called it a ‘joke’.

At the Skytrax World Airport Awards held in Amsterdam, the airport was ranked number 19 on Wednesday night, up seven places from last year.

Melbourne was the only one to make the top 20, while Brisbane Airport landed not too far behind at number 23. Sydney’s facility came in at a low 49th place.

Melbourne Airport workers also eclipsed the competition as the best staff in the region, while the Gold Coast took the gong for best regional airport.

But airline passengers received the news of Melbourne’s victory with disbelief, with many claiming that it was, in fact, one of the worst airports.

‘Is this a joke? I think that it [the worst]. It’s like being stuck in the 1990s,” one commenter commented on social media.

But airline passengers received the news of Melbourne’s victory with disbelief, with some claiming it was one of the worst airports (pictured)

Singapore’s Changi Airport (pictured) took the number one spot in the world for 2023

“If Melbourne’s airport is the best, I feel sorry for the airports in other cities. The bar is so low,” said another.

“What a joke, the jury probably never left Victoria,” said a third.

“That’s why Jetstar travelers still have to climb stairs in all kinds of weather and are almost blown back down again. Yes… no,” joked another.

‘I like Melbourne International Airport for my own convenience. That’s a stretch though. The skybus is great, but the train to the city would be better for such a busy airport,” said another.

‘Melbourne Airport is a toilet compared to Sydney Airport [with its] easy public transport options,” wrote another.

Meanwhile, Singapore’s Changi Airport took the top prize in the prestigious awards, putting Doha Hamad International in second place this year.

Tokyo’s Haneda Airport landed at number three, while Seoul Incheon and Paris’ Charles de Gaulle airports took the fourth and fifth top spots respectively.

Singapore’s Changi Airport took the top prize in the prestigious awards, putting Doha Hamad International (pictured) in second place this year

“If Melbourne’s airport (pictured) is the best, I feel sorry for the airports in other cities. The bar is so low,” said one online commenter

“Melbourne Airport is a toilet compared to Sydney Airport (pictured) – easy public transport options,” another wrote on social media

Head of Communications and Community Engagement at Melbourne Airport Andrew Lund said they were ‘quite pleased’ given what the airport has been through in recent years.

“For example, we spent about $40 million upgrading toilets and we’d like to think we now have some of the best toilets in the country. Hopefully it is a sign that such investments are paying off,” he said 3AW.

‘But also just the fact that you can walk from the domestic terminal to the international terminal, it’s a minute’s walk to transfer.

“At many other airports in the country you have to get on a bus or train and that’s quite difficult.”