We’re seeing an increasing number of airports offering private terminals for those flying commercially, with the goal of eliminating the stress of the airport experience. Typically it comes at a hefty cost — either many hundreds of dollars, or in some situations, even several thousand dollars.
Along those lines, Head for Points flags what might just be the best value private(ish) terminal experience you’ll find…
In this post:
Manchester Airport’s £99 private terminal experience
Aether is a private terminal at Manchester Airport (MAN), which opened in November 2024. It had previously opened in 2019 under different branding, but this is intended to be a new experience.
The concept is simple — this is completely disconnected from the main terminal, so you can clear security and wait in this space, prior to a BMW i7 chauffeur to the terminal for your flight. Aether offers lounge-style seating with views of the apron and runway.
The lounge also features an extensive food and drink selection, with a menu by chef Adam Reid. For example, you can find the dining menu here.
How much does this experience cost? Well, it’s surprisingly affordable. For example, there’s a £99 package if departing with just cabin bags. This includes one course from the Adam Reid menu, two complimentary drinks, private security, a chauffeur to your gate, and the ability to arrive between one and two hours of departure.
If you want a more premium experience, you can pay £179 for the more inclusive package, with the ability to check bags, arrive up to three hours early, take advantage of the full dining experience, and even go through private passport control.
So £99 is quite a good price, and even the £179 price is way lower than you’ll find for virtually any other private terminal of the sort.
Is the Aether Manchester Airport experience worth it?
I find the Aether experience at Manchester Airport to be quite interesting, given that it’s in a league of its own when it comes to affordability for these kinds of services. For example, London Heathrow Airport (LHR) also has a private departure experience, known as The Windsor by Heathrow, but that costs literally thousands of dollars.
However, a couple of things come to mind here:
- Unlike some other private facilities, you’re not going to get a private suite in the lounge, but instead, it’s a shared, communal lounge, probably just higher end than what you’ll find in the terminal
- You don’t actually get driven directly to the plane, but instead, you get driven to the terminal, and are then escorted to the gate, and you then have to board the aircraft with everyone else (some airlines might let you pre-board, but that’s up to the airline)
As I see it, there are two ways to justify this experience. One is just if you’re celebrating something special or like the novelty of something like this. After all, it’s kind of cool to be driven in a nice car across an airport, right? The second reason is simply because you find the terminal in Manchester to be absolutely awful, and you’ll do anything to avoid that.
I know Manchester was a mess for some time, but I’ve heard that the situation has improved, so perhaps it’s not quite as miserable as it once was?
If the goal is simply to save time, I can’t imagine the time savings are that significant. You’ll first have to find this remote terminal, you’ll still have to check in early enough, then you’ll have to be driven across the airport, and then you’ll still have to be at the gate in time for boarding.
Bottom line
Manchester Airport offers a private terminal experience, known as Aether. While lots of airports offer these kinds of experiences, Aether has to be one of the most affordable in the world, with packages starting at just £99.
I’d say the catch is that this isn’t quite as seamless as some of the other private experiences out there. In particular, you’re only driven to the gate for your departing flight, so it doesn’t actually make the process of boarding any simpler.
If/when I travel through Manchester Airport, I’ll be sure to give this a try. That being said, I don’t have any plans for now…
What do you make of Manchester Airport’s Aether experience?
I'm laughing thinking about what other smaller airports might do as their own versions of this "luxury commercial experience". Bob Hope (Burbank) airport for example could do Drive Thru TSA experience in true LA style, considering there's rarely a line anywhere in the airport.
I've spent £99 on a standard restaurant meal, so this is absolutely a bargain to get all the rest thrown on top.
What is ‘private passport control’? There is no passport control for UK airport departures.
aether can also be used for arrivals. That's why it says "private passport control" under "Express - Arrive Only".
So it’s essentially a LH FCT lite edition
If it means not having to walk past all the travellators that haven't worked for years then it's worth it...
It’s hilarious that places like Paris, St. Tropez, Geneva, even New York make things unnecessarily expensive just to keep exclusivity.
Then on the other hand you have Northern England, which loves the phrase ‘good enough’. So this service is just about good enough and takes out the true luxury.
I think Asia has the right balance. I used such a service in Singapore. The CIP terminal. It was a dated lounge, but the...
It’s hilarious that places like Paris, St. Tropez, Geneva, even New York make things unnecessarily expensive just to keep exclusivity.
Then on the other hand you have Northern England, which loves the phrase ‘good enough’. So this service is just about good enough and takes out the true luxury.
I think Asia has the right balance. I used such a service in Singapore. The CIP terminal. It was a dated lounge, but the baggage service was amazing. Didn’t even have to touch the suitcases from the car boot. And they took us in a buggy all the way to the plane. It wasn’t £100 that’s for sure but it wasn’t too expensive either.
Tokyo has insane quality of food for great prices. HK and Singapore to a lesser extend. Doha offers amazing convenience and luxury for good prices too. Whether hotel room quality. Luxury car services. Airport meet and greet VIP etc. Dubai not so much.
But it is interesting to see how much value for money differs in different parts of the world.
It's interesting that the alcoholic beverages are limited since the British are among the heaviest drinks out there. You could totally drink your way through the 2 or 3 hours. I don't know UK tax law but I wonder if this would qualify as a business expense for tax deduction. I could see business travelers classifying this as a meal or travel expense.
@ FNT Delta Diamond -- Hah, well perhaps it's because Brits tend to be heavy drinkers that the basic package doesn't include more drinks, so that people have an incentive to buy-up to the more expensive package.
I don't know about British tax legislation specifically, but generally airport lounges are tax deductable expenses, if (and only if) the trip is a business trip and you are self employed. If you are an employee, you depend on the corporate travel policy of your employer, whether you get reimbursed or not or partly (the final option applies in my case, it's complicated).
It’s an absolute bargain compared to spending a couple of hours in Manchester Airport Zoo with all the animals.