Amsterdam's Schiphol airport received some fantastic news from this year's Passenger Terminal Expo in Vienna. They won the title of "Europe's best airport," and climbed back into the top 5 of the World's best airport competition in 4th position.

Schiphol has previously won the title of being Western Europe's best airport, but this is the first time it has taken the crown of the Europe-wide competition.

However, the airport was considered a strong contender this year, especially after winning a different competition by the Airports Council International Europe in 2011.

Maarten de Groof, Executive Vice President & CCO of Schiphol Group, was delighted to announce the results, and pledged to further secure Amsterdam's position as Europe's best airport in the future.

"We are particularly proud of this award because it are the passengers who have voted us Europe's best airport. This award is not only a sign of recognition, it also provides an added impetus for us to fulfil and continue to fulfil our ambition to be Europe's preferred airport."

The other top 5 World's best airports are all Asian, with Incheon International Airport (South Korea), followed by Singapore Changi Airport and Hong Kong International Airport taking 1st, 2nd and 3rd place respectively. Amsterdam moved up two spots to take 4th position this year round, with Beijing Capital International Airport taking 5th.

Amsterdam Airport Schiphol is known for being easy to navigate, and for its extensive recreational and leisure facilities. In May 2011, it opened the World's first airport park. Its efficiency has also earnt it the title of being the world's third best transfer airport, after Singapore Changi Airport and Incheon International Airport.

The awards were presented to Senior Design and Review Manager Jan van der Linden at the Passenger Terminal Expo in Vienna on the April 22, 2012.

About the awards
The World Airport Awards, also known in the travel industry as the Passenger's Choice Awards, are considered the most significant benchmark for measuring the quality of airports worldwide. For the 2012 edition, Skytrax carried out a survey among more than 12 million travellers from over a hundred different countries on the quality of 388 airports around the world.