All abuzz: New terminal's futuristic take on honeycombs

Airport terminals are places of waiting and wondering, and architects Studio Fuksas designed Terminal 3 with this in mind, creating a space that facilitates ‘movement and pause’.

The new terminal, which covers 500,000 square metres, has seemingly unending hallways and soaring white columns to hold up to the roof, as in a cathedral. The honeycomb exterior creates a waffle effect of natural light filtering through all three levels of the airport, an important feature in a place where people can often feel claustrophobic.

With its new terminal Bao’an Airport will be able to accommodate up to 45 million passengers in a year, which is essential for a city that hopes to attract more tourists in the future. For more on the new heavyweight airports, see our New Air Hubs microtrend.