Inside secret rooms in airports you need to know about

Airports around the world are full of various rooms designed to cater to passengers’ many needs – but not all of them are places you’d want to visit.

In airports around the world there are secret rooms, some amazing and some you never want to visit.

Escape has rounded up some of the most interesting, from dog parks to morgues.

The meditation room at Schiphol Airport, Amsterdam

Flying can be super stressful and after the gazillion hours in the air it takes to get to Europe, your irritation level can be cruising-altitude high.

Which is why the ever-thoughtful Dutch have created this silent space to reconnect with that part of yourself that doesn’t want to throttle your fellow passenger who doesn’t realise how loud he’s talking because he’s wearing headphones.

The sleep rooms at McCarran Airport, Las Vegas

If there’s a city where burning the metaphorical candle at both ends just has to be done, it’s Vegas.

Which means by the time you get to the airport on your way home, your body is crying out for sleep.

Managed by the healthy types at ZEROLevel Fitness and Wellness, the sleep rooms at Las Vegas Airport are compact, quiet, feature a double bed and start at approximately $35 for a two-hour stay.

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The sleep rooms in Las Vegas. Picture: Supplied

Virgin Lounge Premium Entry, Sydney and Brisbane

Anyone who’s been in a Virgin Australia Lounge or tried to get in via a combination of chutzpah and charisma will know they are pretty luxe.

What many people don’t know is that for those travelling business class and their guests, Velocity Platinum and Gold members and partner airline reciprocal status members travelling with carry-on baggage only, there is an extra level of service.

By which we mean direct access from wherever your Uber drops you, optional valet parking, and dedicated flight check-in and security screening point. All of which you’re guided through by your personal staff member.

Virgin offers premium entry to some customers. Picture: Rebecca Michael

The Sleepboxes at Sheremetyevo Airport, Moscow

They do things their own way in Russia, which is why you’ll see a bunch of timber structures in the concourse at this airport.

Essentially mini capsule hotels, they offer sleeping space for one to three people and can be rented by the hour.

If you don’t fancy kipping in a giant Jenga set, there is also a more conventional capsule hotel. Both of which can be a godsend if your flight is delayed.

Sensory Room at Shannon, Ireland

Travelling can be a stressful experience for anyone but add neurodevelopmental challenges like autism to the equation and things become all the more vexed.

This airport has responded to the challenge with a room designed to calm with an aquatic bubble tube, undulated wavy wall, colour changing LEDS and a wheel projector.

One family occupies the room at a time and it was the first of its kind in Europe.

The sensory room at Shannon. Picture: Supplied

The Yoga Room at O’Hare, Chicago

Putting the stay in namaste (phonetically at least), this mirrored Zen enclave features a monitor with yoga poses on a loop and another with flight information.

And after being scrunched in an economy seat for hours on end, your body could probably do with a downward dog or two.

The dog park at Hartsfield-Jackson, Atlanta

The United States is brilliant when it comes to allowing pets on flights.

In most airports you will find euphemistic variations of the phrase “animal relief area” but in Atlanta they take things one step further with a fully fenced outdoor dog park for canines to stretch out in – as you would if you’d been carried around in a bag all day.

The kicker here is that the space is not just reserved for animals and their owners.

Regular old dog lovers are also encouraged to drop by. You know who you are and you are welcome.

The dog park is a popular spot for pet owners and dog lovers. Picture: Supplied

The jail cells at Pittsburgh International

Like almost every airport worth its three-letter designation, PIT has cells for housing the unruly, the intoxicated and law-breakers until they can be ferried elsewhere.

We’re talking a metal bench/bed bolted to the wall, a distinctly non-private toilet and wash basin, stainless steel mirror and bars on the door.

It’s a similar story over at LAX, which averages 15 arrests a day – mostly for public intoxication and often for people trying to steal the hire cars.

The morgue at Schiphol, Amsterdam

In 2019, almost 72 million people travelled through the Netherlands’ biggest airport – but not all of them made their intended destinations.

The sad reality is that people die in transit and in the air – if you hear a flight attendant use the term ‘Jim Wilson’ or ‘HR’ (for human remains), you can be pretty sure there’s a coffin on board.

In fact, the Schiphol mortuary alone processes around 2000 bodies a year.

This article originally appeared on Escape and has been republished here with permission