There will be a speakeasy bar and 17 new retail units
The planned new departure lounge
Bristol Airport has revealed plans for a £60m makeover of its departure lounge. The lounge will have more space, improved facilities, new shops and restaurants, and ‘more choices of places to relax’.
- The work will take until January 2029 to complete with new shops and restaurants opening from spring 2027.
- A total of 17 new units will be added to the departure lounge
- Bristol Airport will also introduce a dedicated baby feeding room, a larger assisted travel lounge, additional washrooms, accessible toilets, and a fully equipped ‘Changing Places’ facility.
- Over the coming years, Bristol Airport is investing over £400m to enhance its ‘airport experience’ for customers, reports Bristol Live.
- Some £60m has already been spent on the airport’s entrance, which opened in July 2025.
- Bristol is aiming to increase capacity to 15 million passengers a year and also aims to build an extended runway to accommodate larger transatlantic aircraft.
- In contrast, Cardiff Airport carried fewer than 1m passengers last year – just 881,000
- Bristol Airport is facing a planning battle over its runway extension because of the need to move the landing approach lights onto a nearby common
- Kate Gwyther, Head of Retail, Bristol Airport, said: “We’re excited about what’s coming. The new departure lounge will be bright and spacious where customers can relax, explore a variety of new shops, and enjoy a wider range of dining options to suit every schedule, taste and budget. It’s all designed to make the holiday feel like it starts the moment passengers arrive.”
The planned concourse(Image: Bristol Airport)
The planned Duty Free shop(Image: Bristol Airport)