Covid-19 & travel: Fiumicino airport in Rome “the safest worldwide”

Not for the first time in its 60-year history, the Rome airport at Fiumicino has turned out the winner of an international prize, and one that concerns us all: international ratings body Skytrax, which routinely issues its top ten of the best airports worldwide has recognized the Leonardo Da Vinci (FCO) as the first hub worthy of the “COVID-19 5-Star Airport Rating”.

A Coronavirus-safe airport: what are the criteria for the prize?

The organization has based its decision on tests, direct observations and efficiency checks performed by its judges starting the last month of June, when Italy re-opened its borders and allowed planes coming from abroad to land again on the national territory.

Being the busiest airport in Italy comes with certain duties to the public, and Skytrax found the Leonardo Da Vinci to be particularly efficient with its passengers when it comes to multi-language signage, anti-Covid rules enforcement, help from the staff and more.

The judges appreciated reducing the number of available gates for landing and departing, so as to make tracking of possible positive cases easier, and gave extra points for the in-airport 7,000-square-foot Covid testing center.

As the CNN so aptly put it,

Travelers eager to fly again may want to consider Italy as their next destination.

Previously this year, FCO had been awarded by the United Nations for being the for its attention to environmental issues, and had won for two years in a row as the best airport in Europe, an award given by ACI Europe.