Everyone is a VIP – your holiday already starts at the airport

Services used by stars and state guests are available to everyone in the new VIP Terminal at Vienna International Airport.

The discreet gate to the cour d’honneur of the new VIP terminal at Vienna International Airport slides silently aside, and guests park inside – or get out of their limousines. Service staff take care of the car, the baggage and check-in while the guests make themselves comfortable in one of the stylish VIP lounges. Sofas and a selection of exquisite alcoholic and non-alcoholic drinks invite you to relax, coffee is served, as is a selection of à la carte dishes. Shortly before departure, you pass through the security gate and passport control directly at the separate VIP terminal – waiting times are a thing of the past. And then the VIP service becomes fully true: A limousine takes you directly onto the tarmac to the aircraft, so it really is only 80 steps from entering the VIP terminal to the plane. Whether charter or scheduled flight – for Managing Director General Aviation and VIP Services, Michael Zach, all his guests are Very Important Persons.

What is the idea behind the VIP service for everyone at Vienna Airport?
Michael Zach: It goes back a bit to when I took a look at our VIP services in 2016. It was fascinating to see what services we provide that hardly anyone knows about. Travelling can be stressful, and that also applies to air travel. Especially in the summer, during peak season, there are a lot of people travelling. You need to queue, there is a check-in, there is a security check, and you have to walk quite a distance. But we at the VIP terminal can offer our services to everyone, and so the way to the plane becomes really short and easy. That is much more relaxing and exclusive. And that was the idea behind it. We have an excellent product and a service that we don’t want to keep from people. Anyone can be a VIP with us.

Has the VIP service for everyone developed from the service for the ‘real’ VIPs?
Zach: With the opening of Terminal 3, the old VIP area became obsolete and was moved to a new building near General Aviation. Of course, we also have celebrities travelling through or state visits. But anyone can enjoy our service and book it.

But the ‘real’ VIPs get the service free of charge?
Zach: No (laughs). Everyone pays for the VIP service, including rock stars and state guests. Everyone who lands at the airport pays a passenger fee, and that’s the same for VIPs.

What happens in the VIP Terminal?
Zach: We offer our services both on departure and on arrival. With the Platinum Package, we also organise transport from Vienna to the airport and then, of course, directly to the aircraft. From carrying the luggage to boarding, everything is arranged. Those arriving at the airport in their own car drive to our cour d’honneur, hand over the key and the valet service takes care of parking. There are three packages: Silver, Gold and Platinum, which are priced differently depending on the scope of services. The Platinum package includes either the transfer from home or the valet service and a parking period of seven days at the directly adjacent VIP car park.

What happens in the VIP Terminal?
Zach: Our guests are looked after all around. After arrival, we take the baggage and take care of its check-in. Passengers are shown to their own VIP room and spend the time until boarding doing whatever they want. We have a total of seven private VIP lounges, which of course have a TV, a selection of à la carte meals that are freshly prepared, soft drinks and exclusive alcoholic beverages. Everyone should enjoy the waiting time too. We have also various play facilities for children, who can come along for free up to the age of six. If necessary, guests can also enjoy a shower, because some have business appointments directly after a long-haul flight and want to freshen up beforehand. Or guests come directly from conferences and want to take a shower before their flight. The highlight, however, is certainly that you are taken directly from the terminal to the aircraft in a limousine. Guests can choose whether they want to be the first passengers to board or the last. This is very popular.

How long before departure do VIP guests have to arrive?
Zach: It depends because different airlines have different requirements. With us, however, there are no waiting times, neither at check-in nor at the security and passport gates. In addition, the distances are extremely short. The general requirement when to be at the airport results from waiting and queuing times as well as the walking distances that have to be covered. The waiting time at peak travel times is two to three hours. If it is a longhaul flight to the US with document checks, however, you have to be here two hours before departure even with our VIP service. For a shorthaul flight within Europe and without luggage, half an hour can be sufficient; then, of course, the guest cannot enjoy our services extensively. There are many people who do not spend much time at the airport and want to get on the plane and take off as quickly as possible. This mostly concerns the business sector. For private travellers, the holiday begins with an enjoyable hour or hour and a half in one of our private VIP lounges.

What is the maximum amount of time a passenger can spend with you before departure?
Zach: Two hours in one of the private rooms are included in the most popular package, the VIP Service Gold. In the event of flight delays, we naturally do not throw our guests out after two hours – on the contrary, because with us you wait in a pleasant ambience. It doesn’t make any difference if you wait half an hour or three quarters of an hour longer. After that there is a small surcharge per hour.

You have your own baggage check-in, security and passport gates in the VIP terminal.
Zach: There are airline regulations regarding the weight of the baggage, which we also have to comply with. All legal and security requirements, including customs regulations on arrival, are handled in exactly the same way. There is a security check, a customs check and a border check, all staffed 24/7. It’s exactly the same as in the public terminals. With us, however, there are no waiting times. We also offer a duty-free shopping service, but this is very rarely used.

How many people use the VIP service?
Zach: We don’t count passengers per day, but we have about 15,000 guests per year. The lion’s share is made up of private customers who book with us and use our services. They make up more than 50 percent. This is followed by companies and the official VIP services booked by embassies.

Family members or colleagues can also accompany your guests until they board the aircraft?
Zach: That is possible, although accompanying persons also have to go through the security check. This service is very often used by embassies, by delegations and also in the corporate sector.

As a VIP guest, you are fed, you can hold meetings and take a shower. The only thing you can’t do in the VIP terminal is sleep.
Zach: If you sleep at the airport, something has usually gone wrong. We generally try to avoid that at Vienna Airport. However, if it should happen, we are of course ready to organise a hotel room at the airport. You won’t be left in the lurch, so as a VIP customer you can really relax completely because you know that you will always receive the best possible support in every challenging travel situation. For this reason, travelling via the VIP terminal is not only luxurious, but also particularly easy on the nerves.