Now, I’m no Doug Carey, airport freak. Call me crazy, but the least amount of time I can spend in the airport the better. Like most frequent travelers, it’s all about getting in and getting out as quickly as possible.

I don’t want a fancy shop or a gourmet meal in the airport. I just want my flights on time and my bags actually following me from location to location.

Under that philosophy, the Vancouver airport just may be the best airport for golfers ever. On two recent trips into and out of the airport, my golf bag came out of the oversized bag drop before the first suitcase was even off the plane in regular baggage. This is the anti SFO.

Those Canadians haul butt.

As an added bonus, Vancouver is the rare modern airport that actually has its car rental area right across from the terminal. Nothing is worse in travel than the last decade trend of moving the actual car rental lot about 20 miles from the airport. No wants to take those shuttles with the drivers who seem to think they’re on an easy Sunday stroll (except perhaps Doug Carey to contrast and analyze their color schemes and traffic patterns).

I don’t know if Vancouver’s airport has nice shops. And that’s the sign of a truly good airport. Because it means you didn’t have to spend much time in it.

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