I’ve written about our trips back to Kansas City many times. We just made a trip to Kansas City to see the kids and I won’t bore my readers with the details of another family get together. Besides seeing our beautiful granddaughters, one of the biggest thrills was to see the new terminal at Kansas City International Airport (KCI).

I remember back to my first flight when I was 9 years old. We flew United Airlines on a Boeing 727 airplane out of the downtown airport in Kansas City. It was a tiny little airport and you had to walk out on the tarmac and up the staircase to get on the plane. Security was so non-existent then as my father actually got on the plane with us to make sure we had seats, then exited the plane as he was not going with us.

Less than a year later, the new KCI was opened to great fanfare. Built in a cloverleaf design with three terminals, it was touted as being passenger friendly in that you could be dropped off at the door and only have to travel about 50 feet to be at the gate. The brown cement exterior wasn’t very pretty, being built in the brutalist phase. But the inside was decent enough. There were restaurants and shops along the horseshoe corridor like any other airport. I flew out of KCI for the first time when I was 17 on a one way trip from KC to St. Louis to meet up with my church youth group on the way to camp. That was the first of literally dozens of arrivals and departures at KCI. When it was built, security wasn’t a big deal. However, after the TSA was invented and security screenings were needed, KCI did an overhaul of the terminals by installing huge walls between the corridor and the gate area with openings for security checkpoints. Each terminal had about 3 or 4 of these gate areas that were behind the walls. At first, there were no restrooms or food facilities behind the walls. Later they installed small restrooms with 2 or 3 stalls, and little food kiosks. I guess the thinking was that you would arrive at the airport and maybe hang out at a restaurant before you went through security and not be there very long. Unfortunately, as we found out on many occasions, if your flight was delayed you might be stuck behind that security wall in a very cramped area with few amenities for many hours. We really grew to hate flying in and out of the facility as did many family members visiting us in KC.

About four years ago, the people of Kansas City voted to remove the old terminals and build a brand new one that would not only provide a more pleasurable experience past the security checkpoints, but also update the baggage handling systems and allow for all types of planes to land there. I, for one, was overjoyed that eventually we would no longer have to endure the ugly cramped gate areas! We’ve been following the progress for the last four years steadily watching the construction and finally awaiting the day we could land there and see it. The place is beautiful. The first difference you notice as you disembark is the space to walk through. No more cramped seating areas behind a big wall. Many gates line both sides of each of the two concourses. In the center are a plethora of restaurants and shops that make you say, “this is a real airport!”

Art has been installed throughout the edifice including hanging saxophones and about a thousand wind spinners. There’s a sensory room for those who need to get away from crowds and noise. There’s even a simulation room for people who’ve never been on a plane to practice what it’s like to board. Light cascades through many floor to ceiling glass walls, and all the jet bridges are made from glass to allow travelers to see outside. We were just amazed at the attention to a quality facility. On our departure we also got to take advantage of the new Delta Sky Club which is one of the most beautiful of the clubs we’ve been to. To say we were pleased with the result would be an understatement.

I can’t finish a post to Kansas City without sharing pictures of the girls. We took some time and went to the zoo, which incidentally gets better every year! The new attraction for us was the Sting Ray City. Can’t wait to go back next year and see the new aquarium to see how it compares to our very own New England facility