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A lot of frequent flyers get fired up about airports that they love and airports that they hate- and let's be honest, airports usually inspire a lot more hate than love. I know there's a lot of airports that I can't stand, but even airports I generally like, I see getting ripped to shreds online all the time. Arguing over airports is a popular pastime among travelers.
But rarely have I seen someone roast an airport quite as hard as Marc Sebastian did on June 18, after his brief time at the Minneapolis-Saint Paul International Airport sent him over the edge. His scathing rant about the airport stirred up some surprising reactions from his Minnesotan viewers, but before we go into that, let's hear Marc's perspective first.
I want to quickly give the caveat that I'm not personally familiar with the Minneapolis International Airport, so I'm just going off of what @marcsebastianf showed in his video. That said, I can see why he thinks Minnesotans deserve better than this! Had he not said it himself, I would have likened this terminal to The Backrooms : ugly, bland, liminal dread, grossly lit by the worst kind of "abusive" fluorescent panel lighting (as someone who also can't stand those kinds of lights, I felt Marc's pain). The "mock employee break room setup" bit killed me, too- they really chose the most bland, utilitarian, uncomfortable furnishings imaginable.
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Even weighted against my own personal picks for "ugliest airports" (I'm not naming names), this one looks pretty miserable, at least in the area immediately surrounding Marc. While nothing's ever unanimously agreed upon on the internet, I figured the majority of people would feel the same way. So why did so many Minnesotans spring to MSP's defense?
A Tale of Two Terminals
Commenters immediately jumped in to argue against Marc's hatred of the airport, and there was a pretty big disconnect between what some of them were describing and what was being shown on screen.
"Where ARE you?" wondered @lilkiska1. "MSP Airport is gorgeous, voted best airport repeatedly & has amazing mosaic tile art!"
No, this person isn't from an alternate universe... it's more that MSP has a Jekyll/Hyde situation going on. See, the Minneapolis-St. Paul Airport is divided between two major terminals along the border of the sister cities. Terminal 1 (on the St. Paul side) has most of the major domestic and international airlines , while Terminal 2 (on the Minneapolis side) is home to mostly smaller airlines and budget airlines like Frontier and Southwest. Guess which terminal has all the beautiful mosaics and stunning architecture... and guess which one looks like The Backrooms.
"Terminal 1 is the best airport I've ever experienced. Terminal 2 is just neglected and due for a remodel, which I think they may have approved something for that," acknowledged @candice_aly.
"The way I tell everyone I know MSP is my favorite US airport. I forgot there's a Terminal 2," laughed @maggiesather.
"You're at our Temu airport brother, go to the big one, Terminal 1," joked @dasbasel.
There's no denying that the aesthetic situation in MSP's Terminal 2 is "dire," to use Marc's words. But there is at least one upshot to all the ugliness. According to multiple commenters, airport security in Terminal 2 is usually fast and convenientally close to the gates. Obviously, that might have something to do with most of the major airlines being on the other side, but I say take your wins where you can find them.
Obviously, aesthetics matter less than security and efficiency when it comes to airport design, but if you're going to spend a couple hours waiting at your gate, you'd probably want it to look a little nicer than a dated employee breakroom. MSP Airport has announced their plans to add two new gates to Terminal 2 , but there's no word on the potential aesthetic remodel some commenters mentioned. For the sake of budget travelers flying through MSP, hopefully they'll work in some aesthetic upgrades after all!
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