In the game, I have found that passengers prefer to shop / eat before security, rather than after. In general, their action order is:
Arrive
Find restroom
Find shop/food
Sit until check-in starts
Check in
Security
Head to gate
Sit at gate
Board
Shops/dining that I place after security (anywhere in the secure zone) do much less business than those in the insecure areas.
I’ve even seen delays resulting from long queues at food shops before check in.
I find this to be profoundly unrealistic, and that it encourages players to build unrealistic airports. In real life, people check in ahead of time (online) or at least use a self-serve kiosk, then go straight to security, and THEN shop or dine, usually near their gate. The departures lounge is really the hub of all activity in an airport; in real life, hardly anybody uses ticketing/check-in desks manned by agents - these areas are small and mostly deserted. On the contrary, in ACEO, all the action is before security.
I would like to suggest to the devs that they consider reprioritizing these actions.
Self-serve kiosks would go a long way towards reducing check-in queues and their space requirements, and would allow passengers to more quickly progress through the terminal, rather than bottlenecking the process by making everybody wait for a check-in desk to open.
Alternately, only passengers checking bags would need to use a check-in desk. People doing carry-on only could use a kiosk or simply go straight to security immediately upon arrival.
I would like to see passengers do more shopping / dining / wandering after security, rather than before.
If you have other comments/feedback about this - maybe I’m doing something wrong with my designs? - let me know!
There should be no such a fixed order of activities. Restroom and shopping should be based on passenger’s needs and abilities (e.g. money).
Your order list describes departing passengers only. Would be interesting to observe arriving passengers too.
I observed that shops in secure area do more business that outside, so the opposite of what you saw. I always thought it happens because I had them placed better.
I remember we discussed internet and self-check-in some time and thread ago but came to no result. IMHO it should be implemented that some percentage of passengers are already checked in when arrive and some of them go to the baggage drop kiosk (which need to be implemented too)
To me at seems that if you place restaurants inside and outside of security, passengers will almost all go to the one outside security. If there is none, the restaurant inside will get them all. So they simply arrive with the need of food already and then choose the quickest way to get some.
I think I’ve never seen any arriving passenger get into a restaurant or shop. Maybe just a few and I didn’t notice.
i have had an isue with this. at my airport in the secure area i have a restaurant. i have had it for days yet so far it has only made 24 sales but its a *** star contract. i also see lots of people complaining about food
I found out that arriving (not departing passengers) first want to exit a secure zone before heading to the toilets, instead of using the toilets just blocks away from their gate. 95% exits first, 5% goes for the closest toilet.