Daytona Beach International Airport Flies High With Award-Winning Updates
The boutique airport has made major improvements to the terminal, business center and taxiway.
Sponsored by: Daytona Beach International Airport
Step into the newly renovated Daytona Beach International Airport terminal, and it’s easy to see why the Florida Department of Transportation named it the 2021 Commercial Service Airport of the Year.
A 30-foot waterfall surrounded by coral greets you at the door, while sand-colored flooring leads to wave-themed ticket counters, all part of a new coastal ecology design and the first major update since the building was constructed in 1992.
“The end result is absolutely beautiful,” says Cyrus Callum, director of aviation and economic resources for Daytona Beach International Airport. “It says welcome to the community.”
But the facelift goes far beyond aesthetics. A convenient mother’s room offers a quiet place for parents and kids, while the updated business center now includes a branch of the county library.
Visitors picking up passengers can watch planes land and take off from the redesigned cell phone and observation lot. Inside, more than half of the new terminal seating comes with built-in phone charging stations.
“Forget the days of having to get up and search for an outlet somewhere,” says Daytona Beach International Airport Director Karen Feaster. “They’re right there in the chair.”
Safety, as always, is a priority. A $40 million taxiway rehabilitation project and refreshed airfield markings at one of Florida’s busiest airports are among the recent measures.
In response to the pandemic, the DAB team assembled complimentary care kits with hand sanitizer, masks and other items for departing passengers.
“We continue to remind the traveling public that use our service that we care about their patronage,” Callum says.
Sometimes, it’s the little touches that matter most. When an employee spotted a recently widowed mom with two small children struggling to return her rental car, he stepped in to help.
And when the family of a high school graduate leaving for the U.S. Naval Academy wanted to do something special for her, the DAB staff posted a personalized digital welcome message at all the gate flags.
“We can provide that small-town community feel,” Feaster adds, “because we are a smaller boutique airport.”
