Located around 40 kilometres to the north of the Polish capital, the Warsaw Modlin Airport is a secondary airport in the city. It opened as recently as 2012 with the intention of being used predominantly by low-cost carriers and is a major base for Ryanair.
Warsaw Modlin Airport operates from a single, one-storey passenger terminal where both departure and arrivals facilities are located. There are no jet bridges, but the apron has stands available for ten aircraft which are boarded either by buses or on foot and a single runway which extends 2,500 metres. There are a few shops and eateries located within the terminal building, including a tapas bar, pizza restaurant and wine bar, as well as currency exchange facilities, numerous ATMs and rental car counters. An information desk and free Wi-Fi are available to passengers, together with a pharmacy, tour agencies, two playgrounds and a duty-free shop. There’s a VIP lounge for those willing to pay and plenty of complimentary seating available. Ryanair operates year-round flights to major European hubs and popular holiday destinations, including seasonal services to Palma de Mallorca, Corfu and Sardinia.
Private coach services connect Warsaw Modlin Airport to the city centre, as well as to Łódź and the towns of Biała Podlaska, Toruń, Ciechocinek, Włocławek and Płock. There are also frequent shuttle services to the train station at Modlin which connects to Warsaw Central and the main international airport, Warsaw Chopin Airport.
Warsaw Modlin Airport is built on a former military airfield which was used as an airbase by the German Luftwaffe during their World War II occupation of Poland. It has been used since that time for both Polish and Soviet air forces, before being closed in 2000 and rebuilt into the commercial airport seen today.