Raipur Airport : Swami Vivekananda International Airport

The Swami Vivekananda International Airport (IATA: RPR, ICAO: VERP), hitherto known as Raipur Airport, serves as the primary airport connecting the state of Chhattisgarh. The airport was renamed on January 24, 2012, to honour the revered Indian saint who spent two years of his teenage in Raipur. The Swami Vivekananda International Airport is located at Mana. From here, Raipur is 15 km from and Naya Raipur 10 km away. It is one of the 35 non-metro airports which the Airports Authority of India (AAI) had taken up and modernised. As of 2018, it falls under the top 30 busiest airport in India.

Amenities of Raipur Airport

The Swami Vivekananda International Airport is a relatively small airport with a total of 8 gates. In 2012, this new terminal with the capacity to handle up to 1300 passengers was inaugurated. This relatively large terminal has two aero-bridges, 20 check-in counters, eight boarding gates, four security counters, 8 X-ray baggage machines and three conveyor belts.

The airport does not have any other lounges or resting areas. Food options at the airport are limited but good. Passengers can enjoy the basic amenities like drinking water, wifi connectivity and mobile charging points.

It does not have any duty free stores but boasts of a retail store operated by Shoppers Stop at its newly integrated terminal. Restrooms at the airport are well maintained.
The parking lot at the airport can house around 500 cars and is located at a walking distance from the passenger terminal. While there is not much of a rush, it is advised that you reach the airport a little earlier than the designated time. For on the busiest days, fewer boarding counters and more passengers could lead to confusion and haste.

Connectivity

The Raipur Junction railway station is 16 kilometres from the airport, and the Pandri bus terminal is 14 kilometres away. Air-conditioned city buses operated by the Raipur Urban Public Transport Society regularly runs from the airport to the cities of Bhilai and Durg, via Raipur. Private taxis and OLA cab services are also available.
There are some excellent hotels like Courtyard by Marriott Raipur and Hotel VW Canyon a 15 minutes drive away from the airport.

Operating Airlines

Currently, Air India, Jet Airways, IndiGo, Vistara are the operating airlines at the Swami Vivekananda International Airport.
There are regular flights to the important and neighbouring cities like Delhi, Mumbai, Bengaluru, Chennai, Goa, Hyderabad, Indore, Kochi, Kolkata, Mumbai, Patna, and Srinagar.

The Swami Vivekananda International Airport is one of the fastest developing airports in the country. The classy interiors up to dated amenities, coupled with excellent customer care services, adds to provide you with a beautiful flying experience from Raipur.