Summer is drawing to a close. For many people, holidays abroad have also exposed a Nordic paradox: some almost have to travel to another country to find a toilet they can use safely and with dignity.
A standard accessible toilet is not enough for people who need a ceiling track hoist, an adult-sized changing bench and assistance from one or two people. Without this equipment, the alternatives may be the floor, the car or staying at home.
In Cyprus, they understood this as early as 2018.
That year, Hermes Airports opened the first Changing Places facility in Cyprus at Larnaca International Airport. The facility is located in the public area of the arrivals hall and can be used both upon arrival and before departure.
It is equipped with a ceiling track hoist, a height-adjustable adult-sized changing bench, a shower, a toilet with space for assistants on both sides and ample room for the person using the facility. This is essential infrastructure that enables more people to travel.
It is excellent that Cyprus, through its airport operator, recognised this need as early as 2018. It also demonstrates that accessibility is not merely about good intentions. It is about building the facilities people actually need. Now, other parts of Europe are following.
The airport is the first encounter with a destination
For many people, planning a holiday begins with choosing a destination, finding suitable flights and booking a hotel. For people with extensive support needs, another question comes first: Is the journey possible at all?
A four-hour flight can mean far more than four hours without access to a suitable toilet. Once transport to the airport, check-in, security, waiting time, the flight itself, baggage reclaim and onward transport are included, the entire journey may take twice as long.
If there is no suitable toilet along the way, the consequences can quickly become serious. It matters little that the hotel is accessible, the beach has a ramp and the restaurant welcomes everyone if the traveller cannot get through the airport safely and with dignity.
The airport is the gateway to the destination. Providing suitable facilities there is the first step towards enabling more visitors to reach it.
Larnaca demonstrates how a Changing Places facility in the airport’s public area can make both arrival and departure easier. At larger airports, equivalent facilities should also be available after security so that the entire journey becomes more accessible.
Accessibility is good business
In 2025, Cyprus recorded more than 329,000 tourist arrivals from Sweden, Denmark, Norway and Finland. Travellers who need a Changing Places facility are often accompanied by assistants, family members or other companions.
When one person cannot use the toilet, a destination may therefore lose an entire family or travelling party. When the right facilities are available, more people can book a trip, stay in hotels, eat at restaurants and participate in activities.
Accessibility is about equality. But it also makes good business sense. Larnaca demonstrates that a Changing Places facility can be incorporated as a natural part of an airport. Nordic airports, transport hubs and destinations should now follow its example.
No one should have to travel abroad simply to use a toilet safely and with dignity.
The type of ticket does not change the need
Whether the journey is booked as a scheduled flight, a charter holiday or a package holiday, the need for predictability, assistance and suitable facilities remains the same. A cheaper ticket involving a connection may be less practical than a more expensive direct flight if suitable toilets are unavailable along the way.
Under European passenger rights, necessary assistance for air travel must be provided free of charge, regardless of the type of ticket. This also applies when the flight is part of a package holiday. An accompanying person will normally still require their own ticket, and any discounts vary between airlines.
Assistance through the terminal is not a substitute for an accessible toilet. No PRM assistance code can compensate for an airport lacking a ceiling track hoist, an adult-sized changing bench and sufficient space for the people providing assistance.
European airports are leading the way
Airports across Europe have already introduced Changing Places facilities or comparable solutions with hoists, adult-sized changing benches and sufficient space for assistants.
The facilities vary in design, location and availability, but they demonstrate that air travel can be made safer and more dignified for more people.
The list below presents examples of facilities at European airports as of August 2026. It provides a snapshot of current developments, but this is only the beginning. If more people are to be able to travel, suitable facilities must become a natural part of many more airports and destinations
Note: “Partial” means the facility does not meet, or has not been documented to meet, the full Changing Places standard.
Cyprus
Larnaca (LCA): Changing Places facility near arrivals, before security.
Denmark
Copenhagen/Kastrup (CPH): Partial. Bench and shower. No documented hoist.
France
Paris Charles de Gaulle (CDG): Accessible changing rooms with adult changing benches and hoists.
Paris Orly (ORY): Accessible changing rooms with adult changing benches and hoists.
Tarbes–Lourdes–Pyrénées (LDE): Partial. Hoist and shower trolley. No documented changing bench.
Germany
Hamburg (HAM): “Toilette für alle” opposite gate C07.
Munich (MUC): “Toilette für alle” at Munich Airport Center.
Ireland
Dublin (DUB): Changing Places facilities in terminals 1 and 2.
Ireland West Airport Knock (NOC): Changing Places facility beside the arrivals hall.
Shannon (SNN): Adult changing bench, hoist and shower.
Isle of Man
Isle of Man/Ronaldsway (IOM): Height-adjustable adult changing bench and ceiling hoist.
Netherlands
Amsterdam Schiphol (AMS): Temporary Changing Place with a hoist and height-adjustable changing bench. Three permanent installations planned by 2027
Norway
Trondheim/Værnes (TRD): Partial. Changing benches at gates 36 and 44. No ceiling hoist.
Poland
Gdańsk Lech Wałęsa (GDN): Four changing rooms with adult changing benches and hoists.
Spain
Madrid–Barajas (MAD): Terminal 2 has a changing bench and hoist. Terminal 4 has no hoist.
Turkey
Istanbul (IST): Partial. Adult changing rooms with adjustable benches. No documented hoist.
United Kingdom
Aberdeen (ABZ): Changing Places facility after security.
Belfast City (BHD): Changing Places facility in the check-in area.
Belfast International (BFS): Changing Places facility near gate 18.
Birmingham (BHX): Adult changing bench and hoist in the departure lounge.
Bristol (BRS): Adult changing bench and ceiling hoist in the arrivals hall.
Cardiff (CWL): Height-adjustable changing bench and hoist.
City of Derry (LDY): Changing Places facility in the arrivals area.
East Midlands (EMA): Changing Places facilities before and after security.
Edinburgh (EDI): Adult changing bench and hoist near gate 16.
Glasgow (GLA): Changing Places facility in the main check-in hall.
Inverness (INV): Changing Places facility opposite the check-in desks.
Leeds Bradford (LBA): Changing Places facility after security.
Liverpool John Lennon (LPL): Changing Places facility available through the assistance team.
London Gatwick (LGW): Changing benches and hoists in both terminals’ arrivals areas.
London Heathrow (LHR): Changing Places facilities in several terminals.
London Luton (LTN): Accessible adult changing room near the assistance area.
London Stansted (STN): Changing Places facilities in the terminal.
Manchester (MAN): Four Changing Places facilities across terminals 2 and 3.
Newcastle (NCL): Changing Places facility before security.
Sumburgh, Shetland (LSI): Adult changing bench and hoist.
Teesside (MME): Height-adjustable adult changing bench and mobile hoist.