STAFF at Bournemouth Airport are celebrating after it was voted the Best Airport in Europe.

The airport won the honour for the one to five million passenger category of the ACI (Airports Council International) Europe Best Airport Awards.

The awards, which took place in Lisbon last week, cover four categories of airport and aim to recognise achievement in core activities including customer service, retail, security and environmental awareness.

Bournemouth was commended for its “dynamic business approach, its commercial renaissance and exemplary care for passengers with reduced mobility”.

Rob Goldsmith, Bournemouth Airport’s managing director said: “We faced strong competition in this category with more than 100 airports being eligible for the award.

“The past couple of years have been tough for all airports so I was delighted to hear the judges’ comments regarding our business and commercial approach.

“We pride ourselves on our customer service and we have always worked hard to ensure passengers with reduced mobility are well looked after.

“It’s wonderful to see that all our efforts are being recognised at a European level.”

Previous winners of the award include Bologna Airport in 2009 and Malta last year.

Earlier this year, Bournemouth Airport was voted the “most improved airport in Europe for customer satisfaction” by ACI Europe.

And at the end of last year, it was a runner-up in the Dorset Business Awards “Company of the Year” category.

It also won two awards in the Bournemouth Tourism awards – Tourism Marketing Initiative and Outstanding Customer Service – as well as being highly commended in the Transport Initiative category.

In May, the arrivals terminal at the airport opened, completing the final stage of the £45million transformation.