Project details.

Overview

Ports of Jersey Airport ran a competitive tender to redevelop its departure lounge and passenger waiting areas as part of a wider programme to improve the passenger experience, and Neo Office won the project.

The brief called for comfortable, durable and operationally practical waiting environments that could perform in a busy public transport setting, built from Vitra and Frövi seating, bespoke family-focused furniture and hospitality-inspired zones across several parts of the terminal.

Passenger movement, cleaning, durability and long-term maintenance all had to be worked through without the space losing the refined, welcoming feel modern airport travel calls for.

The Brief

Ports of Jersey required furniture that would:

• Improve the overall passenger experience
• Deliver comfortable waiting environments
• Perform within a high-traffic public setting
• Support different passenger dwell times
• Improve flexibility across seating areas
• Deliver long-term durability and ease of maintenance
• Create a cleaner and more contemporary airport environment

The lounge also had to work for a wide range of people — families, business travellers and short-stay passengers — while staying practical from a facilities management point of view.

The Solution

Vitra Soft Wait seating

Vitra's Soft Wait became the backbone of the departure lounge. Designed by Alfredo Häberli specifically for public waiting environments such as airports, transport hubs and healthcare settings, it combines beam-style seating with integrated tables in a modular layout that keeps busy areas looking organised rather than chaotic.

It earned its place by balancing passenger comfort against the durability and maintenance an airport genuinely needs.

Frövi high-back lounge seating

The mezzanine took a different approach, with high-back lounge seating from Frövi creating a quieter, more enclosed alternative for passengers who want distance from the main seating areas below.

The softer, lounge-style look also gives the space more than one register, an alternative to traditional airport beam seating rather than a replacement for it.

Bespoke family and children's areas

Family and children's areas ran on bespoke settings, designed specifically to make travelling through the airport a little easier for parents managing children, luggage and boarding calls all at once.

Featured products and scope

• Vitra Soft Wait beam seating
• Frövi high-back lounge seating
• Bespoke family and children's areas
• Integrated seating tables
• Hospitality-inspired waiting zones

The Outcome

The finished lounge holds up to the operational demands of a working regional airport while giving passengers better comfort and a sharper look throughout.

Durable public seating, quieter lounge zones and family-friendly areas sit together as one more varied, flexible passenger experience, in line with the wider redevelopment of Jersey Airport.

It also proved the team's ability to deliver in busy public-sector and transport environments, where practicality, logistics and long-term durability matter as much as anything else.