The new 350-square-metre pet area in Palermo Airport is accessible 24 hours a day.
An area for pets and service dogs
For those travelling with their pets, for service dogs assisting people with disabilities, or for those passing through to accompany their loved ones, the Falcone Borsellino Airport thus becomes the only airport in Southern Italy to have introduced such an area, and the sixth in Italy after Milan Linate, Rome Fiumicino, Bologna, Cagliari and Olbia.
Pet Area
Located on the Departures level
The pet area is located in the external corridor between the two access ramps to the terminal's departures level, with the Salt Towers art installations. “The introduction of the PET area is much more than a new service; it is a concrete sign of the strategic direction we are setting for the development of Palermo Airport,- says Gianfranco Battisti, CEO of Gesap, the management company of Palermo’s Falcone Borsellino International Airport. -Today competitive airports in Europe are no longer measured solely by traffic volumes, but by the quality of the experience offered, inclusivity and the ability to meet travellers’ real needs.”
Some 30% of pet owners travel with their pets
A study reveals that 30% of pet owners, around 8.4 million people, prefer to travel with their pets. Yet 15% are forced to leave them at home due to restrictions at their destinations. Rich in greenery and Mediterranean flora, the new pet area features various street furniture elements: water points, dedicated drinking fountains with integrated bowls for animals; multi-purpose bins equipped with dispensers for waste bags; wooden and steel benches for owners to rest comfortably, good lighting, and in the coming weeks, the pet area will be further enhanced with a lawn. 
"Aligning airports with European standards"
“Ensuring adequate, safe and welcoming spaces for animals means tangibly improving the quality of the traveller experience,- says Roberto Lagalla, the mayor of Palermo - It also recognizes the value of the emotional bond between people and their four-legged companions. It is a matter of respect, inclusion and modernity. We believe that initiatives such as this are a gesture of civility that helps make our airports increasingly attentive to people’s real needs and aligned with European standards. Investing in services of this kind means building more humane cities and infrastructure, capable of evolving alongside society.”
