Airplanes aren't the only things that fly at Changi — the airport has a butterfly garden with more than 1,000 of the ethereal winged creatures, the world’s first such exhibit in an airport. The award-winning airport also features botanical gardens, myriad sculptures, a suspended trampoline, a hedge maze, and the world's largest indoor waterfall.

One of the signature features of Kuala Lumpur International Airport in Malaysia is its massive jungle boardwalk. The gardens at the airport’s Satellite Terminal contain a collection of palm trees within a glass enclosure. All plants within the jungle boardwalk are indigenous to Malaysia, and the plants selected are all non-bird attractive to avoid wildlife interfering with aircraft.

Opened in 2001, Seoul’s Incheon International Airport’s sky garden features over 500 flower beds and nearly 300 million plants and trees. Visitors can stroll through walking paths in this garden near the passenger terminals and watch planes as they take off and land over the greenery.

Fancy a swim on your next layover? The lap swimming pool at Qatar’s Hamad International Airport (part of the Oryx Airport Hotel) is 82 feet long and is open to anyone traveling through the airport, for a fee. (The pool is complimentary for hotel guests.) In addition to the lap pool, the Vitality Wellbeing & Fitness Centre also offers squash courts and a golf simulator.

The island of Koh Samui is located off the east coast of Thailand, and it takes advantage of its tropical climate with an entirely open-air airport. Even the control tower at this tropical getaway is adorned with colorful ribbons and streamers. Once travelers step off the plane, they are greeted with local flowers and offered access to an open-air shuttle bus.

The groundbreaking Concorde jet ushered in a supersonic age of air travel. It traveled at more than twice the speed of sound, flying from New York to London in just 3.5 hours. Although the plane took its final flight in 2003, its legacy lives on at the Runway Visitor Park at Manchester Airport in England. Guests can tour G-BOAC, the second Concorde to be delivered to British Airways in 1976.

On Barra island in Scotland's windswept Outer Hebrides, the hard-packed sands on the bay of Traigh Mhòr are the runway — the only one of its kind in the world. Since there's no asphalt, planes use the beach for takeoffs and landings, keeping a close eye on the tides and ever-changing weather conditions. The airport offers regularly scheduled flights to Glasgow.

An “onsen,” or hot springs bath, is a key part of Japanese life. Thanks to the numerous volcanoes that dot the Japanese islands, there are more than 3,000 of these public baths, which are heated by geothermal activity under the ground, across the country. Japan’s New Chitose International Airport continues this tradition, featuring both indoor and outdoor baths for travelers to relax in before a flight.

Armored sea cucumbers, China rockfish, and wolf eels probably don’t come to mind when you think of an airport, but that’s exactly what awaits travelers at Vancouver International Airport’s domestic terminal. This joint venture between the Vancouver Airport Authority and Vancouver Aquarium showcases the diversity of British Columbia’s aquatic wildlife. It features a 114,000-liter tank that recreates a rocky kelp forest, plus a separate jellyfish aquarium.

Those transiting through Incheon International Airport can delve into Korean customs and folklore at the Korean Traditional Cultural Experience Center. Guests can make traditional Korean crafts like “hanji” paper and “dancheong” paintings and pose for photos while dressed in hanbok clothing. Regular performances of traditional “gugak” music showcase the sounds of the fiddle-like “haegeum” and “janggu” drum.

One of the world’s most unforgettable golf courses, Kantarat Golf Course sits between two runways at Bangkok’s Don Mueang Airport. Players tee off and challenge bunkers, water features, and pristine greens while commercial flights take off and land at regular intervals just 20 yards away. The course is open to passengers and non-passengers, but all players have to pass a security check and be accompanied by a caddie.

The Rijksmuseum is one of the world’s most prestigious art museums and a must-see for tourists in Amsterdam. But if you run out of time in the city, you can browse a sample of the museum’s vast collection of masterpieces before your flight at the Rijksmuseum Schiphol Airport. There are typically eight to 10 works on display, which are chosen according to rotating themes.

Each year, Munich International Airport embraces the winter season by opening a massive seasonal ice rink. Surrounding the ice rink is a holiday market, featuring 40 stalls offering goods and seasonal foods. The airport also features a series of live musicians playing near the rink.

The American Express Centurion Lounge at Terminal 4 in New York’s JFK Airport covers 15,000 square feet, but it’s the space you can’t see — at least not right away — that travelers will find the most interesting. A secret speakeasy called 1850 is located behind an unmarked door on the lounge’s first floor. While the decor is Prohibition-themed, there’s a modern twist — the chairs all have charging stations.

If you really, really love airplanes, Stockholm’s Arlanda International Airport gives travelers the option to spend the night in one. At JumboStay Hotel Arlanda, you check into a retired Boeing 747 Jumbo Jet. This hotel’s version of a penthouse suite allows guests to sleep inside the actual cockpit, which is fitted with two double beds.

In 2012, San Francisco International Airport debuted an area reserved for practicing yoga, the first such amenity at an airport. The success of the airport’s original Yoga Room in Terminal 2 led to the opening of a second location in Terminal 3. The rooms are painted a calming light blue, with floating walls intended to “symbolize a buoyant spirit and enlightened mind,” according to the airport.

As both are cities famed for live music, it’s no surprise that Austin and Nashville extend that tradition to their airports. Tootsie’s, however, is a Nashville institution. Open since 1960, the honky tonk’s original establishment is located across from the historic Ryman Auditorium in downtown Nashville. The airport location opened in 2008 in Nashville International’s Concourse C.

One of L.A.’s most recognizable landmarks, the fantastical Theme Building at LAX Airport resembles a UFO or a giant spider. Playful and futuristic, the Space Age structure (completed in 1961) consists of two 135-foot intersecting parabolic arches supporting a round, glass-walled restaurant and a rooftop observation deck that offers a 360-degree view of the airport and the City of Angels in the distance.

At Munich International Airport, beer lovers can sample signature and seasonal brews at Airbräu, the world’s first airport brewery. Airport passengers can even go behind the scenes on a guided tour with a brewmaster to learn about the ins and outs of craft beer making. Alongside the brewery and its rustic bar is Europe’s largest indoor beer garden, which has space for around 600 thirsty guests.

The Jewel at Singapore’s Changi Airport is a massive dome-shaped complex that connects three airport terminals and features almost 300 retail, food, and drink outlets. The true wow factor comes from the curtains of water cascading down the 130-foot-tall Rain Vortex — the world’s tallest indoor waterfall — and the surrounding indoor rainforest with more than 900 trees.