SINGAPORE CHANGI AIRPORT TERMINAL 3 (T3)

International jet setters zoom to new heights with the opening of Changi's T3, where they can shop and gorge their way through 100 stores and 40 makan outlets. It starts the moment your heels hit the polished cream marble floor of the sleek, seven-storey glass building. From the soaring ceiling of the departure hall to the 300m long, five storey wall of climbing plants and cascading waterfalls, Changi Airport's new Terminal 3 (T3) provides an experience that is first class, even if you're flying economy.

But it is in two areas dear to a Singaporean's heart - shopping and eating - that T3 really hits new heights.

The 100-plus stores at the $1.75 billion terminal that opened last Wednesday include some first-of-its-kind-in-Asia stores, such as Italian sports car manufacturer Ferrari's travel retail shop. And soccer fans have scored big - T3 hosts the first Fifa Official Store in the world, selling merchandise from football's governing body.

Foodies need never leave the airport, as they chew and drink their way through 40 food and beverage outlets, ranging from sinful treats at Belgian chocolatier Guylian's chocolate cafe to homely $6 chicken rice at Prima Taste. Those fond of a tipple will want to linger for the long haul, whether they are a high-flier splashing out $1,000 on French champagne at The Fullerton Hotel's Post Bar outlet, or a more down-to-earh type enjoying the first Tiger beer branded bar in an airport.

The layout is a boom for travellers : The departure-transit mall features a single, long shopping street layout - not unlike Bangkok's Suvarnabhumi airport terminal - with stores flanking both sides of a spacious aisle. The strip is a manageable stroll of no more than 15 minutes end to end.

Stores in Terminals 1 and 2, by comparison, are more dispersed. Passengers and retailers have given T3's mall layout and thumbs up. Ms Nora Rohman, 24, a sales executive at Apple reseller i-Studio who used to work at Nike in Terminal 2, says "The T3 layout is grand and spacious. You stand at one end and it looks like it goes on forever. Passengers tell me they don't have to walk around as much here.

And Mr Brian Coulson, 50, an Australian graphic designer catching a flight to Perth from T3 on Wednesday, says : "The design of the departure-transit mall is smart and stunning. It's easy to walk around." Frequent flier Vincent Veimeulen, 59, says" T3's airport experience rivals that of Hong Kong's Chek Lap Kok but the retail offering of the former is more alluring. The Dutch IT specialist says : "My wife and daughter have gone off shopping for close to an hour now, leaving me behind to watch the luggage."

Indeed, with mounting competition from regional airports in Hong Kong, Bangkok and Dubai, it is attention to such details that may give Changi Airport an edge beyond handling a record target of some 70 million passengers a year, up from 44 million previously.

T3's anchor tenant is Singapore Airlines, which will continue to operate out of Terminal 2. Other airlines such as China Eastern Airlines, Qatar Airways and United Airlines will fly out from T3 in March.

"The advantage of having one strip is being able to see everything - all the retail and food and beverage offerings are just in front of you, " notes a spokesman for airport operator Civil Aviation Authority of Singapore (CAAS).

There is also an informal clustering of stores to air seamless shopping. One such grouping is a cluster of luxury fashion lables - including Hermes, Mulberry and Gucci - near the SIA First Class lounge, close to the "A" boarding gates.

And children's concept stores like Giordano Junior and KidzTime are situated close to the mid-price label and electronics clusters near the "B" boarding gates.

Eateries flank both ends of the departure-transit mall, while restaurants occupy most of the mezzanine level above with a view of airplanes landing and taking off in the background. Executive chef Gabriele Piegaia, 30, of Senso Holdings, which runs Bistro Senso at T3, says "By grouping the eateries together, hungry travellers can find what they want easily and see at a glance all the different dining options available."

In all, T3 has 215,278 sq ft of commercial space - about 70 percent more than Terminal 1 and 2's spaces combined.

The four million-plus sq ft T3 is the largest and most expensive of the Changi Airport terminals. T1 cost $585 million and occupies three million sq ft. The 3.8 million st ft T2 cost $838 million, and underwent a three year long renovation ending in 2006 at a cost of $240 million.

Plans to upgrade T1 - built in 1982 and last refurbished in 1995 for $170 million - are in the pipeline, says CAAS.

But for now, all eyes are on T3. Singaporean accountant Derrick Chan, 28, who was flying to Frankfurt from T3 on Wednesday, says : "This new terminal really proves that Changi Airport is world class. It's got great shops like the Ferrari store, which I've never seen before. You have to walk to see it all."