Montreal Airport’s Living Walls Have So Many Benefits For Travelers

The floor-to-ceiling living wall at Montreal Airport looks gorgeous. But it’s so much more than a pretty design element when it comes to travel health.

Singapore Changi Airport, Edmonton International Airport, and London Heathrow are among some of the world’s airports to have installed beautiful living walls inside their terminals.

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The health benefits of the living walls at Montreal Airport

Montreal Airport’s living walls includes many different species of green plants. It has an automated watering system built into the wall to provide continuous hydration and optimal humidity control for each plant. Water from the system’s sprinklers drains away and is subsequently filtered and reused. It’s a super eco-friendly system.

The living wall system works with a ventilation system that helps to reduce energy consumption. How? By lowering the demand for fresh air and sending moist air to other spaces in the airport.

Montreal Airport green wall
Nicola Brown

The garden acts as a biofilter, removing harmful particles and pollutants like carbon dioxide, benzene, and volatile organic compounds from the air. These plants also generate tons of oxygen that circulate the airport each year.

Breathing in the air around a living wall is one of the healthiest breathes you can take at the airport. The wall also enhances the visitor experience through improved thermal comfort for passengers and employees.

Not to mention the beauty of the living wall. It adds such a pleasant ambiance and a beautifying design element to the southwest portion of the terminal.

From a social and mental health perspective, the wall brings a sense of calm and joy. Many people enjoy sitting near it, looking at it, and taking pictures in front of it.

I had a chance to stop by Montreal Airport’s living wall recently, and it’s thriving. The massive green wall looks like a jungle you could get lost in. Just being near the wall feels rejuvenating. I got up close to take a long deep breath of the fresh air created by the plants, and the rest of my journey felt that much calmer for it.

Mini living walls spread the love at Montreal Airport

Montreal Airport doesn’t just have one living wall. Throughout the terminals, the airport has set up mini living walls. These green walls act as beautiful space dividers, art pieces, and offer a moment of calm no matter where you are in the airport.

Why reconnecting with nature is important

During travel days, we spend so much time inside stuffy, loud, fluorescent, and stressful airport terminals. The living wall at Montreal Airport helps us escape the madness for a bit by reconnecting us to nature. Living walls have a hugely positive effect on wellbeing from physical to mental health.

Montreal Airport is making many strides in the healthy travel space. Stay tuned for my Montreal Airport wellness guide and spa review to learn about all the other ways to get some zen in your journey, and get an insider’s perspective on how to travel well through this airport.

Have you seen a beautiful living wall in your airport travels? Let us know where you found it in the comments below! Don’t forget to tag all your photos with #ITravelWell to join the wellness airport movement.

Nicola Brown

Senior Editor at Vane Magazine

Nicola is an international award-winning writer, editor and communication consultant based in Toronto. She has traveled to 32 countries so far and is always poised to head out the door again. She loves both the visceral and intellectual dimensions of travel, and will passionately argue for its psychological paybacks, especially after a few glasses of wine. Having spent many years on the road and in the air, she's interested in how travelers can maintain a healthy mind and body through it all.

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