Passengers and visitors at LF Wade International Airport should have plenty of food and drink options to choose from when the new terminal opens in 2020.

Plans have been drawn up for almost 11,000 sq ft of food and beverage concession space, split between the airside and landside of the building.

The largest of the five new concessions will cover 3,601 sq ft and be located in the non-US international departure area. At present, there is no food and beverage concession airside for passengers heading for Canada or the UK.

The first stage of the process to find food and beverage concession operators for the new terminal has begun. Bermuda Skyport Corporation Ltd is inviting expressions of interest from qualified food and beverage concessionaires to finance, market, operate and maintain one or more of the concessions locations.

Skyport is responsible for the LF Wade International Airport operations, maintenance and commercial functions. It is also overseeing the construction of the new terminal.

A comprehensive plan for food and beverage outlets in the new terminal has been drawn up by London-based Pragma Consulting, which has worked on numerous airport projects, including London Heathrow and La Guardia in New York.

Ken Hassard, Skyport’s commercial director, said there would not be a central food hall area for passengers — a concept found at larger airports. He explained that with less than one million passengers passing through the airport each year, and departing passengers being segregated between the US pre-clearance portion of the terminal and those on non-US flights, the airport does not achieve the critical mass of passengers needed to make a food hall a feasible option.

However, the new terminal will have two food and beverage concessions on the ground floor landside, that is the public areas open to all. One unit is in the check-in area, while the other is in the “meet-and-greet” arrivals location.

The other three units will be airside on the first floor of the new terminal. These are for passengers who have passed through the security screening area. There will be two concessions in the US departures side, totalling 3,824 sq ft, and one large concession in the international departure area.

This month, Skyport also invited expressions of interest from qualified retailers to market, operate and maintain retail concessions in the new terminal. There will be ten retail units, split between the airside and landside of the building. The total retail space will be more than 9,500 sq ft. The call for expressions of interest for the retail units closed last Friday. Carrie Thatcher, Skyport’s commercial manager, said there had been quite a number of expressions of interest.

Qualified food and drink concessionaires interested in operating one or more of the units at the new terminal should submit a summary of qualifications and experience to Skyport by Friday.

Skyport has requested that those expressing an interest “should demonstrate capability to finance, design, implement, market, manage and operate a high-quality food and beverage concession”.

Request for proposals will be issued to qualified parties in August.

• Further information is available from Carrie Thatcher, at Skyport, by e-mailing to cthatcher@skyport.bm