Government officials, tourism and business leaders will converge on Lynden Pindling International Airport October 18 to celebrate the highly-anticipated opening of the new domestic and terminal at the country's largest and busiest airport.

"We are very excited about what this new terminal represents," said Vernice Walkine, President & CEO of NAD, the Nassau Airport Development Company. "We believe that this extraordinary new terminal creates a world class experience with a distinctive Bahamian flair."

Once the new facility goes live next week, local carriers will operate out of the same terminal as British Airways and Air Canada, with their respective passengers having access to the same amenities, though waiting areas and gates will be separate, she explained.

"The overall experience will be equal for passengers whether they are going to Toronto or George Town, London or Long Island," said Walkine.

Built at a cost of $83.5 million, the 105,000 square foot facility brings to Family Island and international travel to Europe, the Far East and Canada the sophisticated design that Bahamians and visitors enjoy in the adjacent U.S. departures terminal.

The new terminal features two and a half storey-high vaulted ceilings and barrel vault roof, 50/50 split between glass and solid walls for maximum ambient light without heat intrusion, a deep-well cooling system which draws water from more than 300 feet below surface, cooling and redistributing it through diffusers to provide cool air at human height to maximize efficiency, state-of-the-art baggage high speed baggage carousels and CTX security screening.

NAD, which had oversight for the terminal as well as for the operations of the busy airport that serves some 3.2 million passengers a year, delivered the new terminal on budget, on time. NAD said the new facility was designed and built for future expansion with the capacity to accommodate up to 50% more traffic, much of it anticipated as a result of the Bahamar project due to come on stream in 2014.

NAD completed the latest phase in the overall $409.5 million transformation of the country's largest and, by far, busiest airport as it had the two earlier phases and, like the previous work, attention was paid to marrying the modern with the best of The Bahamas.

"We want the LPIA experience to equal or exceed any that our visitors and our local passengers would find anywhere in the world, whether they are traveling from Europe, the Far East or one of our Family Islands. But during the design phase, we also wanted to ensure that all of our terminals reflected a sense of place. That is why we were so enthusiastic about the art work, the retail space offering products made in The Bahamas and even the dining," said Walkine.

Among the artists whose work is on display in the new terminal are Antonius Roberts, Dede Brown and John Paul. There will be several retail shops and among the available dining options -- anything conch and a Kalik.

According to NAD's current annual report, the new airport complex will be 571,000 square feet with one million square feet of aircraft operating surface and the ability to handle five million passengers annually. In 2011, LPIA facilitated more than 82,000 aircraft take-offs and landings.

The public is invited to a special open house on Saturday with a slate of activities from 12-4 p.m.