CHICAGO — Getting stranded at an airport once meant enduring hours of boredom in a kind of travel purgatory with nothing to eat but fast food. These days, it can seem more like passing through the gates of Shangri-La to find spas, yoga studios, luxury shopping and restaurant menus crafted by celebrity chefs in terminals with calming, sleek design.

Stung by airline bankruptcies and mergers, more U.S. airports are hunting for alternative revenue streams by hiring top design firms to transform once chaotic and dreary way stations into places where people actually want to get stuck - and spend money. As the holiday travel season is in full gear, airports are putting what one designer calls “terminal bliss” on display in hopesof drawing in higher passenger numbers and revenue.

“It’s classy, it’s very classy. ... It makes you feel good about the layover,” said Marty Rapp, 70. Rapp was relaxing with the help of a large glass of merlotunder ice-crystal chandeliers at Chicago-O’Hare’s Ice Bar, whose white and softly reflective decor gives the feeling of being secluded in an igloo.

Airport redesign has been accelerating in the U.S. over the past 10 years, fueled by a combination of things such as an airline industry beset by bankruptcies and consolidation that is less able to shoulder operating costs for city-owned airports through landing fees and gate rentals. More revenue from better retail and dining helps make up the shortfall.

At the same time, travelers are becoming savvier and want more than just getting from A to B. The airport has become almost a destination in its own right, a place worthy of stopping off for a little shopping orpampering.

“There’s the ability to go swimming at some airports, there’s the ability to actually perfect your golf swing at some airports, there is the ability to - it’s not just getting a quick massage on your shoulders - it’s almost really going to a spa in some cases,” said Bill Hooper,an architect at global design firm Gensler, which has transformed airport terminals, including San Francisco’s Terminal 2. That terminal’s abundant natural light, art installations and club feel set a benchmark for contemporary airport design.

The United States and Canada still lag behind Europe and Asia when it comes to the number of airports with stunning architecture and an array of luxurious offerings. Stockholm’s Arlanda Airport has a wedding package where couples can tie the knot in the control tower balcony. And Seoul’s Incheon International Airport is building a six-level terminal that will include a soaring, glass-paneled ceiling and give passengers the feeling they are passing through a terrarium-like wonderland,complete with babbling brook, tropical plants and butterflies.

But American airports are catching up. Space-age-looking redevelopment at Denver International Airport, expected to be finished by 2015, includes a Westin hotel and conference center with a rooftop pool andviews of the Rockies. With an outdoor plaza for events and a fast new rail line, the airport hopes to be seen as an extension of downtown, about 23 miles away.

Dallas-Fort Worth International Airport opened a nearly mile-long walking path over mosaic floor art inside Terminal D in April. There are two optional cardio step courses leading up 55-foot high staircases, and the path ends up at a free yoga studio, where barefoot travelers with a view of taxiing aircraft can stretch behind light-diffusing screens.

In a sense, airports have taken some of the members-only airline club lounge experience and opened it up for all.

The transformation is paying off.

Concessions revenue from food, beverage, retail and services at U.S. airports hit $1.5 billion in 2011, up 12 percent from the year before, according to Airports Council International-North America, which represents the vast majority of governing bodies that own and operate commercial airports.

Front Section, Pages 3 on 12/24/2012