What you buy
A face, usually in a set
One backlit or printed face at eye level, typically bought as a set along a corridor or across a holdroom.
Airport diorama and small-format advertising Dioramas and
small signs. The wayto run for less.
Not every airport campaign needs a spectacular. Dioramas, mini-spectaculars, and small-format signs are backlit or printed units at eye level in corridors and holdrooms, usually sold in sets, with your image alone in each frame. They are the lowest-cost way into an airport and, placed well, the most-read units on a long walk to the gate. This page covers what they cost, how they're sold, how far ahead they book, and when they're enough, from EAM Advertising, an airport advertising media agency that plans and buys across 125+ airports and 40+ media vendors.
- 125+Airports worldwide
- 40+Media vendors
- 5Continents served
You’re in good company
The short answer
What are airport dioramas
and small-format signs?
Backlit displays and printed signs at eye level along corridors, in gate holdrooms, and on concourse walls: dioramas (lit, poster-scale faces), mini-spectaculars (smaller units that still own a sightline), and other small-format signs. Each holds one image with no rotation, which means 100% share of voice on that face, and they are usually sold in sets along a stretch of the passenger path. Planning range: $2,500 to $12,000 per unit for four weeks at medium to large airports, media only, plus production and installation.
Why they work
Eye level, 100% share of voice
At reading distance on the walk to the gate, with no loop and no rotation. Repetition along a corridor does the rest.
Who buys them
Smaller budgets and local brands
Home-market brands, regional programs, recruiting, and first tests, plus national brands adding frequency around bigger units.
The number that matters
Position along the walk. A diorama at the start of a long corridor or facing holdroom seating is read; the same unit behind a column is wallpaper. Ask where each face in the set sits.
Start your plan
Want to start small at your airport? Start here.
Pick the path that matches where you are. Every path ends with current availability and a recommended mix.
Still sizing itGet our media kitFormats, planning ranges, and booking windows across 125+ airports. We follow up to learn who you need to reach and when.Get the kit Have airports and datesSend a briefTell us the airports, the dates, and the range. We come back with availability for this format at each airport and a recommended mix.Send it Want to talk it throughBook a 15-minute callA short call on whether this format fits your campaign.Book it
The facts
What should a buyer know
before buying dioramas?
Eight facts, in the table a planner would use.
| What to know | Airport dioramas and small-format signs |
|---|---|
| Buying unit | Per unit, per flight (four weeks or 28 days); usually sold in sets |
| Planning range, four weeks, media only | $2,500–$12,000 per unit |
| Smallest practical buy | One face for one flight; sets are more common |
| Book ahead | 10–12 weeks ahead |
| Creative or artwork due | Artwork 21–28 days before start, to the media owner's print specs |
| Production and installation | $1,000–$15,000 per install, at the low end for small units; some airports charge removal |
| Proof delivered | Posting confirmation and a photo of every installed face |
| Best for | Home-market and regional brands, recruiting, first tests, and frequency along the gate walk |
Planning figures for medium to large airports per four-week flight, media only; smaller airports such as San Antonio (SAT) run 25 to 40% less. Timing from the lead-times page.
How it's bought
How are dioramas and
small-format signs sold?
Per unit, per flight, by the media owner that holds the airport's terminal contract, and usually in sets: a run of dioramas along one corridor, every face in a holdroom, or a mini-spectacular with a few dioramas leading to it. The media owner prints and installs them from your artwork. Because each face is small, the set is what makes the impression.
In sets
Along the walk
Several faces along one corridor read as one campaign; a single face rarely does.
100% share of voice
No rotation
Each face holds your image alone for the whole flight.
Printed and installed
Artwork 21–28 days out
The media owner prints and installs; production is at the low end of the range for small units.
Where it works
Where do dioramas work,
and which airports have them?
Along the corridors and in the holdrooms of nearly every airport, and they are often a large share of the inventory at small and medium airports. They work wherever passengers walk past at reading distance or sit facing them: the long walk to the gates, the holdroom seating, the connector between terminals.
Corridors to the gates
Repetition at walking pace
A set along the walk is read face by face; the last one lands the message.
Holdrooms
Seated, facing the wall
Passengers waiting to board sit in front of them for most of an hour.
Smaller airports
Often the main inventory
At airports below the top forty, small-format signs may be most of what's for sale, at 25 to 40% less.
Airport pages with placements for this format: Las Vegas (LAS) Austin (AUS) All airports on the hub
How sets are sold
How are diorama sets
put together?
The media owner's grid lists each face by location: a numbered run of faces along a corridor, the faces around a holdroom, or the positions at a connector. A set is a group of those faces sold together, and the right set is the one along the walk your audience takes, which the grid shows and a terminal map confirms. Ask for both, and for a photo of each face, before choosing.
The grid
Every face, by location
The media owner lists faces by corridor, holdroom, and position; sets are groups of them.
The walk
Match the set to the route
A set along the walk to your audience's gates is read face by face; one off the route is not.
Photos first
See each face in place
Ask for a photo of every face in the set; position behind a column is the common disappointment.
What it costs
What do dioramas and
small-format signs cost?
$2,500 to $12,000 per unit for a four-week flight at medium to large airports, media only, plus printing and installation at the low end of $1,000 to $15,000 per install. Smaller airports such as San Antonio (SAT) run 25 to 40% less. Most buys are a set, so the total is the unit price times the faces in the set.
A single diorama
From about $2,500
One backlit face for four weeks at a medium airport, plus production.
A corridor set
Several faces, one walk
A run of dioramas along the walk to a gate area; the set price is the faces times the unit price.
A mini-spectacular
Toward $12,000
A smaller spectacular that owns one sightline, often with dioramas leading to it.
The full ranges by format and campaign shape, on the cost page.
Creative
What works creatively
on a diorama?
A poster read at walking pace from a few feet away: one image, a short line, and the brand, with more detail than a spectacular can carry because the reader is close. In a set, repeat the brand and vary the line, so the corridor reads as a sequence.
Poster distance
A few feet away
Closer than any large unit, so a second line of copy can be read.
Lit, so contrast
Backlit faces
Bright images and dark type read well in a backlit box; dark images go muddy.
Sequence the set
Same brand, varied lines
A run of faces can tell a short story along the walk.
When it's the wrong format
When are dioramas
the wrong format?
When the campaign needs to dominate (a conference week, a launch, a category statement), when the budget would buy one face and nothing else, and when the message changes during the flight. Small format is for presence and frequency at low cost, not for owning the airport.
You need to dominate
Buy a spectacular
A conference week or a launch needs the unit everyone sees.
One face only
Buy a set or a network spot
A single small face rarely registers; a set or a digital spot does more.
The message changes
Buy digital
Printed faces hold one image; a reprint is a second install.
Why EAM
What does EAM Advertising do
with this format?
We know where the small-format faces sit at each airport, which sets line the walks your audience takes, and what each media owner charges to print and install. We check availability for your dates, recommend the set, quote media and production together, secure it under one contract, check the artwork against each airport's specs, confirm posting, and deliver a photo of every face.
Year-round, four marketsBYUSalt Lake City year-round; Dallas, Chicago, and Washington, D.C. in rotation. A year-round enrollment campaign on airport digital video, always on at home and rotating through three markets.12 months on airSee the campaign 
National, several media ownersFortinetU.S. and Canada: Las Vegas, New York, Chicago, San Francisco, Toronto, Washington, D.C., Dallas, and more. Bought from multiple media owners as one coordinated buy, under one plan and one contract.40 million impressionsSee the campaign 
Regional, four countriesRadissonBuenos Aires, Santiago, Bogotá, Mexico City. Digital and physical branding across four Latin American airports as one regional campaign.30 million-plus impressionsSee the campaign
See every campaign on the case studies page.
Tell us the airports, the dates, and the range. We come back with availability for this format at each airport and a recommended mix.
Ready to plan?
Want to start small?
Send a brief.
Tell us the airports, the dates, who you need to reach, and the budget range. We come back with availability for this format at every airport in the plan and a recommended mix.
125+ airports · 40+ media vendors · Since 2015
“EAM made a nationwide airport campaign feel much easier to manage. The team was responsive, organized, and always on top of the details. They helped us make smart decisions with the budget, kept everything moving, and ultimately delivered exactly what we were looking for.”
Chief Marketing OfficerFortinet · nationwide airport campaignFor agencies and consultants
Your client. Your plan.
We handle the airports.
Agencies and consultants bring EAM Advertising in as the airport specialist behind a client’s plan. The client relationship stays with you. We plan, buy, and report under NDA, and can work white-label.
Get our media kit- Your client stays yours.We work behind your team, not around it.
- White-label and NDA.Plans and reporting can go out under your name.
- One contract, one invoice.Every airport and media owner in the plan, under one set of terms.
- Numbers before the client commits.Current availability and planning ranges at the proposal stage.
Airports
Thinking of a specific airport?
Start with its page.
EAM Advertising plans and buys at 125+ airports across North America, Europe, Latin America, Asia-Pacific, the Middle East, India, and Africa, and any combination runs under one contract. The most-requested airports are below; every airport, with search by city or code, is on the airport advertising hub.
Questions
Questions buyers ask
about dioramas and small-format signs
How much do airport dioramas cost?
$2,500 to $12,000 per unit for a four-week flight at medium to large airports, media only, plus printing and installation. Most buys are a set of faces, and smaller airports run 25 to 40% less.
What is an airport diorama?
A backlit, poster-scale display at eye level in a corridor or gate holdroom, holding one image with no rotation, so it gives 100% share of voice on that face.
What is a mini-spectacular?
A smaller spectacular unit that still owns a sightline without a full-wall takeover, often placed where a corridor narrows or at a holdroom entrance.
What is the cheapest way to advertise in an airport?
Small-format signs and dioramas, at $2,500 to $12,000 per unit for four weeks at medium to large airports and less at smaller ones. A set of faces along one walk is the most effective low-cost buy.
Are dioramas sold individually or in sets?
Usually in sets: a run along a corridor or every face in a holdroom, because a single small face rarely makes an impression on its own.
How far ahead do you book dioramas?
Ten to twelve weeks ahead, with artwork due 21 to 28 days before start for printing and installation.
Can a small business advertise in an airport?
Yes, at one airport with a set of dioramas or small-format signs, from a few thousand dollars a face for four weeks; it's the format most home-market brands start with.
Dioramas or a digital network spot: which is better?
Dioramas give 100% share of voice at eye level for the whole flight; a network spot rotates through a loop on many screens. For a small budget at one airport, a well-placed set of dioramas is often seen more.
Do dioramas need production?
Yes: printing and installation by the media owner's crew, at the low end of the $1,000 to $15,000 per-install range because the units are small.
What does EAM Advertising handle on an airport campaign?
Everything after the objective. We check what's open for the week, which loops are crowded and which units will sell out, and where on the arrival path your audience actually walks. We recommend the mix, secure the units, traffic the creative through airport approval, confirm posting on day one, and deliver proof of posting and play logs after. If the airport is one market in a larger plan, the same relationship covers the others.
Airport advertising media agency. 125+ airports. Est. 2015.
Thinking about dioramas?
Start with the media kit.
Send your work email for the media kit: formats, planning ranges, and booking windows across 125+ airports. We’ll follow up to learn who you need to reach and when, then come back with current availability and a recommended mix.
125+ airports · 40+ media vendors · Since 2015
Sources
Sources
and methodology
- Buying units, deadlines, and proof: current media kits at Las Vegas, Austin, San Francisco, and Barcelona, 2025–2026, and EAM Advertising buying records across 125+ airports, 2015–2026. Media owners are described, not named.
- Planning ranges: the airport advertising cost page. Lead times: the lead-times page.
- Campaigns named: past work described on the case studies page, without spend.
Updated October 5, 2026 · By EAM Advertising
EAM Advertising plans, secures, and buys airport and in-flight media across 125+ airports and 45+ airlines worldwide. Founded in 2015; collective operator experience in airport media buying spans two decades. Recommendations are based on what performs for the advertiser, not on inventory we have to sell. Clients include Dynatrace, Fortinet, Rubrik, McGraw-Hill, and Wharton.