Nearly 51 million Americans are going to be traveling for Thanksgiving this year according to news out from AAA, making it the busiest holiday travel weekend in over a decade. Of those, Airlines for America projects that 28.5 million will be taking to the skies thanks to the cheapest average airfares in years.
That means it’s more important than ever to be prepared as we head into the holiday travel season. While your plans might already be set in place, knowing which airports to avoid and which ones have the most issues this time of year can still save you valuable time that you could be spending with your loved ones instead of sitting around an airport.
Luckily, RewardExpert has done the hard work for you. The site combed through five years of Department of Transportation data and compiled lists of the best and worst airports to travel through over Thanksgiving. For its part, AAA has homed in on the worst times to drive through major metropolitan areas around the U.S. this weekend.
In making its airport list, RewardExpert weighed the on-time performance of domestic airlines at the 45 busiest airports in the U.S. and determined not only which ones will get you where you need to go on time, but also the best and worst days to travel. Here were the results.
Worst Airports
It should come as no surprise that many of the airports with the biggest issues are also the busiest and most congested.
- San Francisco (SFO)
- Newark Liberty (EWR)
- Oakland (OAK)
- Houston Hobby (HOU)
- Sacramento (SMF)
- Dallas Love Field (DAL)
- Chicago O’Hare (ORD)
- New York (JFK)
- Chicago Midway (MDW)
- New York-LaGuardia (LGA)
Best Airports
Those ranking highly in terms of on-time performance and number of flights were…
- Honolulu (HNL)
- Atlanta Hartsfield (ATL)
- Charlotte Douglas (CLT)
- Myers (RSW)
- Salt Lake City (SLC)
- Washington National (DCA)
- Phoenix Sky Harbor (PHX)
- Tampa (TPA)
- New Orleans (MSY)
- Portland, Oregon (PDX)
Best Airlines
Here are the rankings for the nine major airlines RewardExpert considered, from best to worst.
- Hawaiian
- Delta
- Alaska
- United
- American
- JetBlue
- Skywest
- Southwest
- Frontier
Now for tips on avoiding hassles when possible...
Alternatives and Strategies
Here are some tips to help you avoid problems or getting stuck, as well as some advice on what to do just in case things do go wrong.
Book non-stop flights when possible. Few flights means fewer chances of things going wrong.
Book early flights since the later in the day you depart, the more chances that air traffic has become congested. And if your flight is canceled or delayed, you have more cushion to make your final destinations.
Depart from smaller, secondary airports. Though they might be the first ones to encounter problems or shutdowns, it’s the hubs where traffic tends to get snarled.
Leave plenty of time to get to the airport and navigate security. No one likes sitting around the airport, but it’s worse if you miss your flight and get stuck there.
Avoid checking bags to avoid lost or stolen bags.
If you have TSA PreCheck, make sure your Trusted Traveler numbers is listed on your itinerary so you can use the designated lines to save precious time at security.
Download your airline’s app and add electronic tickets and boarding passes to your mobile wallet as well as carrying print outs. The more documentation you have the better if things do go wrong.
Make sure your electronics are charged. If you need to hop on the phone or the internet, the last thing you need is for your phone or computer to die.
Remember, airline employees do want to get you where you need to go and are working over the holiday, so be polite and be concise and you are more likely to get the help you need.
Read on to see which drive times are the ones to avoid this week...
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Drive Times
For the rest of you who are driving to your Thanksgiving celebration, AAA compiled a handy list of the worst days for travel in several major metro areas.
If you can change your schedule to avoid these, you should end up saving yourself time on the roads and gas money. Speaking of which...
Make sure your tank is full before you leave in case any unexpected delays or situations arise.
If you're traveling with kids, make sure you have a handy supply of snacks, drinks and entertainment, and think about plotting out bathroom breaks in advance.
Check the weather on your route ahead of time, and use handy apps like Waze to keep up to date on traffic conditions.
Be patient. This is the most obvious, but the hardest. Accept the fact that getting where you need to go over Thanksgiving is going to take time, money and energy, and be prepared to throw all three at any problems or delays you may (and probably will) encounter.
