What does your airport routine say about your personality?
Whether you show up super early ‘just in case’ or cut it close says something about how they ‘manage anxiety’. But I’m not sure it says what the experts think it says.
Many early arrivers will try to take control of the situation and leave (way) more than enough time for all possible contingencies.
And many late arrivers will deal with the headaches of travel by avoiding thinking about it altogether, and then scrambling at the last minute.
Does arriving close to departure and not wasting moments of your life standing around at the airport signal avoidance, or just that you’ve got a routine down?
- Sure, airport parking might be a mess but some airports let you pre-reserve spots. And traffic could glitch, or public transit could break down, so maybe you have a bit of a buffer.
- And how much of a buffer may just depend on how big a cost it is to miss your flight, based on a combination of how important the trip actually is and whether your status gives you confidence you’ll make it onto a later flight?
Instead of claiming that your past experience may manifest itself in your airport routine (“That one time you missed a flight might have flipped you from late arriver to early bird”) perhaps it’s your overall experience – that you know what you’re doing – which leads you to be rational about the decision?
A regular weekly traveler spending an extra half our at the airport in each direction will spend 52 extra hours at the airport each year or more than 2 days each year unnecessarily waiting.
Biden Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen arrived at the airport hours early (and, for that matter, flies coach). I think that’s the wrong approach, on both counts.
My default is to leave home 1 hour and 15 minutes prior to departure. That puts me at the curb of the Austin airport 50 minutes out. In Austin PreCheck and CLEAR are right inside the main doors of the airport. Even if security takes me 10 minutes to clear, I’ve still got a few minutes to reach the gate before boarding even begins. And the truth is I don’t need to board first! I just need to not board last, so I’m not stuck gate checking a bag. I follow a similar routine leaving my Arlington, Virginia office for National airport.
And at the end of the day if you’ve never missed a flight you’re spending too much time in airports. I’ll only add a larger buffer when it truly matters that I don’t miss that given flight.
At the old LaGuardia, flying American, I would arrive 35 minutes before departure, go through security with PreCheck, buy a bottle of water, and board the plane.
The new LGA is amazing and I am sure overall less delayed because of the new airfield and ramp layouts, but man it was great having to walk no more than 100m max from security to the gate
Sigh – the same old Gary. On a soapbox to justify his preference (or quirks). I have millions of miles and prefer to get to the airport 2 hours early. I go to the lounge or just relax and use the free WiFi. I don’t consider it “wasted” time. The only reason it would be wasted for ANYONE is if they were doing something productive elsewhere they couldn’t do at the airport. However with internet access and cell phones that is rarely the case.
You don’t though Gary – just don’t preach to the rest of us that your preference is the “right” way for anything. You are an odd dude in a lot of ways.
I’m definitely an early bird to the airport most of the time. A large part of this is determined by my airport lounge access. Especially when traveling during the work day and needing to “thread the needle” between meetings, the lounge provides an extension of my work desk, allowing me to maintain productivity while also reducing any stress.
If I have an early morning flight before lounges are open and I have carry on only, then it all changes I try to get through with 20 minutes before boarding.
The shuttle parking van is the biggest wild card. Sometimes you wait 20 minutes to get on, it picks up more people and still can take 15 minutes to airport.
For me at least, if I was spending 52 hours a year in the airport because of this I wouldn’t say that it is wasted time, at least with today’s technology. I’d be using that time to catch up on emails, reading, making phone calls, etc. In other words, using that time to do things that I would otherwise need to to later after I land. So I think it saves time on the back end of the flight. Sure, some people would sit and stare at a wall or play games on their phone, but a lot of us would make that time productive.
This isn’t 1988 when you arrived at an airport and couldn’t do much more than read a book or newspaper before you’re flight. With technology you can work, watch a movie, catch up emails or social media, etc. Being stuck at an airport or in lounge you can do what you would do from your home or office.
I always plan to arrive at least 2 hours ahead of time and it’s usually more than 3 hours. But I don’t like unexpected stress. What happens if I get behind an accident? There’s long big ass Pre Check Line (very common at MIA)?
Ditto on connections. Nothing under 90 minutes and ideally two hours or more. Too much can go wrong even if your flight is on time.
If you try to cut it close at DFW you WILL assuredly miss flights. I suppose this isn’t the case at smaller stations, though.
Arrival time has more to do with the airport than my emotional well being. Flying out of Aspen on a weekday you might as well show up as they’re boarding, there’s never a line anywhere. Flying out of DIA at any time is a total crapshoot, depending on which entrances are blocked off due to construction, parking, and what sort of mood the TSA is in (although the new screening section is much better than before). IAD still requires long walks from the train to the C gates for unknown reasons, so don’t be late!
Agree–the same old Gary. We already know you think very highly about how valuable your time is and how important you are that you can’t waste even a minute extra waiting for a flight. We also have already heard that you business is super important to the airline companies, and they will always upgrade you to a later fight if you’re late. Maybe you could also give us some advice on how the movers and shakers in the business world recommend we all should get off an airplane too.
Slow news day, huh Gary? Question: do you always get a guaranteed seat on the next flight because your too entitled to be bothered? Because I have seen many times were the next 2, 3, 4 flights are completely sold out, not even a seat for THE GARY. If this is your stupid habit, good for you. Keep it to yourself. Quit passing on this irrelevant and terrible advise to people who have good sense.
My biggest unknown was the unpredictable traffic around my home airport of Atlanta where the commute to Hartsfield could vary significantly. I would always plan enough time to deal with whatever traffic there was and have a decent breakfast before my morning flight. Return flights would be cut closer unless my client irritated me enough to require consuming adult beverages preflight.
>>> “…if you’ve never missed a flight you’re spending too much time in airports. I’ll only add a larger buffer when it truly matters that I don’t miss that given flight.” <<<
No, Gary, what it means is that missing a flight is simply poor planning on your part, and that — depending upon from where to where you're flying, it means a delay of anywhere from one hour if you're lucky to as long as a day or in some cases, even longer. Obviously I am referring to things which are *within* one's control, such as making sure you leave enough time to account for reasonable traffic delays (e.g.: possibly heavy traffic at the start of a holiday weekend, NOT having the Golden Gate Bridge shut down for 6 hours because of a potential jumper). It's one thing if there's a flight between LAX-SFO once an hour on the hour (as in the old days of PSA or even AirCal), but it's another thing entirely if you're booked on the last flight of the day…or there are only flights between X and Y 3x a week. Missing that flight when it's your fault means no compensation (or consideration) from the airline.
I'm with AC (and others) on this. I get to the airport ~2 hours early, relax (and get some work done) in the lounge, and easily walk to the gate just before boarding begins. No stress. (This is also why I avoid those stupid <40 minute connections that AA insists on booking in PHX, DFW, CLT, and PHL. I have NO DESIRE to race through airports like O.J. Simpson in those Hertz commercials.)
How long you arrive at the airport before departure depends on the characteristics of the airport. For 25 years I planned to arrive at Tampa airport one hour before departure and never missed a flight.
I plan to arrive at Denver Airport two hours before departure and at about one in every five trips, something goes wrong and I end up arriving one hour before departure. I have lounge access and do not regard time as spent in the lounge as a waste of time since I can get caught up with work/hang out, etc. Before long-haul international flights I will walk from one of terminal to the other to get some exercise.
100% of my trips are leisure. I am in vacation mode and have lounge access more often than not.
I am not wasting any time at the airport by arriving 2 hours early, i am in vacation mode. (i am still working running my own business).
7 trips so far this year, both domestic and international with 3 planned for the rest of the year.
Individual decisions for everyone! No time is lost or wasted enjoying life!
For Atlanta Airport, I arrive at my pre-reserved parking spot about 2 hours and 15 minutes before my flight. Shuttle takes me to the airport, I check my bag, then go through TSA Pre-Check, a lounge for about 45-60 minutes, then board my plane either as my group is called or at the very end of boarding if overhead space is not needed.
I live in Europe, and have to consider the airport, and their various security procedures, For some, its terribly risky to cut it close, especially during summer, when there are throngs of tourists creating long queues at security. Brussels can be horrible for those going on non-Schengen flights…as they have many flights to Africa, Turkey, Morrocco…and this creates a mess due to people that simply take forever to get through security. Amsterdam is normally ok, except during peak tulip season or summer tourist season. French airports…well, that all depends on who is on strike that day. Frankfurt…long walks. Milan, oh well, it’s Italy, so don’t expect efficiency. For fast check ins, If you have One World Emerald, Heathrow T5 is the lowest risk, as you can use the executive check in and there’s never a queue there.
I go early and go to the lounge for food and drink and to relax . No need to cut it close. I also hire a regular driver to take me to the airport in comfort and pick me up when I come home. If my plane is late he notices and picks me up when I arrive . Comfort is important.
I’m as productive on my laptop in the lounge as I am in the office, so I don’t understand why “waiting” in the airport is considered wasted. It isn’t. Also, missing some of the flights I take would mean a 24 hour delay (plus lots of complications). Do that twice a year and there goes your 52 hour “savings”.
Personally, I’d like to be where I need to be when I need to be there, and not be that guy who misses the family weddings and flips out when he misses a flight, but still says that line about “if you haven’t missed a flight you are spending too much time in the airport”. (You know who you are.)
Indeed. Gary being Gary. If you’re waiting around at the airport, show up later. If you’re waiting around at home, go to the airport. When I’m at the airport, I’m in transit, and I don’t have to deal with interruptions like meetings. And I work better surrounded by people. So, yeah, I go early. I’m more productive in the lounge than in the office.
This is so dependent on which airport and airline, because at some places, like DeltaOne at JFK, Polaris at EWR, or Chase at LGA, I’ll happily be at the airport 3 hours early with that kinda access. But, if it’s middle of nowhere, like an Omaha, NB, or Wilmington, NC, and there’s no lounge, 1 hour before if just carry-on baggage and online check-in is ideal. @Robert is right about Europe; very different experiences if non-Schengen. AMS is super efficient. CDG is hellish for tight connections. As with nearly everything in life, ‘it depends.’
For international flights at LAX, I try to get there three hours before the flights. I have had several situations where I was relatively late. One where my wife and I arrived at the airport late and had to take alternate seats as ours had been given away. Another was a shuttle driver arrived at my house almost an hour late due to unexpected traffic from a crash. Domestic flights don’t need quite as much of a buffer but the shuttle bus can be full and then I have to wait for the next one. I don’t whine when I have extra time to wait around when everything goes smoothly and relatively quickly.
I try to be at the airport 2 hours before departure on domestic flights and 3 hours for international flights. Similar times for connections. There have been many occasions when I arrived too early due to lack of traffic, Clear line is non-existent, no line for baggage drop off, flight has a light load (so no worry about carry on space), parking garage is empty etc.
But frequently one or more of these things go wrong. Sometimes, just a little delay in each area will compound to a total delay of more than an hour. Or there are rare occasions when an anticipated catastrophe will delay me by more than an hour like when my Uber had an explosive flat tire in the middle of the highway in freezing rain at 4 am. I was traveling with a lot of luggage.
I have status but no confidence that the next flight will have availability. Traveling with family adds to the complication.
My take is 180 different from your Gary. I prefer to arrive early and work in the lounge vs. worrying about something beyond my control delaying my arrival by hours or more.
Our drive to TPA usually take 1:30 +|~ weeks arrive at the best parking garage anywhere about 1:30 before departure. Hop the train to the terminal (5 min) enter the main concourse walk (5min) a short distance to board the trams to various airlines departure gates (2min) pass thru PreCk to the gates arriving (usually) 1:15 to 1 hour. Every airport in America should be laid out like the Tampa airport for convenience and ease of access, plus it has nice restaurants and airline clubs.
When I read the article I was so motivated to write a reply and talk about how I approach getting to the airport early. But everyone else that has written comments has said it all for me. My boss is like Gary. He wants to walk into the airport and immediately get on his flight and go. But I happen to enjoy lounge access and relaxing a bit and being able to keep up with emails. And I absolutely do not need the stress of missing a flight and not making it to my destination for the scheduled business meetings. I enjoy reading this newsletter but this particular article seemed really ridiculous to me.
@av8reb — Since you brought it up, I want to also compliment TPA, especially the SkyCenter train (that thing hauls!), the super clean rental car center, the main terminal with its sea turtle art, big flamingo, and the various concourses. Even at max capacity the SkyClub there handles the ‘wait’ well with a digital sign-up. I’m with you, TPA is doing things right. It’s also a pleasant surprise that they offer several daily long-hauls from there to Europe, like London (VS, BA), FRA (LH), ZRH (LX), and I think Delta may fly to AMS, seasonally, which is wild for a medium sized airport in a second-tier area in Florida. Like, I’d expect it for MIA, which has the most expensive international network, and maybe MCO because of Disney, but TPA holds its own!
Oh, shame on me for not including this before, but, most importantly, TPA has a mini Columbia restaurant, at least in the Delta terminal, so if you want a delicious 1905 salad or a cuban sandwich before your flight, you’re set! Yum!
What does this irrelevant, preachy crusade about airport arrival time reveal about YOUR personality, Gary?
@Robert , @1990 —> I completely agree that airports in Europe are quite different. Here in the U.S., I know what gate my plane will be departing from before I leave the house (well, unless I’m flying AA out of DFW and then it’s “Let’s spin the Big Wheel and see what gate — and terminal — we fly out of today…oh, it landed on re-spin…try again….”). In Europe, I typically have no idea where I’m going…gate information isn’t posted until relatively shortly prior to departure…at LHR, for example, do I have a five minute walk? ten? half an hour? At MAD, it feels like it’s always the furthest gate possible…as I walk past 20+ empty gates….and so on and so on.
Gary, we are fundamentally different here. I have a flight coming up where, if I were you, I’d leave home at 3:30pm just make my flight to the hub, and then have a couple of hours before boarding a flight that arrives at 9:30 am (+2). I have an earlier first flight, will leave home at 9:30 am and get to the destination on the same flight. I’ll spend 6 hours more at airports (2 home, 4 at hub). What will I do at the airports for 6 extra hours? Read a book, use a streaming service, search the web. What would I have done with 6 hours more at home? Same things. When I worked, it was the same story: I’d trade more time working in airports for less time working at work. My time hasn’t been lost. I use the 6 hours at airports for the same activities AND I’m in a far less stressed mood, since the risk of missing the final leg is reduced considerably. You can’t buy that peace of mind. Actually, you can. But, it cost me nothing.
Note for all: no club access at home, Flagship at hub.
@ DMNYC. Absolutely. I miss the old LGA. It was a dump, but it took me about 5 minutes to go through security and be at my gate. Now it seems like I am walking forever through what is albeit a much nicer airport.
Then there is the contingency on the way to the airport. Say, an incident that completely shuts down the M4 on your way to Heathrow. Or, rush hour traffic from Manhattan to JFK. Or, anytime traffic on the 405 in LA. I’ll take an extra hour in a lounge if that’s the consequence.
On time I had an early morning flight LGA (New York)-IAH (Houston)-HKG (Hong Kong) on Continental (a while back). If I miss my short LGA-IAH flight, I am in deep doo doo.
My taxi (pre-Uber) got lost on the way to the airport. So I arrived about 20 minutes before the flight was scheduled to take off. The ticket counter person said, “No way you are going to make your flight.” I (and my luggage) made it no problem, but it was close.
Yes, I do try to put in a cushion before my flights. Even so, I have had some close calls. Also, now-a-days, I have breakfast and coffee in the lounge, an Iphone in my pocket feeding me news through my Airbuds and an Ipad to take care of business if I am too lazy to pull out my computer. I am not wasting so much time by being in the airport early.
For my it depends on if it’s personal travel or business travel. Most of the time I’m getting to the airport with just enough time to board the flight for business travel. One time I just dropped off the rental and got on the Sky train to the terminal in Atlanta when I got the notification that my flight was boarding. I was the last person to board that flight.
Often I’m boarding with the last group just because that’s when I get there. The only downside is that I end up having to check in my carry-on bag. This is one reason why I’m never looking for the lounge access etc.
I guess I mind the consequences a bit more if I miss a personal flight.
“Or, anytime traffic on the 405 in LA.”
I have driven and been in a bus on the 405 over the last 40+ years. These days it is usually going to the airport or coming from the airport but over the years it has been during daytime traffic, during nighttime traffic, during rush hour traffic and at almost any hour of day or night at one time or another and that includes all days of the week. The traffic is bad during morning rush and evening rush and gets really bad when there is a crash. Other than those times, it mostly flows and it can be really fast during the middle of the night and in the wee hours of the morning.
Instead of spending a little extra time, which doesn’t need to be wasted, it makes sense to wait hours for the (hypothetical) rebooked later flight? Seats are harder to come by these days, and many airlines are not nice about rebooking. I’d rather risk a few minutes of relaxing, catching up on email, or reading than waste money on rebooking.
Most of the time I will get there with as little time to spare as possible, because I can, and because I want to maximize my schedule and not waste time at the airport, it’s certainly not because of procrastination. The only exception is if I can use a really nice club lounge.
I’m retired. I travel all year round, because I enjoy it. I have plenty of time to explore the cities and countries I want to explore, and I also enjoy exploring airports or hanging out in a terminal or a lounge or an airport cafe. It’s fun for me. I like airports. So, yeah, I get there early for that reason.
And, as a follow up to my previous comment– it has also worked in my favor. I had a flight from Madrid to LAX that was connecting through LHR. I arrived at MAD pretty early to walk around, buy some gifts and hang out in the lounge. When I arrived, I found that my MAD>LHR leg was severely delayed to the point where I’d miss my connection. Having arrived very early, BA was able to book me on an earlier flight to LHR so I could make my connection. Wouldn’t have been able to do that if I had not arrived early.
I fly out of SEA (Seattle-Tacoma) and you couldn’t pay me to be there less than 2 hours before my flight. Who knows what horrific traffic situation will occur on I5 north (I live south of SeaTac) or what kind of mess SeaTac will.be that day. Even leaving first thing in the morning can be a pain. I have Pre check but I don’t leave anything to.chance. I can survive off my phone for a couple hours so I don’t consider it wasted time. I can get on calls, send emails and everything. I feel like it’s mega pretentious to judge folks for getting to the airport early.