Holiday rush caps off record year as South Florida airports face congestion at every step of the way
MIAMI — This holiday rush will cap off a record year for travel, according to the TSA. And, South Florida airports had congestion at every step of the traveling process.
Quintin Lloyd is traveling back to Virginia after a cruise and showed up six hours before his flight to check his luggage.
"We're patient we're gonna find some things to do and get back here in time for those long lines," Lloyd said.
He ran into longer lines at baggage check-in and even getting to the airport took longer.
"Getting here from the cruise ship it was very busy," Lloyd said. "A lot of wait time to get a taxi."
Fort Lauderdale International Airport estimates 124,000 people per day to come through during peak travel times. And at Miami International Airport, they are expecting 192,000 people to come through on Saturday.
Dahlia Aboulhosn and her family are also coming home from a cruise, who also got here early in the morning for an afternoon flight.
"The cruise they make us get off at that time so we had a long time in the airport," she said.
Katie Serrano came down to Miami from the New York City area with her dog. She told CBS News Miami it was busy there and busy here — she couldn't tell the difference.
"Luckily, I was able to skip the line with my dog since they had the K9s," Serrano said. "But, out here is also busy as you can see."
CBS News Miami found that parking was at a premium Saturday morning at MIA, with most of the lots full.
TSA's 10 busiest days were all in 2024 and it expects December 30 to be another big travel day to end the holidays and the year.
