MSP Expects Busiest Travel Weekend Of Spring
MINNEAPOLIS (WCCO) -- This weekend is expected to be one of the busiest of the spring break season at MSP International. In fact, on Friday the airport saw record crowds making their way through security to catch a flight out of town.
If you're heading to the airport this weekend, be prepared.
Despite the number of travelers, airport officials say everything was running smoothly for most people.
Jamie Drier and her daughter Addie heard it was supposed to be the busiest Spring Break travel day on record for MSP. They planned ahead arriving two hours before their flight.
"We are going to visit some family and we are going to the Grand Canyon. We have never been, so we're excited," she said. "We are excited to see the line is not very busy, to check our bags!"
Many travelers delighted in the fast-moving pre-flight process, but one father-daughter duo from Oklahoma's flight to Vegas was overbooked they spent an extra day in Minnesota...
"[We] went to Mall of America, spent the afternoon walking around," Mark Saffell said.
Metropolitan Airports Commission spokesperson Patrick Hogan says MSP has seen busier spring break seasons the last few years thanks to an improving economy.
"Another thing we're seeing is an increase in low-cost carriers like Spirit Airlines, so there are people who maybe didn't have money to travel before who found out they can," Hogan said.
On a typical busy day MSP could see some 100,000 travelers -- they expect 30 percent more people rolling through the terminals Friday.
"It's like a small city of people traveling in one day," Hogan said.
Typically the busiest times of day to travel are around 5:30 a.m., then around evening after people get off work. You may be surprised to learn the busiest day of the year for MSP tends to be the Wednesday before MEA weekend.
