The worst airports in the US as rated by SkyTrax

[jwalk03]

Another vote for the hell on earth of MCO being on the top of the list for worst airports. I've never been to an airport (probably 50+ in my work and leisure travel) where security staff are so miserable and mean, while being completely disorganized and unhelpful. And no dedicated elite lines.

We love our home base airport, BWI. Usually five minutes through security...only wish there was an AMEX/Priority Pass lounge in the Southwest half of the airport. Immigration/customs is tolerable which is about all you can ask.

Yeah my main issue with BWI is the lack of airside connection between D/E and A/B/C. Would like to have used the Club Lounge but just not worth the effort of going through security twice.

 

[chapjim]

Deleted.

 

[Carolinian]

This thread is about worst airports for passengers. I wonder about the worst for pilots?

Here's a nomination:

View attachment 89214

1,300 ft. runway with a 60 ft. cliff at each end and a mountain on one side.

That looks like Saba and the airport a couple of islands over at St. Barths is almost as bad. I have been to both islands several times, but always by boat from Sint Maarten.

 

[chapjim]

That looks like Saba and the airport a couple of islands over at St. Barths is almost as bad. I have been to both islands several times, but always by boat from Sint Maarten.

That's it! Great place to practice carrier landings!

 

[ScoopKona]

View attachment 89214

1,300 ft. runway with a 60 ft. cliff at each end and a mountain on one side.

Heaven on Earth compared to MCO -- for passengers.

I'll fly to Saba seven days a week and twice on Sunday if it means I can avoid MCO.

 

[HedonisticEpicurean]

The entire piece felt like I was going through a forest of clickbait which is more annoying to me than any idiosyncrasies and deficiencies with a large (or small) airport.

1. It often depends on which airline you fly into a specific city. Land in Vegas on Hawaiian or American and the terminal experience is grand. Land at Vegas on Southwest at the B & C gates you feel like you're in a bus terminal. Other airports that I find this to be the case include: Newark (new terminal is awesome others not so great), DCA (E gates and new Admirals Club are great), DFW (terminal D and Flagship lounge are top notch), LAX (International terminal and a few others are world class), PHX (the new 8 gate concourse D is spacious and comfortable) and there are many other examples I have seen.

2. The new airport terminal in Kansas City is far superior to the old mess. If you haven't flown through MCI lately you will be surprised at the modern impressive single terminal structure.

3. LaGuardia use to be the worst IMO. I think the new structure (Terminal B) with American, Southwest, and United is a delightful experience. I actually look forward to arriving and leaving from LGA now.

4. Every airport has issues. Midway gets crowded. Love Field doesn't have enough bathrooms. Phoenix has small concourses with tons of traffic. Austin was built for a fraction of today's traffic. The list can go on. Even my favorite international airport, Singapore, has issues. I find I deal with the issues and make the experience the best I can.

5. Honolulu airport is old, but it is being upgraded - sort of. I guess the style of the airport always reminds me of being a kid and having to stop at HNL when flying from LA to Asia or South Pacific. Those stopovers for refueling were special to me. Every time I land at HNL I get a warm, comfortable feeling with happy memories floating through my head. And, it is HNL so how can you not be happy in Hawaii.

A delightful surprise:
Yesterday, I was pleasantly surprised with the remodeling of the Fayetteville/Bentonville airport. While a smaller airport in NW Arkansas it is really impressive. I can't believe how they made the airport so cutting edge. It is still being remodeled, but what has been done is amazing.

Airports are like life. It can be a bad experience or an enjoyable experience. It all depends on your mood, expectations, and how you approach the experience.

 

[emeryjre]

FLL can be a mess when all of the cruise ships return at the same time
There are insufficient facilities to handle the influx of travelers waiting to depart the airport
On the day we returned from a 7 day cruise, there were several thousand people in the Delta Terminal
You could not pass through security until 2 hours before your flight was scheduled to depart
You could not drop off luggage until 2 hours before your flight was scheduled to depart
The lobby was wall to wall people
No available seating in the lobby
A small store for water and snacks was all the food and drink available
Once through security and into the gate area, it was better
Restaurants were backed up and seating was limited everywhere
It was not pleasant
Friends experienced the same issue at the American terminal

 

[Ken555]

When “choice of luxury brands” is a criteria for this rating, I know to stop reading.


Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

 

[WaikikiFirst]

I know to stop reading.

Yes. More generically, I knew to NOT read it due to the "criteria" usually used by present-day Americans for almost any non-life-sustaining subjective issue.
Each time the thread pops up, I think "Oh, pleeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeez" I'd put all of them in the range of "crappy", but
a) minimize your time there
b) carry a book to read
c) don't sweat it
d) remember, "It beats walking"
There is that "You may be a redneck" comic. This is "You may travel too much if, you can't deal with it." (and as I said, I think they all mostly stink

 

[WaikikiFirst]

Honolulu airport is old, but it is being upgraded - sort of. I guess the style of the airport always reminds me of being a kid and having to stop at HNL when flying from LA to Asia or South Pacific. Those stopovers for refueling were special to me. Every time I land at HNL I get a warm, comfortable feeling with happy memories floating through my head. And, it is HNL so how can you not be happy in Hawaii.

This. We flew into HNL yesterday. All of this (cept the as "a kid" part). Being upgraded? I haven't noticed, lol. Don't care either. Maybe they'll install hula dancer slots machines?

We stayed at a friend's home and flew out of OAK to HNL with them. OAK had longest security lines I have seen in many years, had < half the machines running. Oh well, I'll be in HNL soon. and aside from the lines, it was the better-than-avg feel you get at most smaller airports. OAK is not right-off-the-highway like SFO is, but I'd recommend it, I guess, esp if you're going to Napa, Tahoe, Yosemite, etc

 

[Ken555]

I flew out of HNL last week and it was just fine. No issues at all. It’s just a typical American airport with some sections outside since after all, it’s in Hawaii.


Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

 

[Glynda]

Our local airport in Charleston, SC....CHS seems to me to be the worst for the time it takes to get luggage off the plane and on to a carousel. It's not a big airport and it was completely redone not that terribly long ago. I picked up a friend who flew in from Atlanta a couple of weeks ago and although her bag was the first onto the carousel, it was a 45 minute wait. Grrrr.

 

[jfleck2020]

LGA is the worst from a flight operations perspective. With the only set of runways being a cross shape you are limited to one departure then one arrival alternating. We have had to return to the terminal after waiting in line over an hour for a departure. Any little bit of weather also incurs massive delays as well as trying to compete for airspace with the other major airports in the area. The old terminal was a pile of crap so at least that has been replaced with something nicer.

 

[Carolinian]

Sometimes there are tradeoffs. The old Istanbul airport was really crappy but close to the city with easy public transport into town and lots of hotels and restaurants in the vacinity. The new one is WAAAY out of town, with poor public transport and very little around it but the airport itself is very very nice. If all I am doing is connecting, as the last time I flew there, I will take the new airport any day, but if I am going into the city, as I used to do frequently, I liked the old one a lot better. While this is a European airport, the principle applies to any of them.

Back when I was a NW elite ff member, I used to try to connect through MEM because customs and immigration were much easier to deal with there than the alternative gateway airports, they had a great Memphis barbecue restaurant in the airport I liked to eat at, and because NW flew a British made commuter plane with a high percentage of first class seats between MEM and RDU and I knew I could always count on a first class upgrade. There are lots of reasons why one prefers a particular airport.