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This Florida airport had the most delays: The best, worst airports for spring break travel

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This Florida airport had the most delays: The best, worst airports for spring break travel

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Nothing can ruin a spring break getaway faster than encountering a travel disruption at the airport.

Half of all travelers with spring break plans are “concerned” about disruptions impacting their travel plans, according to travel platform Hopper’s 2024 Spring Break Travel Outlook. 

The report said last year saw a higher-than-average volume of disruptions. During spring break, 20.1% of flights were delayed, compared to 18.4% throughout 2023.

For smooth travels, aGamble analyzed flight departure data from the U.S. Bureau of Transportation Statistics to see which airports had the most disruptions during March and April 2023 – the usual spring break period. Disruptions included delays, cancellations and diversions. 

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“With spring break officially kicking off, airports are expected to be crowded throughout the coming weeks, and travelers may face flight disruptions depending on their departure location,” Collin Czarnecki, a researcher for aGamble, told USA TODAY in an email.

“It might not be surprising that a majority of airports with the most flight disruptions are located in spring break destination hotspots such as Fort Lauderdale, Orlando, Las Vegas, and Miami,” Czarnecki said. On the other hand, the airports with the best on-time departures during the spring break period last year were Pittsburgh International Airport in Pittsburgh and Portland International Airport in Oregon.

Czarnecki also added that the second and third week of March will be the busiest at security checkpoints, so be sure to arrive at the airport with ample time. 

The worst airports for spring break travel

  1. Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International in Florida – 34.87% of flights delayed, 4.63% canceled 
  2. Harry Reid International in Las Vegas – 31.44% of flights delayed, 1.47% canceled 
  3. Orlando International in Orlando, Florida – 31.06% of flights delayed, 1.52% canceled 
  4. Baltimore/Washington International Thurgood Marshall in Baltimore – 31.26% of flights delayed, 1.22% canceled 
  5. Chicago Midway International – 29.04% of flights delayed, 1.32% canceled
  6. Miami International – 29.22% of flights delayed, 0.88% canceled 
  7. Newark Liberty International in Newark, New Jersey – 25.81% of flights delayed, 2.53% canceled
  8. Dallas-Forth Worth International – 25.11% of flights delayed, 2.49% canceled
  9. Denver International – 26.51% of flights delayed, 1.04% canceled
  10. John F. Kennedy International in New York – 25.06% of flights delayed, 2.23% canceled

The best airports for spring break travel

  1. Pittsburgh International – 83.8% on-time flight departures
  2. Portland International – 83.2% on-time flight departures
  3. Cincinnati/Northern Kentucky International – 82.2% on-time flight departures
  4. Washington Dulles International in Virginia – 82% on-time flight departures
  5. Ronald Reagan Washington National in Arlington, Virginia – 81.9% on-time flight departures
  6. Minneapolis-St. Paul International – 81.8% on-time flight departures
  7. Indianapolis International – 81.7% on-time flight departures
  8. Seattle/Tacoma International – 81.6% on-time flight departures
  9. Cleveland-Hopkins International in Ohio – 81.3% on-time flight departures
  10. Philadelphia International – 80.9% on-time flight departures

Kathleen Wong is a travel reporter for USA TODAY based in Hawaii. You can reach her at kwong@usatoday.com.

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