Home Consumer FLL & MIA Expect Record Crowds This Weekend – Some Tips

FLL & MIA Expect Record Crowds This Weekend – Some Tips

Transportation
FILE: TSA Lines Image: askthepilot.com
Have you Packed Your Bags Yet? We’re Predicting a 9 Percent Jump Over Last Year – Fort Lauderdale International Airport

More than half a million passengers are expected at Miami International Airport – MIA

These are the headlines from news releases from two of our area’s airports. Add to the usual crowds during peak holiday travel time, the expected delays at TSA.

SouthFloridaReporter has been reporting on the long wait times to clear security at many airports around the country. In some cases, passengers missed flights because of the delays. While congress and the TSA figure out who’s at fault and how to fix the problem, its best to allow plenty of extra time. Better to be early and wait at the boarding gate, then to watch your plane depart without you.

An added note, with the potential for flight delays due the possible storm off the east coast, you may want to use these helpful websites to track your flight, or the flight of someone you’re expecting. We’ve included information for those of you who will be driving this weekend:

Here’s information from FLL:

More than 522,000 travelers are expected to fly in and out of Broward County’s Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport during the Memorial Day holiday weekend. This number reflects approximately a 9 percent increase over the same period last year. The holiday period runs from Wednesday, May 25th through Tuesday, May 31st. The Broward County Aviation Department anticipates an average of 75,000 passengers a day during the seven-day travel period. Aviation Department officials expect the busiest travel days to be Thursday, May 26th, and Friday, May 27th. Our security checkpoint wait times average 20 minutes or less, but we still recommend you arrive 2-3 hours before your flight.

PARKING
SunPass Plus is available in all of the Airport’s parking facilities. Travelers can use SunPass Plus as a convenient way to pay for parking using a SunPass transponder. The traveler must use a SunPass Plus lane to enter and exit. With SunPass Plus entry, no ticket is required.

FLL has a variety of parking options. Travelers may choose from Curbside Valet ($25/day), convenient daily parking in our garages ($15/day), or Airport Economy Parking ($7.50/day). Travelers should allow extra time for parking during this holiday period.

Airport Economy Parking is located west of the Airport with 4,000 available spaces. Shuttle buses run every 15 minutes to and from the terminals. The Airport Economy Parking is located at 2755 S.W. 42nd Street, Fort Lauderdale, FL 33312. Take Griffin Road west to S.W. 30th Avenue. Travel north on S.W. 30th Avenue, then turn right on S.W. 42nd Street and follow the signs.

Auto detailing is available for passengers using Curbside Valet. Contact SP Plus for details on their services at 954-359-0200.

REMINDERS
The Cell Phone Waiting Area is located under the main entrance roadway to the airport. As you enter the airport, stay in the left lanes, follow the signs to All Parking, keep to the left and follow the signs to the Cell Phone Waiting Area. This road will bring you around the Cypress Garage/Rental Car Center to the Cell Phone Waiting Area. If the Cell Phone Waiting Area is full, please proceed to hourly parking in our garage.

LATEST INFORMATION
FLL now offers the TSA Pre-Check Program at our security checkpoints. Please visit their website to learn more about the program and how it works.

If you are a traveler with a disability or have a medical condition, you can plan ahead with TSA Cares or call their toll-free helpline at 1-855-787-2227 to enhance your airport experience.

MIA adds this information for their airport: 

More than half a million passengers are expected at Miami International Airport over the Memorial Day weekend from Friday, May 27, through Monday, May 30. Thanks to increased staffing by the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) and enhancements made by the Miami-Dade Aviation Department and partner airlines, TSA checkpoint wait times at MIA are currently among the lowest of all U.S. hub airports. Nevertheless, with passenger traffic at MIA up three percent through April and further growth expected this summer, the following tips can make traveling through MIA easier:

·         Departing passengers should arrive at the airport two hours before a domestic flight and three hours before an international flight to allow sufficient time for parking, airline check-in and screening at the security checkpoint.

·         The Concourse D #2 TSA checkpoint is now exclusively dedicated to TSA Pre✓® passengers flying American Airlines and other airlines using concourses D and E, and a TSA Pre✓® lane is is also available at the Concourse H checkpoint for passengers on flights in concourses H or J.

·         Passengers using CLEAR have dedicated lanes at the concourse E and H TSA checkpoints, which provide access to concourses D, E, H and J. Delta Air Lines recentlyannounced that CLEAR’s biometric service is now provided to its U.S. Diamond Medallion members free of charge, and all U.S. Delta SkyMiles members have access to preferential pricing.

·         The free Mobile Passport app allows U.S. citizens with a valid U.S. passport and Canadian citizens with both a valid Canadian passport and B1 or B2 visa status to have their passport information processed by U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) using their smartphone or tablet – and avoid the traditional checkpoint lanes – when arriving at MIA from abroad.

·         Passengers using Transportation Network Entities (TNE) such as Uber and Lyft can be dropped off anywhere on MIA’s departure level and be picked up on the departure level beyond Door 7. MIA’s arrival level beyond Door 5 (near baggage claim) at the outermost lane is also designated for TNE pickups.

·         Passengers can use the new MIA Airport Official mobile app, available for free at the iPhone and Google Play app stores, to: scan their boarding pass and immediately receive turn-by-turn, blue-dot navigation with estimated walk times; real-time flight updates; and shopping and dining suggestions nearby, based on their customizable personal profile.

·         Long-term parking is available in the Dolphin and Flamingo garages for a maximum daily rate of $17 or $2 every 20 minutes up to two hours and 40 minutes.  For ticket counter and parking locations, go to http://www.miami-airport.com/where_to_park.asp.

·         Valet parking is available at the Dolphin Garage on the departure level outside of North Terminal D or the Flamingo Garage on the departure level outside of South Terminal J. Valet parking allows customers to drop off their vehicle with a parking attendant and walk directly to MIA’s check-in area.  Rates are $18 for less than three hours or daily for $30.  Learn more at http://www.miami-airport.com/parking_rates.asp.

·         MIA’s Cell Phone Waiting lot, located at LeJeune Road and N.W. 31st Street, provides temporary parking free of charge for private, not-for-hire drivers waiting to pick up passengers.

·         Orange Line Metrorail service to and from MIA is available for a fare of only $2.25 each way, with service every 15 minutes this weekend. Overnight and long-term parking is available for up to 30 days at $4.50 per night at the Earlington Heights, Okeechobee and South Miami Metrorail stations. Long-term parking must be prepaid. For more information, go to http://www.miamidade.gov/transit/miami-international-airport-station.asp. 

·         Tri-Rail, the commuter train that links Miami, Ft. Lauderdale and West Palm Beach, and intercity buses also have dedicated stations at the Miami Intermodal Center, which is connected to the airport via the MIA Mover automated people mover system.