MIAMI – South Florida airports are preparing to break their passenger records this long weekend, considered the start of the summer season in the United States, in which it is expected that travelers from all over the country 39.2 million people, 8.3% more than in 2021.
The figure is from the American Automobile Association (AAA), the largest group of motorists in the country, owner of its own travel agency, among other companies.
Memorial Day “bridge”, as the last Monday in May is known, a holiday to honor those killed in the line of duty, is traditionally spent on the beach, and the south of Florida has some of the best known in the country.
Miami International Airport (MIA), which in the last 36 days has received a daily average of 150,000 passed holes, instead of the 126,000 that it received for these dates in 2019, has issued a series of recommendations to travelers to avoid problems.
Compared to the Memorial Day weekend of the last year before the pandemic, the current daily average is one 17 Higher % and it can still increase more.
“There is a repressed demand for a while. People are ready to get back on the road,” said MIA spokesman Greg Chin.
MIA authorities they have asked those who travel from Miami to other places not to go to the airport in their own cars, as parking spaces are already scarce.
They also advise arriving at least three hours before for a domestic flight and three and a half hours before for an international flight, and have done the check-in process for boarding via internet, before arriving at the airport.
A lot of movement at the Airport Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International
The same advice applies to Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport, located about 45 miles north of Miami, where they also expect an avalanche of flights and passengers and the parking lots have already begun to fill up.
The latest official figures, corresponding to the first quarter of 2022, indicate that Florida received some 36 million tourists, including visitors from the country and foreigners, which represents an increase of 14 % compared to of the last quarter of 2021.
Of the total, 1.3 million arrived from other countries in this first quarter, that is, an increase of nearly of 169 % compared to the same period of 2021, according to Visit Florida, the agency of tourist promotion of the state.
According to AAA, the unofficial start of summer is going to be a busy one this year, as 39,2 million people will travel 80 miles (80 miles) or more from their homes this Memorial Day weekend. This is an 8.3% increase from 2021, bringing travel volumes almost in line with 2017.
Air travel will increase by 25 % over last year, the second largest increase since 2010, and the number of travelers who will choose that mode of transportation will be 3 million.
“Memorial Day is always a good indicator of things to come for summer travel,” said Paula Twidale, senior vice president of AAA Travel.