NBC 6’s Nicole Lauren has more on why you may be spending a lot more time at the airport Monday trying to catch a flight.
As the holiday season wraps up, many people are either coming or heading home, meaning airports are jam packed.
Combined with Covid protocols, canceled or delayed flights and crowds can make your time at the airport less than perfect.
Airport officials say Sunday and Monday are expected to be the busiest days of the holiday season because travelers are going home after vacations or traveling for Three King’s Day.
Miami International Airport expects to see more than 300,000 travelers between Sunday and Monday.
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“Just frustrated,” Ashley Grant, whose flight got canceled said. “Trying to get home. We have childcare issues and stuff we’re trying to deal with and move around last minute. At this point, we’re considering driving all the way back home.”
Grant says her group of friends got off a cruise ship on Sunday to find their Southwest flight home had been cancelled because of airline staff shortages due to the omicron variant. They couldn’t rebook a flight.
And they’re not alone.
Local
On New Year’s Eve, 23 arrivals and 25 departures were canceled at Miami International Airport due to flight crew shortages.
On New Year’s Day, 42 arrivals and 46 departures were cancelled for the same reason.
The Kyriakopolous family says their Spirit flight to Denver left them and around 60 other people behind.
“It’s a lot. This is holiday time and we were looking forward to vacationing with our family,” George Kyriakopolous said. “It’s really unpleasant that Spirit decided we’re not even going to extend a reasonable level of customer service.”
NBC 6 reached out to Spirit for comment on this issue, but have not heard back.
“Our bags are there and we are clearly still here. They’re not offering a refund. They’re offering a credit, which we have no interest in flying with Spirit ever again. This has been a horrible experience,” Kyriakopolous said.
Officials recommend confirming your flight status and checking into your flight before arriving at the airport.
They say, for domestic flights, get there three hours before your flight, and for international travel, give yourself an extra thirty minutes to make sure things go smoothly.
