Nearly one million people in Connecticut are hitting the road to travel for the holidays, and tens of thousands of people will be flying out of the state’s two major airports.
If you have travel plans over the next few days, you'll want to hear this.
Nearly one million people in Connecticut are hitting the road to travel for the holidays, and tens of thousands of people will be flying out of the state's two major airports.
Tweed New Haven Airport was buzzing to start the day Friday, but settled out a bit mid-day.
Many we caught up with were a flight away from their holiday destinations.
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“Taking care of my mom,” Sonya Colon, who was headed to Florida, said.
Given Tweed's services, Florida was a common destination, along with the Carolinas.
“Going down to North Carolina to visit my mom for the holidays, my little sister is driving over there so going to meet up with her,” Nick Geraci, who came down from Torrington for his flight, said.
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From Florida, up the east coast, flights were heading out without a hitch Friday.
“I am going to the beach with my family. My round trip flight total was $7,” said Aislinn Whalen, who was stoked about her bargain ticket.
For some though, Friday was their second attempt. The old saying goes, "If at first you don’t succeed, try try again."
“This is actually our second day here because yesterday we were here, we missed our flight because there were so many people,” Elsa Rodriguez said as she waved to her son who was about halfway up the TSA line.
She was dropping him off for the second time. They were early for their original flight on Thursday, but were met with massive lines, so they tried again Friday afternoon and found success.
“This is normal, this is good, this is how I’m used to traveling from here,” she said.
Experts say for the holidays this year, trends nationally continue to mirror here in Connecticut.
“In Connecticut, we are actually seeing an increase of about 5% year over year,” Tracy Noble with AAA said.
She said roughly 116,000 people will fly to their holiday destination from a Connecticut airport.
“The airports are going to be crowded,” Noble said.
She said travelers should make sure to plan ahead. Noble recommends downloading the airline and airport apps that are available to ensure smooth travel in the event of severe weather, or airline delays.
“We know the TSA is predicting busy lines so give yourself the extra time, get through security and then have the peace of mind to relax before you get on your flight,” Noble said.
Lots of Tweed travelers were showing up early. They said they wanted to ensure their holiday wishes came true.
“Got a nice little 10-day getaway,” Geraci said as he headed to drop off his bags.
If you are flying over the next few days, airline and airport officials recommend arriving extra early to ensure you have plenty of time to park, get through TSA and settle before hopping on a plane.
