Letters to the Editor
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Oops, my mistake
Well, I totally misread the reference in relation to DCA. I thought you said something along the lines of "call it Reagan or else!!" That just goes to prove how much locals dearly hate the name change National underwent. My apologies for all the venom, the DC area is so full of irritating transplants that sometimes it gets to you!!
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Cheers for ATL.
For an airport as busy as ATL to get through this article mostly unscathed says pretty good things about it, don't you think? Southerners joke "when you die, you still have to go through ATL," and most of us consider it a place to be tolerated, not loved but...it gets it done.
Also, I heart my home airport - SFO. It's clean, there's good food, easily accessible beer, and you can take BART to it.
Most Improved: EWR - Newark used to be the seventh level of hell. It's not so bad now.
Gone Downhill: BUR - Remember when Burbank was this cute, convenient little airport that was almost a pleasure to hang out in? Not any more. Yeesh. What a dump.
Want To Smoke? Raleigh! It's practically mandatory. Avoid if you're allergic.
I'm so sorry to hear about Key West. I used to love that airport. I guess it must have gotten busier. It wasn't built to handle much. (The "luggage carousel" that goes for about five feet used to crack me up. Probably much less funny if the place is crowded.)
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Avoid New Jersey!
Full of the crabiest employees -- especially the feds -- of any airport in North America or abroad.
(I know this is more opinion than comment, but I can't help myself... New Jersey was that bad!)
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Santa Barbara
My favorite, that no one has mentioned, is the airport in Santa Barbara CA. Small, drive-right-up, few gates, open.
I've even taken a bus to or from LA just to use SBA rather than LAX.
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Weirdst experience at Heathrow
In 1995 I had to take a flight from JFK to Paris stopping off in Heathrow for a transfer. The connecting flight from France, one of those local arlines was of course late because it was the summer and nothing in France operates normally then. They packed everyone in the terminal into a big articulated bus to go to the connecting flight. And we waited and waited and waited and waited. After 2 hrs it finally moved
I kid you not, less distance than the length of bus
then stopped and let everyone off to climb the ramp stairs onto the connecting flight.
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I pity Chicagoans
I really don't know how you guys can stomach either of your airports. Flying through Midway always gives me that third-world-country feeling--all it needs is some chickens running around loose. Inadequate seating, lousy lighting, low ceilings, dirt...and interminable delays. O'Hare has nicer parts, but still, lousy food and interminable delays. You can get delayed in Chicago because of snow and ice in the winter, or thunderstorms in the summer. I figure there are about two good weeks of the year, but I've never hit either one. I will jump through all kinds of bizarre hoops to avoid flying through either one.
I have to put in another hurrah for my hometown airport, SFO. The international terminal really IS lovely. Security is efficient and the workers are at least polite, sometimes friendly. There's also likely to be someone there who can talk to you in whatever your native language is, including English. Decent food is available. Connections to the city and the burbs are both good. (If you take BART, look up while you're on the platform to see the environmental sculpture of little silver disks. It's neat.)
Oakland, however, is a pit. No matter how much time I allow, I always seem to be in danger of missing my flight. Slow security, dingy, unpleasant staff.
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IMHO The Best and Worst
Best? ANY Hawaiian airport.... because you're so damn glad to get there and they're so damn glad to see/greet you.
Also. LONG BEACH. Throwback to the 50's as well. No Elvis but reminiscent of the Old Burbank airport. You deplane to the tarmac - walk 50 yards to the terminal - pick up baggage and out the door to the STREET in no less than 10 minutes flat.
MSN. Hometown airport. When it was "Truax Field" it left alot to be desired....but yes, it's classy.
Worst?
Cincinnati...in Kentucky. That having to ride the bus between terminals is terminally stupid.
Milwaukee. After a thunderstorm-delayed flight that was supposed to take me from Cincinnati to MSN.... they dropped us off at Mitchell Field (another wartime throwback) at 9:00 PM - and THE DELTA DESK WAS CLOSED FOR THE EVENING. Needless to say Delta had to pay for CAB FARE for about 25 of us who needed to get to Madison. WTF? And I thought Utah was backwards...
Speaking of SLC: Things have gone seriously downhill since the Olympics. But we'll still welcome you - and take your money.
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In defense of IAD
National's fine, but rarely has the flights that I want. IAD is a bit of a zoo, but the security people generally take mercy on us as we are traveling with 2 kids under 5. The highly variable availability of food isn't an issue when you're making a photo finish arrival at the gate anyway.
I hesitate to even point this out, but if you are going to be gone for less than a week to 10 days, then the regular daily structure adjacent to the terminal works out cheaper than 2 cab fares from town, and puts you a 5 minute stumble from the first of the check-in lines.
As for road access, there are no sure bets with local traffic, but if you are anywhere near downtown / Georgetown, try the Whitehurst Freeway to Canal to Clara Barton Parkway - that puts you on the outer loop of the Beltway maybe 3 miles from the Dulles Access Road, and Canal Road is outbound only during rush hour. It won't be quick, but it is easy.
Finally, whoever was harshing on Keflavik should relax. A layover there convinced me to return and visit Iceland, which was great, and frankly a tub of skyr and a cup of coffee is about as much excitement as I need at that time on my body clock.