Worst & Best Airports

[BmillsSkier]

The list is in:




It blows my mind how well ATL runs that many people through it each year.

DEN is still a goat rodeo with not enough baggage handlers.

[riser4]

Whenever I hear the term Goat Rodeo the mental image is Benny Hill and friends chasing a bunch of goats with the Yakety Sax soundtrack.

[phatty]

I'm going all in on Global Entry asap.

Prepare to wait. I was an idiot and forgot to renew before mine lapsed. I've now been waiting 10 months for my preliminary approval. Nothing has changed and no one has touched my application in the 10 months. If I sign up for precheck, I will have to pay full price for Global Entry once they finally get to me. I'm probably going to break down after my next flight. I'm sick of taking my shoes off.

[I Skied Bandini Mountain]

Whenever I hear the term Goat Rodeo the mental image is Benny Hill and friends chasing a bunch of goats with the Yakety Sax soundtrack.

You just described the DEN security check points.

[BmillsSkier]

You just described the DEN security check points.

And the check-in counters for all the eastbound early morning flights (that you have to go through if you are checking skis).

6am flight to ATL? Sure, come on by the ticket counter at 4am which won't actually open till 4:30am and the line will have already wrapped back to the interior breezeway by 3am.

Thank God for Precheck and staying at the Westin which helps deal with that nonsense.

[riser4]

I am getting so that I pay more not to take early flights anywhere, if I can help it. For many reasons.

[Ted Striker]

First flight of the day is the most likely to have a mechanical delay/cancellation.

[BmillsSkier]

First flight of the day is the most likely to have a mechanical delay/cancellation.

Learned that the hard way one trip out of DEN which is why I go for the 6am instead of the 5-5:30am. I never understood how they think they can get skiers checked in (via counter cause they have to), through security and on the plane before the door closes with all bags on board on that flight.

Spoiler alert: they can't.

[booner]

Dulles needs to be lit on fire

[alpinevibes]

Prepare to wait. I was an idiot and forgot to renew before mine lapsed. I've now been waiting 10 months for my preliminary approval. Nothing has changed and no one has touched my application in the 10 months. If I sign up for precheck, I will have to pay full price for Global Entry once they finally get to me. I'm probably going to break down after my next flight. I'm sick of taking my shoes off.

FYI - they bumped the grace period for renewals from 6mo-24mo. I had some issues last year when my GE was expiring and we were headed to MX in march and I couldn't get an interview for ~8mo in DEN.

I ended up finding out that I could get renewed by doing an "Enrollment On Arrival" at customs when we flew back in to DEN. It was quick and easy and saved me the massive headache of coordinating an in-person interview at a qualified airport. https://www.cbp.gov/travel/trusted-t...llment-arrival locations available are: https://thepointsguy.com/credit-card...ival-airports/

[alpinevibes]

I could have gone PHL and actually had to drive slightly less, but flights were worse times and more expensive by at least $200.

I'm going all in on Global Entry asap.

Do it, but do yourself a favor and open a new United Explorer Card or Capital One Venture Rewards or Bank of America Premium card and get the application covered, along with your free 50,000mi/points.

[phatty]

FYI - they bumped the grace period for renewals from 6mo-24mo. I had some issues last year when my GE was expiring and we were headed to MX in march and I couldn't get an interview for ~8mo in DEN.

I ended up finding out that I could get renewed by doing an "Enrollment On Arrival" at customs when we flew back in to DEN. It was quick and easy and saved me the massive headache of coordinating an in-person interview at a qualified airport. https://www.cbp.gov/travel/trusted-t...llment-arrival locations available are: https://thepointsguy.com/credit-card...ival-airports/

Yeah, my problem was it expired during a time I wasn't flying much and I forgot to renew before the expiration. The grace period is only if you renew prior to expiration. I get no benefits or TSA even though it is a renewal application. I just talked to them and they escalated my application, so hopefully I can get it moving.

[huckbucket]

First flight of the day is the most likely to have a mechanical delay/cancellation.

Hmmm ... that's interesting. I always thought that as even small delays added up over the course of the day that they get amplified by the end.

[nickwm21]

Hmmm ... that's interesting. I always thought that as even small delays added up over the course of the day that they get amplified by the end.

I was under the same impression.

I take the first flight of the day once a month for a meeting down the coast. Always smooth


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[Ted Striker]

Hmmm ... that's interesting. I always thought that as even small delays added up over the course of the day that they get amplified by the end.

That's true as well, but what I was getting at is that there are generally "first flight" checks dictated by the manufacturer or the airline's SOP. Anything that doesn't pass those checks/tests is basically a surprise, whereas issues that arise on other flights are generally known before the airplane reaches the gate, so maintenance personnel have a head start on rectification. Add to that, the first flight of the day is often from an out-station to a hub, so there may only be contract maintenance, with limited parts and resources.

[BmillsSkier]

Dulles needs to be lit on fire

Wasn't that the plot of Die Hard 2?

[riser4]

Dulles needs to be lit on fire

Heh. Flaming bag of poo.

[half-fast]

Learned that the hard way one trip out of DEN which is why I go for the 6am instead of the 5-5:30am. I never understood how they think they can get skiers checked in (via counter cause they have to), through security and on the plane before the door closes with all bags on board on that flight.

Spoiler alert: they can't.

Flew out of Denver recently. United had a guy curbside checking in skis and big bags.

[rideit]

Bogóta is clean and safe, with good Wi-Fi.

[gravitylover]

It used to be that my preference was red-eye flights. Is that still good or has it become a no-go?

[Ted Striker]

Beautiful town too.

[singlesline]

I was under the same impression.

I take the first flight of the day once a month for a meeting down the coast. Always smooth


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yeah, at least at small airports and/or places where weather is a big factor, I trust the first flight out much more.

You know your plane is there because it made it in last night (even if it came in super late). Your flight crew isn’t going to time out. And you have plenty of time to absorb delays/reschedule things if something goes wrong.

i hate waking up early though. If we are talking nonstops between major airports like ORD-MSP or ORD-DEN, I’m fine taking a later flight as there are always later options and they have ways to recover from a broken plane or a crew issue as substitutes are available.

But now that I am flying out of a small mountain airport and going to need a connection for most destinations, I’m willing to wake up early.

[Danno]

But now that I am flying out of a small mountain airport and going to need a connection for most destinations, I’m willing to wake up early.

Also, at smaller airports, a 6am flight is much easier to manage than it is at an airport like DIA. With security being a big wildcard, not to mention things like off-site parking with a shuttle, and a 45 minute drive time for me, a 6am flight requires I leave my house around 3:30am (and even that could cut it close).

[Kevo]

What is the point of the Global Entry renewal interviews?

I've had global entry for nine years. I've been interviewed twice. The first interview was a joke. "Why do you travel?" "Work and pleasure." "Do you plan to go to Cuba?" "I plan to follow all applicable laws." "Ok, you're approved."

Second time around the interview was a one minute interaction. "Have you been convicted of any crimes outside the united states since you were approved for Global Entry the first time?" "No." "Ok, you're approved."

It was a complete waste of time that necessitated me scheduling an interview months in advance, driving an hour to and from DIA, parking, following some nonsense procedure where I had to ring a doorbell within a specified timeframe (not to early, not too late) and then having some CBP officer press a button on a keyboard. Why? Why does the program require so much wasted time?

[rideit]

They want to eyeball you. If fact, most immigration and customs interactions, they aren't really asking you questions, they are observing your body language.