By Marnie Hunter | CNN
Huge crowds and high prices haven’t kept travelers at home. And many North American air travelers are still enjoying their time at airports, according to the overall satisfaction scores in the 2024 North America Airport Satisfaction Study from J.D. Power.
Minneapolis-Saint Paul International Airport is the most satisfying airport in the study’s “mega-airport” category, which looks at facilities serving 33 million or more passengers per year. It’s followed by Detroit Metropolitan Wayne County Airport and Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport.
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MSP has consistently been a top performer in the category, Michael Taylor, managing director of travel, hospitality and retail at J.D. Power, told CNN Travel. “Lately, the completion of internal and external projects has helped MSP dramatically,” Taylor said, adding that the Minnesota airport scores at the top of every dimension in the study in the mega-airport category.
Minneapolis-Saint Paul is currently working on a $242 million Airport Modernization Program making over its Terminal 1 concourses.
The study evaluates three airport categories — mega-airports, large airports and medium-sized airports — based on 26,290 traveler surveys collected from August 2023 through July 2024. It looks at seven core dimensions (listed in order of importance): ease of travel through the airport; level of trust with the airport; terminal facilities; airport staff; departure experience (trip to airport, grounds, parking, signage, baggage dropoff, etc.); food, beverage and retail; and arrival experience (exiting the airport, baggage claim, transportation location, signage, etc.).
In the large airport category, with 10 to 32.9 million passengers per year, John Wayne Airport in Orange County, California, is this year’s top scorer, followed by Tampa International Airport and Kansas City International Airport. Indianapolis International Airport ranks highest among medium airports with 4.5 to 9.9 million passengers per year, followed by Jacksonville International Airport and Southwest Florida International Airport.
Low scorers
Newark Liberty International Airport in Newark, New Jersey, ranks at the bottom of the mega-airport category.(Eduardo Munoz/Reuters via CNN Newsource)
Of course, there are some airports that earn poor marks for customer satisfaction. Newark Liberty International Airport ranks at the bottom of the study’s mega-airport category.
Traffic getting into the airport has put a damper on Newark’s newest terminal, which Taylor said has “outstanding design” and “impressive” food and beverage offerings.
“But if New Jersey traffic makes you late for your flight, you’re not likely to have time to enjoy what EWR offers,” Taylor said. “The Airtrain isn’t complete and that makes accessing the terminals difficult.”
In the large airport category, Philadelphia International Airport ranks lowest.
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“PHL’s design simply can’t handle the demand and crowding it experiences today,” Taylor said. “Departure gates in the older terminal are too small, ticketing lobbies can be overwhelmed at peak times and TSA needs more room to do the job they need to do. More investment in terminal re-design is needed.” A bright spot? Food, beverage and retail, he said.
In the medium-size category, Cleveland Hopkins International Airport ranks lowest.
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Source:: The Mercury News – Entertainment
