Best, Worst US Airports 2016: Where To Fly Out On Thanksgiving, Christmas, New Year’s

As the country makes travels plans for the Thanksgiving and Christmas holidays, those who intend to fly out of the West Coast will have a much easier time than their East Coast and Midwest counterparts.

A new study conducted by travel news website ThePointsGuy.com found Phoenix’s Sky Harbor International to be the best airport in the U.S., while New York’s LaGuardia and John F. Kennedy International were rated the worst.

Portland International, in Oregon, San Diego International, Salt Lake City International, and Honolulu International each rounded out the top five best, while Newark Liberty in New Jersey, Chicago’s O’Hare, and Detroit Metropolitan join the New York hubs in the bottom five.

ThePointsGuy said in a release that it honed in on airports’ “primary purpose,” shuttling passengers to their destinations and two other factors, ease of travel to the hubs by car and public transportation, as well as amenities like lounges, restaurants, and fees for parking and wireless internet.

The study focused on the 30 busiest airports in America and rated each on the number of flight delays and time spent at security checkpoints.

Phoenix’s Sky Harbor far outpaced all others due to its top scores in almost all categories, and it leads a dominant West Coast region that owns six of the top 10 spots.

Philadelphia International was the only East Coast airport to make the top 10, while five airports from the same region made up the 10 lowest-rated. Los Angeles International was ranked No. 21.

While the Bureau of Transportations Statistics estimates that 91 percent of Americans travel by car during the holidays, and only five to six percent by air, that still means millions could be affected by flight delays and long security lines.

In 2015, AAA Travel projected 46.9 million people would travel 50 or more miles, with the 3.6 million of that total by air, which was an estimated 0.1 percent increase compared to 2014.

And on Thursday, airlines announced they expect a 2.5 percent increase in the number of passengers this year. Between Friday, Nov. 18 and Tuesday, Nov. 29, with Thanksgiving taking place Thursday, Nov. 24, airlines anticipate a record 27 million passengers, an increase of 55,000 passengers per day, according to USA Today.

Here’s the full list of the best and worst airports, including their codes.

1. Phoenix Sky Harbor International (Arizona; PHX)

2. Portland International (Oregon; PDX)

3. San Diego International (California; SAN)

4. Salt Lake City International (Utah; SLC)

5. Honolulu International (Hawaii; HNL)

6. Seattle-Tacoma International (Washington; SEA)

7. Philadelphia International (Pennsylvania; PHL)

8. Charlotte Douglas International (North Carolina; CLT)

9. Las Vegas McCarran International (Nevada; LAS)

10. Minneapolis-St. Paul International (Minnesota; MSP)

11. Tampa International (Florida; TPA)