The 10 Worst Airports In The U.S., According To Frommer’s

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It seems like anyone who’s anyone (or thinks they are) has an annual “best airports in the world” list. Skytrax. Travel & Leisure. CN Traveler. A few even have the “worst airports in the world.” Forbes. Business Insider.

Do you know what very few places ever report on, though? The worst airports in the United States. And that’s a shame because even though it’s fun to know which airports around the world stink, the bottom line is that 40% (+/-) of Americans have never left the country. So, saying that Humberto Delgado Airport in Portugal was voted in 2020 as the worst airport in the world by AirHelp doesn’t give them any meaning because they’ve never been to Portugal, never mind that particular airport. There’s much more of a chance that they’ve been to… Well, I’m getting ahead of myself.

Frommer’s History

Frommer’s travel guidebooks have been around since 1957 – so over 65 years.

In 1957, Arthur Frommer was a corporal in the U.S. Army. He wrote a travel guide for American GIs in Europe, and then produced a civilian version called Europe on $5 a Day. The book ranked famous landmarks and sights in order of importance and included suggestions on how to travel around Europe on a budget. It’s said to be the first travel guide that showed Americans they could afford to travel in Europe.

Upon his return to the U.S., Frommer became a lawyer. However, he continued to write and self-publish his guidebooks, expanding to destinations such as New York, Mexico, Hawaii, Japan, and the Caribbean. The collection continued growing when Arthur’s daughter, Pauline, began writing her additions to the series.

From 1977 onward, the Frommers series was sold several times over. Google purchased the rights to the series in 2012, but when they announced in 2013 that they would no longer publish the books, the Frommers bought the rights of the series back.

By the way, Arthur Frommer is still alive. Born in July 1929, he recently celebrated his 95th birthday.

Here’s the list of what Frommer’s says are the 10 worst airports in the U.S.:

10. Washington Dulles International Airport (IAD) – Virginia

Problems: inconvenient location, confusing layout

Frommer’s biggest beef with IAD is the layout. It’s a beautiful building designed by none other than Eero Saarinen, the same guy who designed the iconic TWA Building at JFK. But what’s there is style is not there in convenience. It’s challenging to get from one concourse to another, and the custom-built “mobile lounges” they initially built to transport travelers were slow (they’re still in use, but on a much smaller scale than initially intended. There was even some big news about them earlier this summer.

This video provides the vision and reasoning for IAD before it was built. It’s interesting and VERY retro, but not what came to be of IAD in terms of convenience.

One problem that was finally fixed? The airport is 30 miles away from downtown Washington, D.C. But finally – FINALLY! – in late 2022, IAD was connected to the Silver Line.

9. Yeager Airport (CRW), Charleston, West Virginia

Problems: scary location

CRW sits on a hill with a 300-foot drop-off on all sides. If a plane goes too far, it’s going to literally fall off the edge. It’s bad enough that CRW is on the FAA’s Special Pilot In Command Qualification list.

There are other airports that are in scary locations – Midway Airport, in Chicago, has short runways. Telluride Regional Airport is known for its strong vertical turbulence during winter. Pilots flying into San Diego Airport have to be aware of strong tailwinds blowing in from the west.

That drop, though…

8. Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport (DFW), Texas

Problems: flight delays and cancellations, long lines due to understaffing

This list was updated since COVID, and although just about EVERY airport has had its share of delays and cancellations, it seems that DFW is getting more complaints than most (as per Skytrax)

But it’s not even just anecdotally – DFW is almost always in the “top ten” for delays and cancellations, according to reports by the DOT. However, they started on a $9 billion “transformation” project a few weeks ago, so maybe that will help. Eventually.

7. Denver International Airport (DEN), Colorado

Problems: bumpy takeoffs and landings, long TSA lines, parking issues, construction

Just like CRW (#9 above), DEN is a scary airport for flying because it’s frequently a victim of “mountain wave” turbulence. From the FAA:

When the wind speed is above about 25 knots and flowing perpendicular to the ridge lines, the airflow can form waves, much like water flowing over rocks in a stream bed. The waves form downwind from the ridge line and will be composed of very strong up and down drafts.

Read: it can feel like a roller coaster.

DEN has been another victim of not having enough staff members, which has led to longer lines and difficulty finding parking (because they don’t have enough shuttle drivers, so 2 parking lots are closed).

DEN has had its share of excitement, though:

• The naked passenger walking around the airport
• Conspiracy theories galore
• They had a freakin’ TALKING GARGOYLE!

6. Cleveland Hopkins International Airport (CLE), Ohio

Problems: outdated facilities, limited accessibility

First, I will give CLE credit where credit is due. It was the first airport with an air traffic control tower. It was also the first to have a two-terminal design that separated arrivals from departures. AND it was the first airport to be directly connected with a mass transit system.

But being “first” for some many things points out CLE’s biggest problem: it’s just OLD. It’s not made for the 21st century. But they plan to start $2 billion in renovations to make it more modern…starting next year.

5. Philadelphia International Airport (PHL), Pennsylvania

Problems: outdated terminals, traffic

PHL’s problem on the inside is that, like CLE, it’s old and needs an update. Fortunately, they got some money from the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, and that money ($1.8 billion) is currently being used to refresh the airport, including upgrades to roadways, terminals and the airfield.

4. O’Hare International Airport (ORD), Illinois

Problems: overcrowding, delays/cancellations

ORD is famous for its delays. It’s not the airport’s fault, or even the airlines’. It’s just that Chicago gets some really crappy weather all year round. So swaths of huge wind gusts, or major snowstorms can make delayed and cancelled flights pile up.

ORD also just needed to be bigger. Fortunately, they just finished a 16-year, $6 BILLION redevelopment plan, which should help make the airport more pleasant.

3. Los Angeles International Airport (LAX), California

Problems: bad customer experience, traffic congestion, confusing layout

When I saw that one of the problems for LAX was traffic congestion, my first thought was, “Well DUH, it’s southern California!” But their beef was more about the lack of decent public transportation to get people between the airport and Downtown L.A.

LAX is huge, with NINE terminals. Joe and I have experienced trying to get from one to another, and nope, it’s not fun.

Fortunately, they’re doing construction at LAX that may eventually help things, in the end.

Now, if only they could reopen the restaurant on top of the Theme Building designed by Disney Imagineers.

2. LaGuardia Airport (LGA), New York City

Note: Frommer’s list is admittedly from 2022. LGA’s construction is complete, and it’s gone from one of the worst airports in the country to one of the best. But this is what they said in 2022:

Problems: delays and cancellations, construction, poor ground transportation

If there was ever an airport that needed a facelift, it was LGA. Opened in 1939, by the 1960s it was already too small for the needs of a large metropolitan area where John Q. Public was flying more and more.

Fortunately, the airport has been in the midst of that much-needed rehab since 2016. Construction-related traffic woes had gotten so bad in 2019 that people were actually leaving their cars and walking to the airport. That’s because there’s STILL no ground transportation at LGA to make traveling there easier. There were some preliminary plans to build a monorail between the airport and local trains, but that was soon scrapped after former Govornor Cuomo left his post.

LGA is one of three large airports in the area, which makes for ongoing clogged airspace over NYC. That makes for delays and cancellations up the ying yang. And unfortunately, no amount of construction is going to fix that.

And THE WORST airport in the United States, according to Frommer’s, is…
1. Newark-Liberty International Airport (EWR), New Jersey

Problems: delays/cancellations, poor amenities, inconvenient location

Who’s surprised? Beuller? Beuller?

EWR has pretty consistently ranked towards the bottom of the barrel. One of the 3 airports in the NYC area, it has the worst on-time rate of any airport (nearly 25% of all flights were delayed or canceled).

EWR also suffers from overcrowding, a cleanliness issue, and really crappy food options.

Oh, and travel to and from? Total pain. You have to take a cab or ride sharing, or take 2 trains that are operated by two different systems (too confusing for tourists).

Frommers’ methodology

Some “Best/Worst” reports are based on reports from the DOT, or surveys of thousands of people. Frommers’ list is a little less scientific and official.

…we considered several factors, including flight delays, security wait times, customer satisfaction surveys, and the reviews of experts.

Admittedly, that’s not super specific. However, that’s also how their books have been written for the past 65 years, so I’m not going to argue with them.

Again, their list is from 2022. Based on their methodology, I suspect it wouldn’t change much (save for LGA) in 2024.

What do you think is the worst airport in the country?

Feature Photo (cropped): Aqua Mechanical / license

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