Perhaps it should come as no surprise, but Hawaii airports are considered the least stressful followed by Salt Lake City and Atlanta.
That’s the upshot of a new report from InsureMyTrip, which also predicts New York‘s LaGuardia will no longer be most stressful for travelers this 2019 Thanksgiving. While LaGuardia has improved its cancellation rate this year, the airport previously reported the highest percentage of canceled flights in the country for both 2017 and 2018.
Chicago airports have endured a rough patch when it comes to on-time performance.
Both Chicago O’Hare International (ORD) and Chicago Midway International (MDW) are experiencing the highest cancellation rates in the country, based on available 2019 data. However, those numbers don’t yet include recent snowstorms that grounded more than 1,000 flights.
“The data offers an interesting look at how the nation’s largest airports stack up regarding on-time performance,” said Julie Loffredi, travel editor at InsureMyTrip. “While travelers may find it difficult to avoid booking flights through airports prone to cancellations or delays, they can certainly use this information to make more informed decisions when booking a trip and choosing travel insurance.”
To guard against stress, Loffredi says travelers may want to have a “back up” plan in the event a flight is delayed or canceled.
For Thanksgiving, try booking a flight a few days out. If a flight is canceled the day before Thanksgiving, travelers might have trouble rebooking to arrive in time to carve the turkey.
Also, try booking a flight earlier in the day — that should give travelers a better chance of the flight leaving on-time. Flights scheduled for departure between 4 p.m. and 6 p.m. are more susceptible to delays and cancellations.
If a flight is canceled, most airlines will rebook travelers on the next available flight at no additional charge. However, airlines are not required to reimburse travelers for losses incurred as a result of a canceled flight.