Record Crowds Anticipated At Tampa International Airport For Spring Break

TAMPA, FL — Using airline bookings and other predicting data, Tampa International Airport identified March 7 through April 10 as its official spring break season, the airport’s busiest time of the year.

But if Sunday was any indication, the heavy traffic is ramping up sooner than expected.

“It appears spring break is already here,” TPA Vice President of Operations John Tiliacos said at the March 2 Hillsborough County Aviation Authority board meeting. “This past Sunday, we had 84,000 passengers come through the airport. That’s our third busiest day in the past three years.”

In fact, this spring break at TPA is expected to be its busiest on record, with a daily average of 76,000 passengers passing through the airport, compared to 60,00 on a more typical day. On peak weekend days, the airport could see more than 90,000 passengers.

With additional traffic, competition for parking in the airport parking garages and longer-than-normal ticketing lines, Tiliacos conceded that coming to TPA can be a frustrating or stressful experience for those who don’t leave themselves enough time to get to their gates.

Airport officials recommend arriving at the airport at least two hours before departure for domestic flights and three hours for international flights.

Here are some other tips to help make spring break travel go smoothly:

Choose Express: Traveling with carry-on luggage only? The Blue Express Curbsides are an easy alternative to the regular departures and arrival curbs and allow those who don’t need to stop at the ticketing or baggage claim levels to get in and out of the Main Terminal more easily and quickly. Drivers can follow the signage to Express for a much-less-crowded drop-off and pick-up experience.

Plan Ahead for Parking: TPA offers online booking for parking, which has discounted pricing on its short-term, long-term and dconomy garages, some of which may reach capacity during peak days. Online bookings also help TPA anticipate demand and manage its garage space availability, making parking life easier for everyone.

Avoid Circling: Circling the roadways or lingering at the curbs is not allowed, so drivers picking up passengers should use the Cell Phone Waiting Lot, which has restrooms and free WiFi, as well as information boards listing flight arrival times. Once a passenger is ready and at the curb, his or her driver can get there in a flash without adding unnecessary traffic to TPA’s roadways.

Skip the Lines: Order ahead and have a latte or burger waiting for you when you arrive. Customers can use TPA To Go, which is powered by Uber Eats and can be used directly in the Uber Eats app, or the Starbucks mobile app to order and pay, then swing by the counter and pick up the goods without standing in line.