As the holiday season approaches, millions of travelers are preparing to pack their bags and head to the skies, making this one of the busiest times of the year for air travel.
Airports across the United States experience a significant surge in passenger traffic, with some hubs seeing more dramatic increases than others.
Whether travelers are visiting family, heading for a vacation, or flying for business, the peak holiday season creates a challenge for both airports and airlines to manage the spike in demand.
In response to rising air travel demand, the Airport Infrastructure Grant (AIG) program is providing $14.5 billion in funding over five years to support terminal expansions, baggage system upgrades, runway enhancements, and air traffic infrastructure improvements. As air travel hits record highs—including the TSA screening nearly 3.1 million passengers in a single day in June of 2025—these investments will help airports better handle surges in traffic during the busy holiday season.
Average Daily Flight Passenger Traffic Recovery After the Pandemic
Air travel has rebounded significantly since the sharp decline caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, with average daily passenger traffic now exceeding pre-pandemic levels. According to Transportation Security Administration (TSA) data, daily passenger volume during the 2019 holiday season—the periods surrounding Thanksgiving and the winter holidays—averaged about 2.4 million. That figure plunged to roughly 1 million in 2020 amid widespread travel restrictions. As those restrictions eased, air travel steadily recovered, reaching nearly 2.5 million daily passengers during the 2023 holiday season—surpassing 2019 levels. By 2024, holiday travel climbed even higher, averaging nearly 2.6 million daily passengers.
Non-holiday passenger traffic has followed a similar trend. In 2024, average daily passenger traffic approached 2.5 million, surpassing 2023 levels. With 2025 non-holiday traffic already outpacing last year, this year’s holiday season is shaping up to be one of the busiest on record.
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Change in Airport Traffic During the Holiday Season by Airport Size
During the Thanksgiving and winter holiday seasons of 2024, the smallest airports experienced the largest increases in daily passenger traffic compared to non-holiday periods. Based on 2024 data, large hub airports saw a 4.6% rise in average daily traffic during the holidays, while medium hubs increased by 5.7%. Smaller airports posted even larger gains, with small hubs up 6.5% and nonhub primary airports up 8.2%. The most dramatic growth occurred at nonhub nonprimary airports—the smallest commercial service category by annual enplanements—which recorded a 20.1% increase in daily passenger traffic during the holiday season. However, air traffic at smaller airports tends to be more volatile, meaning year-to-year percentage changes can appear larger even when absolute passenger volumes remain relatively low.
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