EL PASO, Texas [KFOX14] — The El Paso International Airport is preparing for an even busier Thanksgiving travel week than what they saw in the previous years.
The Thanksgiving travel season began Friday and will last through Tuesday, November 28.
The EPA reports there has been a 9% increase in passenger traffic compared to last year.
KFOX14 spoke to travelers who chose to get ahead of the holiday travel.
“I’m going to Southern California which is in Mission Viejo and visit my grandkids and also my daughter and my son in law,” Sylvia Armendariz said.
“We figured it was going to be less busy and we took some time off of work and this is the day that worked out for us,” Diana Rodriguez said.
Travelers can enjoy a smoother travel by planning ahead, arriving early and checking parking availability before arriving.
“I always check in early, it makes things easier for me especially because I travel with my daughters,” Ana Luisa Alvarez said.
In addition, the EPA also reports there’s been a 19% increase in passenger traffic as compared to the same time in 2019, before the COVID-19 lockdown started.
Traveler Jack Curry said he noticed the difference from pre and post pandemic time and believes traveling is finally looking up.
“COVID just definitely made things a lot worse with having to get pre-checks for symptoms and stuff, it’s just a lot smoother now that everything has kind of settled in,” said Curry.
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