ROANOKE, Va. (WFXR) – The holiday spirit is in full swing, and for any air travelers, the earlier they can book a flight, the better.
The Thanksgiving weekend saw a record number of TSA screenings, both on a national and a local level, and the Roanoke-Blacksburg Regional Airport expects that momentum to continue through the rest of the year.
“Here at the Roanoke-Blacksburg Regional Airport, we’re excited for holiday travel season,” Alexa Briehl, the public relations, marketing and media manager at the airport, said. “We really see great numbers throughout the month of December and into January.”
One of the benefits of getting an earlier flight is for anyone traveling with holiday presents. People will likely need the extra time to wrap any gifts after they land.
Anyone showing up to the airport with wrapped presents should know they might not make it through security still wrapped.
“You might want to wrap your gifts now and get ahead of the game, but TSA has the right to open up and inspect your presents,” Briehl said. “You’ll want to keep them unwrapped, whether they’re in your carry-on or in your checked bag.”
Briehl said people should get to the airport about two hours before their flight. That will give everyone enough time to get their bags checked, go through TSA and get to their gates.
It will also give people more time to find a parking space if availability is scarce.
“We’re expecting higher volumes in our parking lots, we saw that over Thanksgiving,” Briehl said. “We had multiple days where some of the parking lots were full, so passengers came and expected to park in a certain lot, and then had to adjust their plans, so it’s good to give yourself plenty of time in case you have to go to your second-choice lot.”
More information on holiday travel tips can be found on the airport’s website and social media.