Palm Springs International Airport discusses Memorial Day weekend travel
Kendall Flynn
PALM SPRINGS, Calif. (KESQ) – Memorial Day weekend is one of the busiest travel days throughout the United States as people travel before summer. While it can make for a hectic airport experience, Palm Springs International Airport said travelers don’t need to worry flying out of PSP.
“We’re expecting about 26,000 travelers to come from Friday through Monday,” The PSP Spokesperson, Jake Ingrassia, said. “So about 6,500 travelers each of those days. That is not very many compared to what we’ve seen just over the last couple of months and our peak months like March and April.”
March and April are heavy travel months for PSP, as it is during the peak tourism season. Tourism brings nearly $9 billion to the greater Coachella Valley, and after Memorial Day weekend, the industry slows down.
“If you flew through PSP during March or April, you’ll have a very different experience this weekend compared to that,” Ingrassia said.
However, Ingrassia said flyers may have difficulties at other airports while trying to reach Palm Springs.
“This is a record breaking travel weekend at many other airports, especially here in Southern California,” Ingrassia said. “For people who might be flying out of Ontario or LAX, you’re going to see long lines, heavy traffic, and a difficult time to be prepared for.”
News Channel 3 spoke with travelers at PSP on Saturday, and while many report the airports were busier on Friday, they said they expected it to be more busy.
“We got to the airport like four hours early,” Jenna Moniger, a traveler from Chicago said. “We breezed through everything though. Security took maybe two minutes. Which is a pleasant surprise because I feel like Friday was probably the hectic day for it.”
No matter if the airport is crazy or not, travelers said the Memorial Day weekend is the perfect time to visit family members, celebrate birthdays or completing school and enjoy the Palm Springs heat.
Stay with News Channel 3 to hear more from visitors and PSP on Memorial Day weekend travel.