Melissa Luna and City of El Paso
A worker cleans near an American flag and Christmas decorations in the mostly empty El Paso International Airport amid a surge of COVID-19 cases on November 12, 2020 in El Paso, Texas. (Photo by Mario Tama/.)
EL PASO, Texas (KTSM) — The El Paso International Airport has seen an increase of passengers this year and is anticipating the airport to be busy this holiday season, the City of El Paso said in a press release on Thursday, Nov. 16.
The city says the airport has seen a nine percent increase in passenger traffic as compared to the same time last year and a 19 percent increase as compared to the same time in 2019, before the pandemic.
The city says the Thanksgiving travel season is set to begin on Friday, Nov. 17 and conclude on Tuesday, Nov. 28.
Throughout this 12-day period, ELP will have nearly 85,000 seats available. The busiest days for ELP are projected to be Wednesday, Nov. 22 and Monday, Nov. 27, based on scheduled flights and available seats.
To assist passengers in having a smooth and pleasant journey, the city provided the following travel tips:
- Plan ahead
- Visit TSA.gov to review the prohibited items list as well as identification requirements.
- Check FlyELP.com to review the airport’s hours of operation. The terminal remains limited to ticketed passengers with a flight departing within 4 hours, between the operating hours of 3:30 a.m. and the last flight departure of the day. Exceptions apply to passengers with special needs who require assistance.
- Arrive early
- Arrive at least two hours before their departure time, with a maximum of four hours. This allows ample time for waiting in queue lines and ensures a stress-free experience.
- Please be aware that the terminal opens at 3:30 a.m. each day and overnight stay is not permitted, please plan your arrival at the terminal accordingly.
- Parking
- Visit FlyELP.com to review Parking options. We encourage passengers to familiarize themselves with the recent changes made to the parking at ELP. Changes include revised parking fees, updates to the Disabled Veteran Parking policy, and the addition of the West Lot, which is exclusively paid by mobile device.
- Picking up
- The Cell Phone waiting lot is a great way to pick up arriving guests when the short-term lot becomes full. Park in the lot located at the corner of American and Piper. Once your guests have claimed their baggage and are ready and waiting at the curb have them call you and you can drive to them within a couple of minutes.
