Philadelphia International Airport Joins Chicago, Hartsfield, Charlotte, Denver, And Las Vegas In Facing Thanksgiving Travel Mayhem: What You Need To Know About 2025’s Record Surge

Published on December 1, 2025

Thanksgiving 2025 is going to be the most hectic in history for Philadelphia International Airport, and is also forecasting Chicago, Hartsfield, Charlotte, Denver, and Las Vegas to be just as busy. During this peak travel time, the above airports will process millions of over-the-water flights with extremely high congestion levels. Specifically, Philadelphia International Airport is forecasting to serve just under 1 million travelers. Following O’Hare, Hartsfield-Jackson, Charlotte, Denver International, and Las Vegas, Harry Reid will also be at altitude with expected servicing of elevated volumes, which will result in overworked TSA personnel, packed terminals, and delays in service. With record-high travel volumes, anything is going to be possible for travelers, so brace yourselves. The peak travel week of the year will begin, and because of this, passengers trying to travel will be faced with travel chaos, which will be almost impossible to avoid. Expect to read (and to learn) the required information about the airports, avoiding the Thanksgiving 2025 travel mayhem to ease the travel chaos.

Philadelphia International Airport Faces Record-Breaking Thanksgiving Surge: What You Need to Know About the 2025 Travel Chaos Across the U.S.

Thanksgiving 2025 will be historic for American travel. Philadelphia International Airport (PHL) expects an influx of over 900,000 travelers, making it one of the busiest travel days in the airport’s history. And it won’t just be Philadelphia. Airports nationwide will be facing the busiest travel day in over 15 years. The travel system has been stretched to the limit. With inclement weather approaching, the travel system is facing its toughest test yet. And nowhere in the system will be as affected as airports. Long TSA lines and the possibility of further weather delays mean travelers must be ready for the perfect storm of delays and cancellations. How did we get here? And how can travelers prepare for the upcoming storm? Read on to understand the realities of the upcoming travel surge and how to successfully navigate the system to make your travel as smooth as possible.

Thanksgiving Surge Event: Philadelphia International Airport is Center Stage for the Mayhem

Philadelphia International Airport is anticipated to handle over one million travelers for this Thanksgiving holiday, the largest holiday surge to date for the facility. For those traveling, this translates into long wait times, confined spaces, and elevated levels of stress during an already stressful holiday travel time. During the early hours of travel on Monday, November 24, days prior to the Thanksgiving holiday, travelers encountered TSA’s security checkpoint and began to voice their concerns over wait times. Reports of the holiday travel wait time frustrations indicate that the travel season for the Thanksgiving holiday is underway, and frustrations will be on the travel itinerary. As airport officials indicate, the heaviest travel days of this holiday season typically occur on the days after the Thanksgiving holiday, with over 94,000 travelers anticipated to travel on the Wednesday before Thanksgiving. As the demand for air travel increases, the surge in PHL air travel is just one piece of a much larger ongoing air travel demand crisis.

Exports are a System-Wide Travel Disruption Phenomenon and Part of a Philadelphia Surge Events that have Travel Chaos. All Over the United States, Like Worldwide, Record Traffic. PHIL Now a Significant Part of the Travel Chaos. Passengers Fear Complicated Travel Storm Weather. Weather Is A Big Travel Disruption Concern For All Travellers.

Top 10 US Airports Anticipating the Thanksgiving Travel Surge

This Thanksgiving will see unprecedented levels of travel in Philadelphia. Let’s look at Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta, O’Hare International, Dallas/Ft. Worth International and Los Angeles International. These airports will have a record-level number of travelers, and this will greatly impact air travel availability throughout the travel system. These top contenders will have the most crowded airports.

Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport (ATL)

Hartsfield-Jackson in Atlanta, Georgia, is the most crowded in the USA, and even in the entire world, in terms of customer travel. For Thanksgiving in 2025, this airport will be gaining a huge increase in the number of travelers to more than 100,000 travelers per day. Because of its major role as a Delta Airlines travel hub, as well as its critical position in the system of airports, ATL will see major line buildups at baggage claim, as well as at the checkpoints in security. Expect hiking wait times as well as crowded terminals, especially on Tuesday and Wednesday before Thanksgiving, which is the peak of the travel days.

Chicago O’Hare International Airport (ORD)

Due to being one of the largest international airports, Chicago O’Hare is important for overseas and domestic clientele alike. Chicago O’Hare will see one of the largest increases in air traffic over the US Thanksgiving Holiday. Compared to the same time of year for the previous Thanksgiving, air traffic will be elevated by almost 20%. O’Hare will see a bottleneck at International and domestic O’Hare Customs and Security. O’Hare customs and security is a time-intensive process. Passengers not only need to consider the elevated air traffic, but also the potential of poor weather to lead to delays.

Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport (DFW)

DFW will also be an important hub for any traffic this upcoming Thanksgiving. As a major hub for American Airlines, upwards of 90,000 additional passengers are expected for the busiest parts of the day over Thanksgiving. And being as large as it is, DFW will see some delays in moving between its terminals as well as long lines at TSA. The airport is to remain busy throughout the week, and is expected to reach its peak the Friday and Saturday for Thanksgiving, with the increase of passengers as they return from the Holiday.

Charlotte Douglas International Airport (CLT)

As an American Airlines hub, Charlotte Douglas in North Carolina offers fast-growing domestic flights to the East Coast. The airport is anticipated to manage more than 75,000 passengers every day during the Thanksgiving holiday. Being a regional hub, the airport is expected to have long wait times. CLT is expected to have some of the long wait times at TSA during the busiest travel days of Tuesday and Wednesday, with no international or domestic flights. Denver International Airport (DEN) Denver International Airport will also have a high increase in passengers during Thanksgiving, especially those traveling to ski resorts and other destinations in the Rockies. The expected number of passengers traveling through the airport is about 70,000 to 80,000 daily, with the peak crowd on Wednesday and the Sunday following Thanksgiving. Long security lines will make it very important for passengers to arrive at the airport on time. Furthermore, any winter weather could pose a risk of delays.

Los Angeles International Airport (LAX)

Los Angeles International Airport (LAX) is one of the busiest international airports in the United States. LAX will be particularly busy during the Thanksgiving 2025 time frame, as it is a primary gateway for international traffic in and out of the United States. LAX is projected to see more than 100,000 individuals coming and going on a daily basis and will undoubtedly face longer lines for customs and security. Those traveling out of LAX should prepare for a more profound and more extensive wait at the international check-in counters, and should also prepare for more extended disruptions to their travel as significant storms are predicted to hit California on that Wednesday, resulting in greater delays to the international travel from LAX.

Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport (PHX)

With American and Southwest airlines operating this hub, along with a much larger volume of airlines and flights, Phoenix Sky Harbor will begin to handle a much larger number of passengers. There will be a larger number of customers traveling for business and tourism tickets. There will be a larger volume of customers than ever on the day before Thanksgiving. As people go to Arizona to visit the Desert for their holidays, there will be large crowds and congestion in the terminal and on the roads. For people traveling to and from Phoenix Sky Harbor, be ready for more congestion and delays.

Seattle–Tacoma International Airport (SEA)

Sea-Tac Airport is projecting upwards of 70,000 people departing through the specialty regional facility during the Thanksgiving 2025 holiday. Factors contributing to this increase in demand include global travel during the designated holiday, rarely available in the United States, a resulting consolidation of travel demand, and the out-migration of Seattle’s residents to the West Coast to access the higher demand regional travel centers. Border travel demand is a characteristic of the Seattle economy. Like all travel segments, security line wait times and pre-scheduled appointments will increase. The rain and snow that Seattle’s weather is famous for will increase the travel congestion, impacting Sea-Tac. Travelers arriving and departing to Seattle will want to be informed of tech and weather congestion in the United States and international systems.

Harry Reid International Airport (LAS)

On the average day, LAS has about 35,000 passengers, but during the week of Thanksgiving, LAS has about 60,000 travelers, 65+ an hour on average. Flights will be booked by people traveling to and from Las Vegas for the holiday and business meetings, as well as families traveling here for holiday entertainment. It can be difficult to navigate as there are so many people traveling in and out from every major region (Asia, Europe, and Mexico, to name a few,) and since Vegas is a major international travel destination, there are lots of people to keep in mind while traveling there and for the holiday. No International travel is easy, and with all the business meetings and holiday entertainment, lots of people are heading to Las Vegas.

LaGuardia Airport (LGA)

LaGuardia is in one of the busiest cities in America, New York, so it is traditionally one of the busiest airports in the country. It is expected to have another year with the busiest travel days, and Thanksgiving 2025 will be no exception. Peak travel days will have close to 80,000 people traveling through the airport, and with the expected rise in passengers, lines and congestion are also expected to rise. As it is the busiest travel day of the week on Wednesday and Friday, it is recommended to show up as early as possible, as SPOT control and limited parking will be a challenge for those traveling.

What does this mean for Thanksgiving 2025?

Thanksgiving 2025 will most likely be the most travel-heavy Thanksgiving in history, making travel incredibly hectic. Expect the U.S. airspace to be filled with millions of travelers. Major hubs, such as PHL, ATL, ORD, LAX, and DFW, will be extremely overcrowded, as all terminals will be flooded with people, and there will be lengthy TSA lines. Weather disruptions will be the final thing to make this extremely difficult for all travelers.

As air traffic control tries to manage the overcrowded system, all other smaller satellite airports will be feeling the pain as well. Expect the likely inevitability of cancellations, delays, and lost connections. These airports will be fully booked this holiday season, so come with a well-made plan, get there early, and be ready to pivot your plans if things change.

Traveling During The Holidays: The Weather and Disaster Reports

Thanksgiving and the following winter holidays already have travel complications due to the weather, and now it is looking like the weather is going to be the real complication this year. In the current travel crisis, winter storms are causing delays and cancellations on travel systems all across the US. There are already travel systems with tight schedules and trip modifications, balancing the systems with a nationwide storm is going to be travel chaos, reports AAA Mid-Atlantic. This is especially true for travelers at the Philadelphia International Airport (PHL) and others with large weather systems: From the snowstorms in the Midwest, to winter weather in the Northeast on already scheduled flights, weather travel disruptions are going to happen.

Travelers are advised to take extreme caution and keep track of possible severe weather that might impact travel on their arrival. Contrary to previous years, things do not seem to be as easy this time. Although all weather-related travel obstacles are equally unfortunate, travel during the holidays is, without a doubt, the busiest and most stressful. With adverse weather, PHL, as a busy airport, may have operational difficulties resulting in streamlining problems during court interactions. Forecasts predict that snow, wind, and strong storms might result in delays for remote air travel and other airports like Chicago O’Hare and Los Angeles International.

Travelers are in for severe reactive weather travel disruptions. With the weather-related travel obstacles, the chain reaction that accompanies holiday travel will most definitely result in travel delays for the next few days. If you’re traveling this holiday,” flexibility is key”.

The Effect of Increased Travel Demand on Airport Facilities

An increasing volume of passengers arriving at airports creates a situation of over-stretching airport capacity daily. The recent uplift in travel volume coincides with a situation of increased stress on airport facilities, and consequently, security checkpoints, baggage claim and retrieval, and flight functions will be slowed down due to the increased volume of travelers. PHL airports are also encountering stretched capacity.

Travelers will exceed one million over a mere 5-day window, placing a demand on PHL airport facilities and others. The airports will be and are doing their utmost to meet the challenge of ongoing and increased wait times, crowded terminal facilities, and limited resources. Increased volumes of travelers will lead to increased levels of pre-planning, increased lead times to airport arrival, and increased acceptance of travel delays. The demand on security checkpoints and on gate services will be extremely high.

The pressure on airport facilities isn’t only from security lines. Terminal infrastructure, such as the baggage claim area, food service lines, and retail service locations, will also experience crowding and longer claim times. Basically, with the holiday capacity advancements, the news indicates that air passengers should anticipate an elongated and difficult travel experience at the large airports in the U.S., especially before and soon after the Thanksgiving holiday.

What You Should Do: Expert Thanksgiving Travel Tips

The most important factor in getting through the travel infrastructure systems is preparedness. Below are suggestions to make the travel experience for Thanksgiving 2023 as seamless as possible.

Prepare to be at the airport 2-3 hours beforehand. Given the number of people expected to travel through the U.S. and PHL airports, giving yourself some time will be beneficial in case you need to stand in some lengthy lines to get through security.

Check the weather frequently. During the winter, especially, as storms could cause flight cancellations, which are out of your control. Improving the overall general mood of your travel is to be in contingency planning mode for anything that could happen. You could also think about delays that will happen throughout the day. Planning for delays throughout the day, it is important to try and keep control of plans that could get out of control.

Pack Smart: Expect delays at the security checkpoint and during luggage drop-off and retrieval. To help ensure the most efficient and seamless travel experience, travel light and remain organized.

Stay Calm: While Thanksgiving travel can understandably be stressful, try and remain patient. Try to stay calm and keep your wits about the situation, and you will be able to enjoy the journey more.

Conclusion: Surviving Thanksgiving 2025 Travel Surge

Chaotic. That is the first word that most people will think of when Thanksgiving 2025 is mentioned, and it is no wonder. Between extreme weather, massive crowds, and strained and overwhelmed airport infrastructure, it may be busier than ever. Philadelphia International Airport is one of the top 10 busiest airports in the US, and it is only going to get worse as we get closer to the busiest travel season of the year. With smart prep and the right mindset, you can navigate your travel during this busy time. While it may be risky and chaotic, taking proper planning will help you get through this Thanksgiving travel.