Expect even bigger crowds at the Charlotte airport. What to know for summer travel

Travelers at Charlotte Douglas International Airport should expect even larger crowds this summer, CLT officials said Thursday.

Airport officials say long lines and crowded parking lots will kick off summer starting with the upcoming Memorial Day weekend.

Roughly 31,000 local travelers are expected fly out of CLT over the holiday weekend. Peak days will be Thursday, Friday and Monday, according to airport officials.

And Memorial Day passenger numbers for this year are nearing pre-COVID numbers, airport chief operating officer Jack Christine said.

In 2019, Memorial Day weekend peak travel days brought roughly 33,600 local passengers to the airport.

Throughout the holiday weekend this year, CLT will also serve nearly 100,000 connecting passengers each day, according to the airport.

And American Airlines, the dominant carrier at the airport, expects to see more than 340,000 passengers flying out of Charlotte over the holiday weekend.

The airline currently operates up to 600 departures a day out of CLT at peak times, according to an airport statement. Over the summer, that number is expected to peak at up to 655 departures in June and up to 659 in July

COVID impact on travel

Charlotte’s airport saw a dramatic drop in passengers in early 2020 as the coronavirus hit North Carolina. But officials have predicted that passenger travel will make a full recovery by next year.

The Charlotte airport recorded 43 million travelers last year. That’s up 59% from the 27 million passengers who traveled through the airport in 2020.

More info: Take a look at inside CLT's $608-million lobby expansion

That’s still below the record-breaking 50.2 million passengers who traveled to, from and through CLT in 2019, according to the airport.

Still, the Charlotte airport is one of the busiest airports in the world.

Charlotte Douglas was ranked the fifth busiest airport worldwide for arrivals and departures, according to according to Airports Council International 2021 preliminary rankings.

Tips Charlotte airport travel

Charlotte airport officials also had a few tips for travelers nearing the start of the busy summer season.

Travelers should get to the airport at least two hours before their departure time for domestic flights, TSA spokesman Mark Howell said.

And travelers can use some of the Charlotte airport’s online tools to make travel easier. The airport has a real-time parking map to check out latest parking conditions, and customers can reserve parking ahead of time for a discounted rate online.

Parking facilities have been especially full lately as passenger traffic rebounds, Christine said. So he strongly encourages passengers to take advantage of the option to reserve parking ahead of time.

And travelers can check security wait times online.

Construction projects at the Charlotte airport

Charlotteans heading to the airport this summer can expect additional construction too. Earlier this month, the airport announced the start of its latest construction project, a $231-million expansion to Concourse A.

The expansion will add 10 gates to the concourse and is scheduled to be completed in the fall of 2024.

Travelers will soon get a look at the airport’s $608-million terminal lobby expansion. Parts of that project will open this summer, though the full project is scheduled to be completed in 2025, according to the airport.