These Are the Best U.S. Airports in 2024, According to T+L Readers

These days, airport experiences aren’t always enjoyable. So, it comes as no surprise that for the 2024 World’s Best Awards, Travel + Leisure readers loved domestic airports that made their travels stress-free — and, dare we say, fun.

How Voting Works

Every year for our World’s Best Awards survey, T+L asks readers to weigh in on travel experiences around the globe — to share their opinions on the top hotels, resorts, cities, islands, cruise ships, spas, airlines, and more. Over 186,000 T+L readers completed the 2024 survey. A total of more than 700,000 votes were cast across over 8,700 properties (hotels, cities, cruise lines, etc.).

Airports were specifically rated on the criteria below:

• Access
• Check-in/security
• Restaurants/bars
• Shopping
• Design

For each characteristic, respondents could choose a rating of excellent, above average, average, below average, or poor. The final scores are averages of these responses.

What Readers Loved

Regional airports were beloved by many readers, thanks to their convenience and efficiency — you’ll hardly find long lines, and service is generally very pleasant. While you might not have flashy credit card lounges or high-end boutiques at such airports, it seems our readers hardly missed them.

Now, there’s one thing that really stood out to us about Rhode Island T. F. Green International Airport (No. 2). Among the praise for its lack of crowds and lines, superb cleanliness, and bountiful parking were an extraordinary number of comments about the bathrooms here.

“The bathrooms are magnificent! This seems like a small thing, but when you travel a lot, large stalls with privacy doors and sinks with built-in faucet/dryer combinations are such a gift. And the live plants and fresh flowers by each sink really made me feel like someone cares about my well-being,” wrote a voter. “Likely the best experience of my 30 years as a traveling consultant.”

Some major hubs did capture our readers’ attention, though, including Tampa International Airport (No. 8), which was lauded for its efficient layout. “Has to be one of, if not the best designed and cleanest airports I’ve ever flown from or into,” wrote one voter. “It’s as if the engineers and traffic engineers worked from the standpoint of the traffic needs and designed around the best patterns to support the customers. Everything just flows properly even from ticketing to the airplane gates.”

Read on for the full list of our readers’ favorite domestic airports, as voted upon in the 2024 World’s Best Awards.

The Winner

Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport: Minneapolis, Minnesota

Though regional airports dominate the overall list, a major hub won the top spot this year. Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport saw nearly 35 million passengers pass through its terminals in 2023, but our readers say the flow of people is managed well. “This is, by far, my favorite airport in the country. It’s easy to figure out, easy to get around, and there are a lot of interesting shops and decent restaurants,” wrote one voter. The airport serves as a hub for Delta Air Lines and Sun Country Airlines, and it flies to dozens of destinations across the U.S., as well as cities in Europe, Canada, Mexico, the Caribbean, and Asia.

The Full List

1. Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport: Minneapolis, Minnesota

Reader Score: 82.32

2. Rhode Island T. F. Green International Airport: Warwick, Rhode Island

Reader Score: 82.31

3. Palm Beach International Airport: West Palm Beach, Florida

Reader Score: 81.51

4. Savannah/Hilton Head International Airport: Savannah, Georgia

Reader Score: 79.86

5. Indianapolis International Airport: Indianapolis, Indiana

Reader Score: 79.68

6. Kansas City International Airport: Kansas City, Missouri

Reader Score: 79.63

7. Manchester-Boston Regional Airport: Manchester, New Hampshire

Reader Score: 79.44

8. Tampa International Airport: Tampa, Florida

Reader Score: 79.40

9. John Wayne Airport: Santa Ana, California

Reader Score: 77.24

10. Portland International Airport: Portland, Oregon

Reader Score: 77.18