Officials at St. Pete-Clearwater International Airport are warning local holiday travelers not to park at the increasingly popular facility or risk missing their flights.<\/p>\n
The airport, which offers 60 more flights than last Thanksgiving, is experiencing some growing pains. It served 2.37 million passengers through October and will likely break its previous yearlong record \u2014 2.49 million, set in 2023 \u2014 with a month to spare.<\/p>\n
St. Pete-Clearwater International expects over 33,000 departing passengers between Nov. 24 and Dec. 1. Interim airport director Mark Sprague wants to ensure they all \u201chave an easy experience flying out of PIE.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWe ask passengers to get a ride to the airport,\u201d Sprague told the St. Pete Catalyst. \u201cAll our parking lots will fill up, and we don\u2019t want anyone to miss their flight.\u201d<\/p>\n
The airport\u2019s passenger count increased by 197% between 2014 and 2024. It saw a 66% year-over-year increase in October.<\/p>\n
About 3,200 short-term, long-term, overflow and economy parking spaces must accommodate the influx of holiday travelers. The airprot served 170,619 passengers last November, and Sprague noted that \u201cwe are up 15% year-to-date over 2024.\u201d<\/p>\n
The airport lacks a parking reservation system. Officials will direct flyers to one of the airport\u2019s economy lots, which feature a complimentary shuttle service to the terminal, once the long-term parking area closes.<\/p>\n
Michele Routh, public relations director, noted that the airport has \u201cbroken every single monthly record since February\u201d and continues adding new destinations.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe are going to run out of parking,\u201d Routh said. \u201cAnd we just don\u2019t want people to miss flights on these crunch weeks \u2014 Thanksgiving week, Christmas week.<\/p>\n
\u201cIf we lose money on parking those weeks, great. Because that means no one missed a flight.\u201d<\/p>\n
St. Pete-Clearwater International unveiled plans for a $45 million parking garage<\/a>, its first, in June. Routh said the 2,000-space structure and a new surface parking lot with 350 additional spaces should help \u201ctide us over for a while.\u201d<\/p>\n However, each space will cost at least $30,000 to build, and Routh said the airport will \u201cnever make money on it.\u201d Officials would have to charge about $50 daily \u2014 current maximum costs range from $10 to $24 \u2014 \u201cto break even.\u201d<\/p>\n For now, Sprague said flyers who \u201cabsolutely must park at PIE\u201d should visit fly2pie.com<\/a> to \u201cget familiar with our parking lots and give yourself extra time for directions.\u201d<\/p>\n Here are the airport\u2019s traveling tips:<\/p>\n Consider getting a ride to the airport.<\/p>\n Picking up passengers? Use the free cellphone lot to await your party until they are curbside with their luggage. Active loading and unloading is only at the curbside in front of the terminal, and you must remain with your vehicle at all times. No curbside waiting is allowed.<\/p>\n The cellphone lot is for meeters and greeters only. Drivers must remain with their vehicle. Unattended vehicles will be towed.<\/p>\n Plan to arrive two hours before your scheduled flight departure time and check your departure gate. The airport has two separate gate areas, 2-6 and 7-11, that are not connected, so make sure you are at your correct gate 50 minutes before departure and ready to board. Check with your airline for carry-on luggage requirements and sizes.<\/p>\n Monitor and check with your airline for updated flight information.<\/p>\n Request wheelchair assistance directly from your airline. Wheelchair assistance is provided from check-in to boarding aircraft and from aircraft to baggage claim.<\/p>\n For additional tips from the U.S. Transportation Security Administration, visit the tsa.gov\/travel<\/a>.<\/p>\n