One in the same... Chicago O'hare. Too big with no trams and always has landing and takeoff delays so you need a hige layover to be safe. But good food and despite the delays does an amazing job with how many flights route through it.

Uhhhh… I waited 16 hours for a flight into LaGuardia once. Not in the first top 5. Maybe the second.

Denver sucks, more than #6.

Milwaukee is cool because it has a "Recombobulation Area." #1.0 just for that.

Interesting Draug. I didn't mention Chicago or Atlanta, because they're too big and controversial to bring up with as limited experience as I've had with either (fewer than 5 of each).

Yeah, bo_sox, people complain about LaGuardia. Almost everybody I've met. But I've used it a lot of times and had a great time. I don't know what to say.

Although I would be cautious about judging any airport because of one bad delay. It can happen to absolutely any of them, and it's not always the airport's fault. That said, I do understand being vindictive once it gets bad enough.

You're probably right about Denver. I always have delays, and I hate entering or leaving there. I guess in retrospect, I'd make it 3 or 4.

No, semck, there would never be a 16-hour delay into Indianapolis due to too much congestion in the airport. Wouldn't happen. Sorry. Bright, sunny day, 60 degrees, no plane maintenance. We weren't flying ATA the second they got bought out either. They just delayed. We almost went home; it was our last flight we were going to wait for before leaving and just skipping the day of the trip. Turns out we got there at 1 AM, took a limo with the worst driver ever, but one of the best in New York City, and got to our hotel around 2, ordered pizza, and went to bed.

I also was delayed on my Confirmation trip to NYC seven hours into LaGuardia for plane maintenance, which isn't entirely on the airport, but partially. So no, not just one.

I think Chicago is good, though it has its moments. Indy's okay. It's great for comfort, very spacious, hardly ever delays, but I wouldn't put it in the top 5 because there's like no restaurants >_>

Yeah, that's pretty bad, bo. A priori I wasn't sure your delay wasn't caused by say bad weather (either in NYC or at a hub somewhere). Having that for traffic congestion is pretty bad, and I'd probably hate the airport too if it happened to me.

Airports with no restaurants can be very sad places to be when you're hungry.

Best: Nashville - live music, good food, even if the concourse goes on forever.

Detroit - two words: mono rail. Mono means one and rail means rail.

Worst: Newark - once spent eight hours there on a layover, you can only get so drunk before you realize that you're in a hellhole

I've been to Detroit airport once. We had a flight delayed out of - ironically - LaGuardia, and we were stuck there, hoping to make our connection to Indy. Fortunately, the plane from LaGuardia was the one going into Indy, so they got delayed as much as we did. Place seemed nice, up to date, and pretty comfy. I wouldn't go best, but it was better than most.

I was stuck for 40 hours at LaGuardia for "maintenance issues". Worst two days I ever spent.

I second Philly also. Only airport to ever lose my luggage.

Top airport - Detroit. Everything is convenient and close together if you go Northwest, which is the only time I ever go through Detroit. Northwest sucks, but the NW terminal is nice.

Second best, Munich. Seemed real nice. Wasn't there very long though.

Oh and worst bus station - Cincy. WTF is with the metal detectors?!

"I was stuck for 40 hours at LaGuardia for "maintenance issues". Worst two days I ever spent. "

Sounds desperately awful. One thing about LGA -- it's a pretty boring airport while you're there.

Any airport is the worst airport when something goes wrong.

Philly didn't get my luggage to the destination and when I asked the desk at denver why they flat up told me the Union held it up

Dang. US Air?

That surprising, SantaClausowitz. It's usually the Confederacy that loses your baggage.

1. My hometown airport
Not gonna give you the name, as that would reveal my location, but it's a fantastic small airport (around 1,000,000 pax a year). Beautiful architecture, good views of the runways and taxiways, charming local food and shops, super nice TSA, and your luggage gets to luggage collection before you do. The only problem is weather delays can be an issue in the winter.

2. Dallas-Fort Worth
I'm in DFW a lot (I prefer to fly American, and DFW is their hub. American may not be the cleanest or have the most amenities, but it is cheap and they do reliably get you from Point A to Point B in my experience). Excellent, modern tram system makes 15 minute layovers possible. Very clean and modern design. I've never actually gone through security so I can't say for sure how dickish their TSA guys are, but it's a major airport so I assume fairly dickish. Also, many choices for food, including both local places and chains.

3. Phoenix-Mesa Gateway (formerly Williams AFB)
Smaller overflow airport, no food and no shops, but they never lose your luggage and the TSA is actually friendly. Also, no weather problems and abundant parking.

4. Phoenix-Sky Harbor
Ugliest airport ever in my experience, but no weather delays and relatively friendly TSA if you go through during slow hours. Not much for shops and food, but enough to keep you entertained during a long layover.

5.
Denver
Beautiful views and architecture. Pretty terrible airport otherwise. (Weather, cleanliness, shops, luggage problems, TSA douchebags)

Worst airport:
Chicago-O'Hare
I've only been through once and I will never go through again. The place was a damned labyrinth; I needed to study a map for two minutes just to find a McDonald's and restroom, and I'm a good map reader. Filthy airport. I refuse to fly if they book me through O'Hare.

Wow…… ^

*hardly any waiting at my hometown airport either. Even during busy hours I can get through security in less than five minutes

What?

The last true freedom in the US...General Aviation. I can go out to the airport, no TSA, climb in my airplane, not talk to anyone, don't have to file a flight plan, fly just about anywhere in the US, go as fast as I want, the only limitation is my bladder.

It's just that it's like the exact opposite of the other lists… lol

Your reasoning is different than mine, so based on the scenery alone, I can definitely agree that Denver is awesome. On the other hand, so does Fort Lauderdale, but that place sucks equally in all the same ways that Denver does. I liked the Vegas airport but most airports out west are a little less cordial than those out east based on my experience. You would know more about the southwest than I would I guess (I'm assuming you live in that region or you have business there).

Gunfighter,

"[DFW's] Excellent, modern tram system makes 15 minute layovers possible."

Yep, this is maybe the single greatest thing about my favorite airport. I've never seen the like at getting between two gates quickly. Other airports have trains, but you still end up walking a quarter mile.

The TSA guys are pretty friendly there too, though. It also has a great, and unusual, design if you're entering there. As you're doubtless aware, the whole thing is like a kind of figure 8, instead of the usual strips; the planes are on the outside, and you drive into the inside and just pass through the thin terminal to your gate, at the right point, rather than having to walk a ton. Of course, having tons of security checkpoints is required for this to work. The only thing I'm not crazy about is the off-site car rental place, so you need to take a bus.

Lets all figure out where Gunfighter is from:

1. 1,000,000 passengers per year, roughly. Based on statistics for my own airport, Albany, which carries roughly 1.2 million passengers for a metro area of 870,000. A third of that represents a metro population of about 750,000.

2. Weather causes delays in winter, meaning that he is in a northern US or Canadian city.

3. American flies there and connects in Dallas.

The 1 million ppy statistic helps a lot. US airports with roughly 1 million passengers per year:

- Rochester
- Grand Rapids
- Little Rock
- Syracuse
- White Plains
- Des Moines
- Greensboro

Now onto the winter part. Throw out Greensboro and Little Rock. THat leaves three airports in New York, one in Des Moines, and one in Michigan.

I'll throw out the New York airports since I'd probably know if GF was from NY. That leaves us with two:

- Des Moines: metro population 570,000. Close, but a bit too small.
- Grand Rapids: metro population 779,000. BOOM.

So based on my exhaustive five minutes of research, I give it a 75% probability that Gunfighter is from the Grand Rapids area and a 20% chance he is from Des Moines. Am I close?

I'm guessing not, 2wl. I think Chicago would be the AA hub if you were in Des Moines. Maybe Amarillo? Probably not busy enough though. OKC?

(I guess there is DM->DFW on AA. Still, seems like it would not be preferred for most destinations from there).

I feel like I probably know where he's from. But I'm going to stop now. He wanted his privacy respected.

"Any airport is the worst airport when something goes wrong."

Whoa whoa whoa, not so fast. The Las Vegas airport has slot machines. That makes it above others if something goes wrong.

I've never had any problems while flying. Of course, I've only flown between two airports but I've done the trip numerous times. Never had any problems at McCarran (LAS).

Likes:

PDX. One of the first to have free wifi throughout the airport. Nice kids play areas. Good restaurants. Inexpensive light rail to downtown means you don't necessarily have to rent a car or cab it. Speed security lane for just about any kind of frequent flyer program basic free membership. Car rentals (some) are in the garage right next to the terminal, no shuttle necessary.

BUR. Excellent on-times, not much traffic nearby, car rental is 200 yards from terminal or you can take the Metrolink train to downtown LA (Union Station). Far superior to LAX when traveling to LA.

OAK. I use this airport the most. Security lines are awesome. With no checked bags and an e-ticket, I can usually get through security and to the gate in 10 minutes or less (with fly-by lane). Rental cars are off-site but I don't care because I don't rent here.

Dislikes:

PHX. Sky Harbor has lousy restaurants and retail. Their security lines are inefficiently managed in terms of number of gates/Homeland personnel vs. people going through. Their rental car facility is not at the terminal (many airports have a separate facility, but this is a minus).

LAX. I hate LAX. Frequent delays, rental cars are far away. Mediocre food options.

LAS. More often than not, my flights in/out of Las Vegas are delayed. The plane is late arriving, the crew is late arriving, some weather pattern in a part of the country that doesn't involve me is nonetheless messing me up, etc. People are packed in there -- there's not enough seating for the volume of passengers. The slot machines (which are not held to the same payback requirements as the casinos) are annoying. Security lines are pretty efficient, and they've added recharge stations (used to be horrible to recharge electronics at LAS).

@ 2WL

Believe it or not you're wrong. Your list missed my hometown. None of those are close.

"Whoa whoa whoa, not so fast. The Las Vegas airport has slot machines. That makes it above others if something goes wrong."

Yeah, that's 90% of the reason why I loved it… only been through once.

My favourite US airports are:

Lakehill Airport, Mars, PA
Offutt AFB, Omaha NE
Willow Run Airport, Detroit, MI