Flights out of Chattanooga?

[One Lil Spark]

Hi Friends!

I will soon be departing for WDW with my sister in a little over a month for my 26th birthday trip. This is the first time that either of us have 1) flown since 9/11 and 2) flown out of Chattanooga (especially without a parent). As you can probably guess, I've got a few questions...

First, how busy is that airport and do we really need to be there 3-4 hours early?

Secondly, how is the airport in general?

We're just wanting to make sure we made the right choice instead of flying out of Atlanta.

Thanks in advance,
Jenn :wave:

 

[TheOneVader]

Chattanooga is by far the easiest and most convenient airport in the world to fly out of. If you can afford it.

 

[One Lil Spark]

Well, I live in far Western NC in the mountains. My sister goes to Bryan College and we decided that me picking her up and flying out of Chatty was the easiest way for our trip. We can afford it (it's cheaper than ATL!), so I just wanted some opinions/pointers.

How early before the flight do we need to be there? Surely 3-4 hours is a bit much?

 

[Disneybird]

The Chattanooga airport is very small but nice. An hour and a half early should give you plenty of time. Eat before you arrive because you won't find much of a selection there if the food place is open.
It's very easy to get to, right off of Hwy 153 if you're coming that way from Dayton.
Are you flying Allegiant?
I can see the planes landing, from the office I work at.
Have a great trip.

 

[dxwwf3]

You could try Knoxville as well if you're going Allegiant. Sometimes Knoxville is cheaper than Chattanooga.

We flew out of Tri-Cities using Allegiant last summer and everything went very well.

 

[One Lil Spark]

I'll be picking my sister up at Bryan College in Datyon, so Knoxville is kinda far. Chatty is an hour-ish away. I think we're flying Delta.

 

[dxwwf3]

I'll be picking my sister up at Bryan College in Datyon, so Knoxville is kinda far. Chatty is an hour-ish away. I think we're flying Delta.

It's only about 30 minutes longer, but if you get a deal in Chattanooga, then go for it. Sounds like Chattanooga is a nice airport to fly out of.

 

[SpongeScott]

I'll be picking my sister up at Bryan College in Datyon, so Knoxville is kinda far. Chatty is an hour-ish away. I think we're flying Delta.

Jenn--you're looking at about a 50 minute trip to the airport from Dayton, and right down 153 is correct. The airport is small, you'll have no problem navigating the place and 90 minutes is plenty of time.

And yay for Bryan College!

 

[One Lil Spark]

Just called my sister to see what the drive from Dayton to Knoxville (Go Vols!) would be... Turns out that's an hour and a half for her. Looks like we'll be sticking to Chatty for the flight.

Any guess on arrival times to the airport for flights? Is it really busy?

 

[One Lil Spark]

Whoot! Thanks Scott! No need to arrive 3-4 hours ahead of time, I take it?

 

[Rob562]

Whoot! Thanks Scott! No need to arrive 3-4 hours ahead of time, I take it?

Check your airline's website. Most major airlines have a listing of the airports they serve and the suggested arrival times, as well as the cut-off times for checking in, checking in your baggage, and when you need to be on the plane.

You can also use the TSA's website, which has historical data about how long the lines are at the security checkpoints based on day of the week and time of day. (Of course this is just talking about how long the security screening part of the process is, you still have to factor in the airline's check-in requirements)
http://waittime.tsa.dhs.gov/index.html

And I don't know anything about Chattanooga, but in my mind I don't typically equate it with major airports like the New York airports, Atlanta or LAX. It's probably more like Manchester, NH where I've never had a line longer than 10 minutes at security.


-Rob

 

[bigorangeandy]

I wouldn't do the 3-4 hours before take off, but 2 hours would not be to bad. It's much easier (on the nerves) to try find something to do for the extra time at the airport, than worry you are going to miss it because you got stuck in construction coming down US 27. As someone who fly's out of Atlanta all the time, I should take my own advice, but for some reason rarely do.

 

[Kaity'sDad]

My family and I have flown out of Chattanooga on several trips. I would recommend arriving two hours as well. Because of the smaller size of the airport parking and traffic are so much more convenient than they would be at a larger airport. If is as easy of a walk from the car as you would find at a mall or department store.
If you are flying Allegiant, please remember that it does not fly to Orlando International Airport, so when you arrive you will be landing a bit more off the beaten path. Sanford Airport is more comparable to Chattanooga than a major airport. While it sounds silly to point out, I have known people who were very surprised to find that they were landing farther from WDW than they anticipated.
I also echo the sentiment of another poster:
GO VOLS!

 

[rsoxguy]

You are going to have to excuse a very bad pun in advance, but here it comes:

Why don't you just take the Choo Choo?

I know, I should have refrained.

 

[Uncle Lupe]

Remember, take your ID and do whatever TSA tells you. It took us 30 mins to get thru a checkpoint at a small airport because they found a small pair of craft scissors in our carry-on. Columbus missed it but Myrtle Beach did not. We had no idea that it was in our backpack. We could not go until they found them and they would not tell us what they were looking for, fun!

SO yeah get there early, and if you are lucky you win the full body search door prize. :sohappy:

 

[PintoColvig]

I've flown in and out of there a couple of times, bypassing Knoxville both times in order to save $$. CHA is by far the easiest airport I've been through. Security has been a snap. No line either time. 90 minutes is more than enough time to get to your gate.