I first published these tips on this blog during the Thanksgiving holiday. But I got a good response, so I figured it'd be worth it to re-publish for the Christmas holiday travel period.

On the busier days this holiday, PDX will average about 45,000 passengers a day. It's gonna be a mess... especially early in the morning and late at night. So here's some things you can do to make your life a little easier!

- Get there early. I know... we hear this all the time. But it really does matter when the airport's jammed. They tell you 2-hours, but I always try for 90 minutes. Unless I'm parking there. Which leads me to my next tip.

- Get there EXTRA early if you're parking in the economy lot. Last Christmas, I flew out of PDX and tried to park in economy, but there were NO SPOTS when I got there at 6am. The lot was FULL. They had us parking on the side of the road. It took at least an hour to park and get to the terminal. I just made my flight (by about 48 seconds). So follow the 2-hour rule if economy parking is in your future.

- Take the MAX. It runs every 15-minutes in both directions, with the first train getting you to PDX at 4:45am... and the last one leaving PDX at 11:55pm. It costs $1.80 each way. A lot cheaper than $8/day for economy parking... or $12/day for long-term. For more information, check out Tri-Met's MAX page: http://www.trimet.org/schedule/r100.htm.

- Check-in on-line. Most airlines will now let you check-in for your flight, 24-hours ahead of time, on their websites. You can choose seats, and print-out boarding passes at home. Then you just drop-off your bags at the airport. This can save you an hour. And if you're flying Southwest, it can get you to the front of the line in the mad-scramble for the best seats.

- Check-in at an e-ticket machine. If you can't check-in at home, use an e-ticket machine at the airport, instead of waiting in-line for an agent. These PDX airlines have e-ticket check-in: Alaska/Horizon, America West/US Airways, American, Continental, Delta, Hawaiian, jetBlue, Northwest, Southwest, and United. Air Canada, Big Sky, Frontier, Lufthansa, and Mexicana do not offer e-ticket check-in at PDX.

- Choose the shortest security line. This is a new one at PDX this Thanksgiving. The Port opened a "concourse connector" linking the A, B, and C concourses to the D and E concourses behind security. It was supposed to be for passengers connecting from Alaska and Horizon flights (on A, B, and C) onto the international flights to Tokyo and Frankfurt (on D). But... saavy travelers have quickly found they can use the D and E security checkpoint (with its typically shorter lines) to get to their gate on A, B, or C. It could save you 15 or 20 minutes at peak times. This should give you a good look at what I'm talking about: http://www.flypdx.com/PDX_Terminal_Map.aspx.

- Check with the TSA before you pack your carry-on. Their list of allowed items changes every now and then, so it's a good idea to take a look at this: http://www.tsa.gov/public/interapp/editorial/editorial_1012.xml.

So, you're not flying... but you have to drop someone off, or pick someone up. Here's some things to speed-up that process, too.

- Park on top of the garage. We all want to park on Level 4, because it has the skybridges that go directly across to the terminal. But this time of year, it's always packed. You'll waste time trying to find a spot there. So just go to Level 7, atop the garage, and park right next to the elevator. It'll end up saving you a few minutes.

- Quick Pay is your friend. You'll find the Quick Pay terminals on Level 4 of the parking garage and in the underground connector between the Terminal and the garage. Pay for your parking here, and you'll breeze right out of the parking gate.

- Use the Cell Phone Wait Lot. This is new to PDX this fall. There's a parking lot (on the left, just before you get to the garage) that's free for people picking-up passengers. Park there, and have your family/friends call you when they grab their bags. Then you can drive around and have them hop-in, without having to pay for parking. BEWARE: You can not park here and leave your car. You'll get a ticket... or be towed.

- Pick-up on the upper level. Sure, the signs say the upper level is for departures. But most of the time, and especially at night, the lower level is jammed with "pick-ups." Avoid that by picking-up your family/friends up above. And save a lot of time by using the upper, outer roadway. But don't stay too long, and don't leave your car, because the Port of Portland Police aren't too excited about people who do that... and they'll likely tow you.

Have a great trip... and we can't wait to see you back in Portland after the holidays!

If you have any more tricks you use at PDX, let me know. My e-mail address is jpenning@kgw.com. I'd love to hear from you!

Posted by at 4:20 PM | Permalink

A number of flights have been cancelled through mid-morning on Monday, and dozens are operating with significant delays. Make sure you check with your airline before attempting to head-out to PDX. Here's a current wrap-up of flight status, by airline:

Air Canada:
- All on-time.

Alaska Airlines:
- Widespread delays ranging from :30 to 3:00.
- Some cancellations to/from Los Angeles, Las Vegas, San Francisco, and San Diego on Sunday Night.
- Some cancellations will be annouced for the first bank of morning flights, departing between 6am and 8am.

America West/US Airways:
- All on-time.

American Airlines:
- Minor delays to/from Dallas/Ft. Worth.

Big Sky Airlines:
- All on-time.

Continental Airlines:
- All on-time.

Delta Air Lines:
- Widespread cancellations, through Monday morning at 7:30am.

Frontier Airlines:
- All on-time.

Hawaiian Airlines:
- All on-time.

Horizon Air:
- Widespread delays ranging from :15 to 3:40.
- Cancellations to/from Seattle.

jetBlue:
- All on-time.

Mexicana:
- All on-time.

Northwest Airlines:
- All remaining flights Sunday night cancelled.
- Flights to Minneapolis and Detroit cancelled through 9am Monday.
- Flights arriving from Honolulu and Tokyo-Narita on-time.

Southwest Airlines:
- Scattered delays around :20.

United Airlines:
- Widespread delays from :20 to 2:10.
- Scattered cancellations to/from Oregon cities.

Follow this link for your specific flight: http://www.flypdx.com/flights.aspx.

Alaska Airlines and Horizon Air Change Ticketing Policy

Due to freezing rain in Portland that has the potential to disrupt operations, Alaska Airlines and Horizon Air will allow ticketed passengers who are scheduled for travel to or from PDX between December 18 and December 23, 2005, to change their reservations without incurring a fee. These apply to both revenue and Mileage Award tickets.

Read more at http://www.alaskaair.com/as/www2/flights/Irregular-Operations.asp.

Anything to add? E-mail me: jpenning@kgw.com.

Posted by at 5:32 PM | Permalink

The first bout of snow and we're already seeing delays and cancellations at PDX. For specific delay information you can check out the PDX Flight Information System at http://www.flypdx.com/flights.aspx.

PDX also has travel tips on its website at http://www.flypdx.com/Travel_InclementWthr.aspx.

The big cause of delays during snowy and icy weather: de-icing the planes. Each plane has to be meticulously sprayed with de-icing fluid, to clean its wings and control surfaces. So if it does snow, expect an extra 15 to 30 minutes per plane to get it done.

Posted by at 5:28 PM | Permalink

I've been on the road for the last week or so. I flew through a snowstorm in Denver, and drove through one in Central Illinois. It was a busy trip, as usual. When I travel, I rarely take it easy.

I did find it remarkable what little impact snow has on the (semi-new) Denver Airport. I remember flying through Stapleton years ago, and if there were flakes in the air, the airport practically shut-down. This time around, with 3 or 4 inches of snow on the ground, and snow still falling, it was smooth as silk. The only delay we had, was when the crews de-iced our plane. That slowed us by only 15-minutes.

Of course, on my way back to Portland, in beautiful weather everywhere, I found myself in a mess of delays. We had to change gates 4-times. We were all on-board one plane, when the pilot said it wasn't ready to fly. We had to hop off... go to a different gate... and get on a different plane. We finally got to PDX about 3-hours late. And I can tell you, whatever frustrations we, the passengers, were feeling... it was nothing compared to the frustration of the crew. Those folks just wanted to get us to Portland on-time... and couldn't because of circumstances beyond their control.

No matter what happens when I travel... once I get home, I find myself longing to get back out... and hit the road.

Posted by at 4:48 PM | Permalink

If you like talking to an agent when you book your plane tickets, it's gonna cost you. Alaska Airlines and Horizon Air, http://alaskaair.com, annouced today they'll change you an extra $10 to book your ticket with an agent at the airport, over the phone on their reservation line, with a travel agent, or on any other website but their own. It's the first time an airline's been this committed to charging you for customer service.

The move has special impact in Portland, because, combined, Alaska and Horizon operate more flights than any other airline at PDX, http://flypdx.com. They operate Alaska Air Group's second largest hub here (only the SeaTac hub is bigger), with non-stop flights to more than 30 cities, and more than 150 daily departures. Alaska Air Group carries more passengers in Oregon than any other airline... which means Oregonians will be paying more in customer service fees than residents of most other states.

So far, none of the other airlines have annouced plans to match the fees. But some analysts say it's just a matter of time.

To their credit, the airlines' on-line booking sites are much better than they used to be. And in most cases, they're much easier to use than calling on the phone or going to the airport to talk to an agent. But there are always those moments when you just can't figure it out on your own, and you need some help. Many say it's a shame they'll have to pay $10 extra for help that has always been a common courtesy.

Posted by at 4:35 PM | Permalink