9 hours ago
These are the most expensive airports in the U.S., per a new study
Aside from the actual vacation itself, a trip to the airport alone will cost you a pretty penny before your travels can even officially begin. But not all airports were created equally, or economically, for that matter: A new study by reveals the most and least affordable airports in North America, tallying the average cost for everything from a one-night hotel stay to overnight parking to that pre-plane pint of beer.
The most expensive airport in the U.S.? It's unsurprisingly set in New York City: that would be LaGuardia Airport in Queens. Parking there is $37 a day, while a beer inside will cost an average of $12. If you stay overnight at one of the nearby hotels, the average nightly rate is $332. At that price, you'd want to stay at a fabulous new award-winning hotel instead of an hour-burner.
The second most expensive travel hub is Denver International Airport, where parking is $32, a beer is seven bucks, and the close-by hotels run $312 per night. In third place is Boston's Logan International, with $27 parking, a $7 pint and $303 hotel rooms.
Let's make ourselves feel better and look at the other end of the scale. The cheapest U.S. airport on the list is Houston's William P. Hobby airport—there, you can spend a more reasonable $14 for parking and $8 for a pre-boarding beer and drop just $101 on that hotel stay.
The second least expensive is Louis Armstrong New Orleans International Airport ($16 parking, $6 beer, $120 hotel), while the third-place finisher is Phoenix Sky Harbor International ($30 parking, $7 beer, $109 hotel).
Most expensive beer overall? That's LaGuardia's $12 pour.
Least pricey? Portland International (Oregon, not Maine) at a little over $4.
Most expensive parking overall? Nashville International at $42 a day.
Least costly William P. Hobby's $14.
Most expensive hotel overall? $332 at LaGuardia.
Least wallet-testing? William P. Hobby's $101.
As for the methodology behind the ranking, the beer cost was calculated using a 20-ounce Budweiser averaged across three different drink menus at each airport. Hotel prices were averaged from the three hotels that were determined to be closest to each airport. And parking prices were based on leaving your car in economy lots at the airport. All pricing was gathered for the same projected future date to be fair: July 26–27, 2025.
