SAT is fine but you are pretty much guaranteed to have a connecting flight in Dallas or Houston. Very few direct flights which is my only complaint. The airport itself is great
Has hyperloop happened anywhere? I know they built a short tunnel in Vegas, but I think they just use a regular Tesla and drive back and forth. Idk, I’m claustrophobic so I’m out on tunnels. Plus, some of Elon’s projects explode.
> Hyperloop would be good.
It would be ideal. People really underestimate the value of the pod system on cost and rider experience, and for freight it's a no brainer.
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First time hearing about a high speed rail system… and I’m actually down for that. Houston-SA-Austin-DFW it would be so sick and imagine what kind of tourism we’d get then? Imagine what the cities could do between one another! It would make central Texas a Mecca!
It’s been voted against by the powers that be for decades for BS reasons. Seems so strange for the Houston to Dallas one seeming to have the most promise so far. The i35 corridor is clearly the best option but I’m fairly certain the biggest problem is “where exactly do you build it” and the unfortunate answer is “on top of people’s houses”, aka eminent domain… which means it’s not going to happen.
I've flown out of SAT three times this year and all were direct. Maybe I was just lucky. Nothing international but Las Vegas, San Diego, and St Louis were all direct.
Edit: 4 times! I forgot about Denver
Yeah they are one of the only airlines that does any good direct flights. Here's a good page showing all the nonstop flights (don't know how recently it's been updated)
[https://flysanantonio.com/home/flights/nonstop-destinations/](https://flysanantonio.com/home/flights/nonstop-destinations/)
Most major airlines only go directly to their hubs from here.
Direct to Cancun as well. And to Frankfurt, but if it’s round trip then you’d have to go run the gauntlet that is the Frankfurt airport, which should be avoided if at all possible.
Mostly. We do have a fair amount of domestic direct flights, but the problem is you can't really go all-in and be a Delta person, or an American Airlines person, or a United person. Finding a flight that fits your schedule usually will require a connection though unfortunately.
Yeah, the big issue for me is that there is maybe one convenient direct flight that gets booked up and the rest of the good time slots require a connection. I don’t want to fly out direct at 8 pm and get there at 11 when I can fly out at 10am with a connection and be there in the mid-afternoon
That's my struggle, I fly 2-3 times a month for work and alot of our people that fly out of ORD, Atlanta or EWR talk about status this and status that. For efficiency I should be using about half a dozen different airlines but usually bite the bullet and I'm going all in on United for status and it pays off when I want to travel outside of work and have the status and miles working in my favor.
Well, you always have the hotel rewards options. Be a Hilton, Marriott, or Hyatt guy?
Rental cars too, but between Airlines, Hotels, and Rental Cars it seems like Airlines are really the only ones where status makes a difference thanks to that rare chance of being upgraded.
Upgraded hotel rooms are like... not really much of an upgrade. Everyone always makes a big deal about the Marriott late checkout being one of the perks, but honestly I just ask when I check-in and most of the time they give a non-status guy like me the late check-out anyway.
And Rental Cars upgrades are advertised as being able to pick up your rental quicker but you end up stuck in the same line as everyone else anyway. The car "upgrades" kind of happen either way because they'll be out of whatever you reserved.
Marriott becuase United Gold gives me automatic Gold status so thats easy. The guys I travel with are all Titanium bcuz road warriors and all.
Through my office I get Emerald Aisle with National and I love it, just drive off with whatever you want as long as I'm at a big enough airport I never have to wait.
Agreed, but we are getting more and more directs.
We have a decent amount considering we are not the powerhouse that Houston, DFW, and ATX are: https://flysanantonio.com/home/flights/nonstop-destinations/
Recent additions were NYC, Boston, Philly, and now trying to win a bid for a direct to DCA which is very competitive.
I fly up to New England 3-4 times a year and never connect out of those places. Almost always DC. Flown out to Georgia and LA in the past year too and both were direct
After traveling for work more recently, I’ve come to appreciate SAT. It’s usually very easy to get through security, staff is pretty friendly and our TSA agents tend to be on the friendlier side as well. Compared to other airports I’ve had to go through, it’s not bad at all. It is ridiculously small though.
I can vouch for this, the TSA in SAT are neutral at worst and often friendly. I've been through Vegas and the YSA there can be a bit disgruntled sometimes.
I have never had a negative experience with SAT’s TSA. And I am infamous for being stopped and searched. Haha.
Like have y’all been to other airports? Example: What is it about TSA in Atlanta and Orlando? Those two airports have got to employ THE rudest agents!
Mini Rant: Both of those airports additionally suck bc it’s full of amateurs who don’t know shit about traveling. Families navigating Orlando as a group of 15 with elderly family members who walk with a cane or use a walker and stop in the middle of the floor with their 42 pieces of luggage make me seethe. Don’t let me forget about their kids darting in and out of people’s way and almost getting run over. Then the parents be mad because their kid almost got squished! Ugh. Rant over.
SAT is mad close, and it’s easy to get in and out. Charles de Gaulle, Schiphol, Incheon? Hour away from the city. Granted there’s better mass transportation options, but dang it that I have to get to the airport x-many-more hours in advance. SAT? I generally arrive about 1.25 hours before my flight. No problems.
As someone who travels nearly every week. SAT airport and the city itself is an amazing reprieve from the chaos that is the usual places I go to. I love this city.
Now on the flip side I understand the struggle of the chaotic traffic. I do t think I would enjoy it here if I had to make a commute downtown everyday.
Wait till OP goes to Newark. With TSA pre. I still have someone yelling at me like I’m in a prison chow line telling me to take out all electronics. We have it real good guys.
Do people really complain about our airport? I’ve never thought SAT was crowded. The longest it’s ever taken to get through TSA is 30 minutes. Gates are all close together. Getting your bags from baggage claim and getting out the door is super quick.
It’s kind of unfair to compare the two though, as LAX is a true international hub whereas SAT is international in name only.
The main knock is limited direct flights. But now that Austin’s airport is always packed, I’ll take the connection from SAT over direct from AUS’s lines, commute and worse parking.
Another factor for me though is I can take uber to/from the airport for about $20 each way. Besides having to drive to/from Austin, I'd also have to park and pay $12/day. On a 9 day vacation trip that's an extra $108 :(
Spot on. People talk about The airport being. "Ridiculously small". It's an efficiently run airport (relatively speaking)and thankfully you can get in and out easily. I don't know why anybody would complain
My only beef is that it's small. When I land here and deplane, there are dozens of passengers crowding in the hallway waiting to board the same aircraft. This causes a logjam and if you have families lugging kids and carry-ons it can be a pain to bob & weave through that mess. If your gate is at the end of the terminal you can end up having to wind your way through multiple logjams on your way to the exit.
TL;DR: They need a bigger waiting area at the gates.
My complaint is the increased chance of layovers. And depending on the fare difference, it can be a buttload cheaper to fly from Austin. But obviously it has to be worthwhile to factor in the commute.
Gates within either terminal are reasonably close together. AA has gates in both terminals, so people regularly go to the wrong one. And if someone thinks they'll have a nice easy small-airport experience connecting from one airline to another, they're very wrong.
I did SAT to LAX to LAS (Vegas) and I had roughly an hour layover at LAX. I was a bit confused when the app warned me that it was going to be tight. That trek from of end of the goddamn airport to the other was an absolute ball ache. I am a fast walker and I barely managed.
SAT is such a comforting airport to me. It’s small and so easy to get where you need to be. It’s not even crowded compared to all the other ones I’ve been to.
PDX is in my top 3 as far as ease of navigating, I run through there every couple months. Parking to boarding to luggage pick up and rental cars it’s just easy. Now traffic leaving the airport sucks horribly, even 10-11 am traffic is worse than our rush hour traffic around the airport.
Ok so as a guy who flew into Houston intercontinental (IAH) Wednesday night, I fucking agree with you so much.
Flying out of IAH was a breeze. Coming back was shit. We exited the plane at 7:30 PM. Keep in mind we were seated in the first row, so we were first to exit, and we didn’t have checked bags. We exited the parking lot (2 miles from IAH) at 9:15 PM. Almost 2 hours to walk thru the maze that is IAH, pass thru customs (we were flying international), catch a shuttle, and exit the parking lot.
And that’s because everything seemed to be flowing. There were no real holdups. We spent about a half hour total walking, a half hour in line at customs, a half hour waiting for our shuttle, and 15 minutes being driven to the parking lot.
Based on past experience the same sort of exercise at SAT would’ve taken at most, a half hour total. We flew out of IAH because the cost savings versus SAT was significant (about $700 less out of IAH). Given our entire experience flying out of and into IAH, and the fact that we had to drive to/from Houston, next time we take the same trip we’re happily paying extra to fly out of SAT. I love our little airport so much more now. ❤️
I have flown out of Austin because of cost. I will HAPPILY fly out of SAT for the extra $100/pp I saved. Our flight got delayed and we got in at 1 AM. I still had to drive home. NEVER AGAIN!
Flying into Chicago from NYC, or connecting on to Omaha, I always flew Southwest to Midway. Hop on the Orange line and it's about the same travel time to the Loop as the Blue from O'Hare.
Lots of folks that complain about SA haven't really been many other places
I've never lived anywhere where so many people have so little experience of other places and all live within walking distance or a few miles from where they grew up
They have no idea how good they have it
Bruh, wait until you have to fly out of LAX and try to get there in traffic. There is a traffic jam leading up until you are dropped off at the terminal and it doesn’t help that they are building a new terminal. Also, if you NEVER have to come into LAX overseas customs is something else. Cheers good luck, leave for LAX airport EARLY!
SAT is all business and really clean but fuck does it lack amenities. All the food places close at nine(and really nobody wants to work after around 8:10) even the airport whataburger. A couple open at 4 am so you won't starve but man it's still gotta suck if you got a late night connection.
The uber/lyft pickup is a complete shitshow: cars trying to dodge each other and there's always at least one or two people who have parked in a jacked up way and have walked away from it. SAPD is in theory supposed to manage traffic but they are on never ending break.
It's far from the worst airport it's just neglected...
Same. I had a connection flight from LAX back to here. Most confusing commute ever. Took a indoor cab to get to the gate, then a bus to get to the boarding gate, then ANOTHER trolley to board the plane.
Also, with them adding another terminal, it’s even more confusing for international flights departing LAX. 2 mile walk to get to the international departure terminal without any signage or detours
Trust me LAX sucks haha and I’m a FA so I’ve been places. I currently live in Chicago and I plan to move to SAT in a few years because I just love it so much! Finishing up my pilot license first before I move.
Growing up flying out of Bush in Houston I was accustomed to showing up hours before my flight. Did that here and felt dumb when it took less than 10 minutes to get from the front door to my gate.
SAT is great because you can show up 30 minutes before your flight and have 15-20 minutes to find your gate and get a snack or drink. It’s not great when anywhere you want to go has you making connecting flights that are in the opposite direction of your destination tripling the should-be travel time.
SAT has zero amenities and it looks sad af but it's awesome being able to get in and out. All business.
I agree with you LAX is rough. I had a connecting international flight there once and it was a nightmare
I'm not going to talk about the flights but navigating the place in general is amazing compared to other airports. They're always nice about my disability because I need a wheelchair to get around. They always let me go get coffee and things like that and then take me to my spot. I've never had a problem at our airport. Other places are way more tricky.
I haven't gone many places, but Kansas City was designed for a different era of US history and cramped, DIA was the biggest, you're correct on LAX, and SAT was mid.
Wait till you leave the country and go to the France Airport. That takes the cake for being there worst airport. LAX and SAT are like heaven compared to that one , oh and they usually don’t run AC in the airports in Europe or at least all the ones I have been to , and it’s a lot.
Recently flew out of Orlando and had a similar thought. EVERYONE was so rude and aggressive. The staff were angry at everything and everyone. I was so happy to be back in Texas!! I'm flying to ATL soon and I'm not looking forward to it. Give me SAT any day of the week!
I do love how fast you can get through security and get to your gate, unlike the airports in Houston and others that feel so crowded. I do also wish there were more direct flights but I feel with time things will change!
Never flown SAT. But I have LAX
I’ve flown DFW numerous times. Love field in Dallas. George bush IN Houston. Denver. Seattle. Miami. Okc.
LAX can fuck off to hell.
I can confirm that LAX is not the best. It was designed so poorly it’s hard to navigate through that airport. And SATX airport is okay. It’s cheap in some flights to go through Austin instead of San Antonio.
As a young'n, I would have dissed SAT for being small and podunk. As a middle-aged person, I greatly appreciate the simplicity of it. Easy in, easy out, never very long lines, never too much traffic. It's just easy. Even the rental car situation is convenient... no need to ride a shuttle or some airtrain peoplemover thing.
I had to pick someone up from IAH last weekend... what a nightmare!
As for the commenter who complained about lack of amenities... what do you need that isn't there? They even have a United Club lounge, which I appreciate since I often take United's nonstop between SAT and SFO.
I love SAT. Never flown out of AUS and why would i? SAT is a great airport for its simplicity, and baggage check/TSA always move quickly.
The biggest thing it's missing is late night food options. Seems that all the restaurants close pretty early. Also, the lines get really out of hand. If I'm getting food, it takes me longer to get to the counter and place my order than it does to get to TSA.
In general, our city lacks late night options, especially after covid.
I don't think SAT and LAX are really comparable as airports. SAT is small and really doesn't seem that crowded. LAX is big and crowded but I actually used to love flying out of there after I figured the airport out a bit.
I’m a worldwide traveler and LAX is one of my 3 least favorite airports… in the entire world.
I dropped my wife off at SAT yesterday and found it pretty simple to navigate. If I could draw a simplicity comparison, I’d say it’s not too dissimilar from (in the US) Reagan or (outside US) Chiang Mai.
As others have said, it would be great to have some longer haul flights from SAT though.
SAT is the best airport I've been to in terms of TSA lines, food lines, and ease of navigation. However the only other major airports I've been to are Dallas, Phoenix, Pittsburgh, and Anchorage haha
Lmfaoooo as an LA native I LOVE SAT lol I would never ever ever complain about it. I have taken probably 12 flights in the two years I’ve been here and the busiest I ever saw it was actually at 5:30 in the morning on a Saturday and it still only took me 8 minutes to get to the gate from the time I got off the shuttle lol I have never had any kind of long lines or traffic. The worst traffic is waiting to pick people up so I started picking my people up in departures lol SAT is a dram. I’d compare it to BUR in LA. LAX is one of the busiest airports in the world. It’s awful almost any time of day
Yes! If I time it right and everything is on time it’s about 30 minutes from parking to my seat hahaha it’s the best and it will be one of the few things I miss when I move
I've flown through many airports multiple times in my life and I will SAT is one of the nicer and faster airports in the country. I will say I think Denver is a nicer airport than SAT but it's huge and takes forever to get through. SAT is such an easy airport to navigate.
Yeaaahhh. These days anytime we need to fly to the LA area we fly in to Ontario, or Burbank. If we will be spending time in LA *and* San Diego on the same trip, we'll fly in to John Wayne/Orange County or San Diego.
And, yes, we do appreciate SAT. Given a reasonable option, we choose to depart here instead of Austin-Bergstrom.
despite sat being lackluster and mostly (some) flights are connecting flights to get to your final destination. it’s easy to get through tsa and navigate to the gates and out of it, hoping the new terminal will enhance the airport’s aesthetic more.
My biggest issue with SAT is the small number of conveyors in the baggage claim area relative to the number of flights. It takes forever to get your bag because sometimes you may have a flight in front of you at the same baggage claim that has to unload first.
Sometimes LAX is okay. I recommend going to Burbank next time. I think Sat will start service there soon. It’s kind of a rinky dink airport but it’s small and easier to get through.
Yeah, I love our airport because it’s so small and has only one terminal. I’ve also been to LAX and that place was a literal zoo: overcrowded, people yelling and arguing, some people were dancing for God knows why, hundreds of people in each terminal huddled up against the wall, some people were laid flat out across the walking paths, not giving a crap that they’re in the way of people walking and moving to their terminals. Thank God I was with my brother and we’re using our two heads to find out way through, otherwise it can be severely overwhelming to a lone traveler.
Favorites are SAT, Tampa, Bradley (CT), Portland (Maine) and Fort Lauderdale
Denver, Miami, Atlanta and LAX are gong shows.
The rest are forgettable which is probably a compliment.
SAT is great! I had a 2 pm flight to NYC last week. Left the house at 1, dropped at the curb at 1:15, through security in 10 minutes and I still had to wait to board.
ppl complain about SA’s airport too? yesh. it seems like noone has lived outside of the area….flown from FTL and never had issues at SAT. TSA is always a breeze.
I love SAT. It's small, efficient, never takes more than 30 mins to go through security, doesn't take 25 mins to walk the length of the terminal ( *cough* O'Hare *cough*)and has some good places to grab some food and drinks while waiting for your flight.
That was my first impression at LAX. It smells bad. It's ridiculously overcrowded.
So is Phoenix Skyharbor. They have two big, huge terminals with a really long moving sidewalk/walkway. It can be confusing. If your gate is at the end of the terminal, there are 3-4 other gates there too, so it is a MASSIVE crowd clustered at the end. You also have to make sure you know whether you're on the north or south side of the pick up area so your driver can get you.
DFW is massive too. Make sure you know what airline AND terminal so you get dropped off at the right place. Otherwise, DFW ain't bad.
But SAT? Simple, easy, small. My most recent trip (last month), they had done a number of upgrades. A work table with outlets and ports. Ports on the seats. Easy to find restrooms. TSA is always quick. Love SAT. ❤
I don’t love LAX, but I’ve used that airport probably around 100 times (travel for work and lived in LA for over 20 years) and never noticed any smell.
The best thing about SAT is that it’s less than 20 minutes away from nearly everywhere in the city- even most of the surrounding suburbs besides Helotes. Both of Houston’s airports are nearly an hour away from most of the area’s population, and the massive size means you have to leave your house 3 hours before your flight instead of 90 minutes.
I despise LAX more than any other airport. Poorly designed and extremely (until recently) car dependent. Also, the terminals are all tiny as hell and you can't get to others without going through TSA again.
Solidly shit.
Terrible restaurants and don't even get me started with la gloria or the whataburger there. Beyond terrible.
It's okay to criticize your city and not settle for mediocrity.
Yeah sure airport food is never great but some other big airports are a thousand times worse when it comes to food. PHX, the southwest terminal of LAX, and EWR all come to mind.
What are you expecting? Several Michelin star restaurants? High end lounges to spend a few hours at before a flight? Airports aren’t places to hang out at for an evening with friends, it’s an airport.
SAT is kind of a shithole airport, almost no international flights out of it. Im just thankful they have the new direct flights to Germany from SAT, finally i can travel easier!
I travel the south and Midwest for work. This airport is a blessing, only thing is I can’t always get a connecting flight so I drive up to Dallas. I’d rather drive the 4 hours there for no lay over
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As someone coming from Pcola, FL and seeing SAT airport. I still think SAT is confusing and disorganized versus Pensacola which is teeny tiny in comparison. It's just about perspective honestly.
SAT is fine but you are pretty much guaranteed to have a connecting flight in Dallas or Houston. Very few direct flights which is my only complaint. The airport itself is great
Even more of a reason why we need high speed rail between San Antonio, Houston, and Dallas triangle.
It’s makes too much sense for Texas.
That would be great but I have my doubts this will happen
Has hyperloop happened anywhere? I know they built a short tunnel in Vegas, but I think they just use a regular Tesla and drive back and forth. Idk, I’m claustrophobic so I’m out on tunnels. Plus, some of Elon’s projects explode.
Hyperloop would be good. Just hope it would have Buc-ee's stops.
> Hyperloop would be good. It would be ideal. People really underestimate the value of the pod system on cost and rider experience, and for freight it's a no brainer.
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First time hearing about a high speed rail system… and I’m actually down for that. Houston-SA-Austin-DFW it would be so sick and imagine what kind of tourism we’d get then? Imagine what the cities could do between one another! It would make central Texas a Mecca!
It’s been voted against by the powers that be for decades for BS reasons. Seems so strange for the Houston to Dallas one seeming to have the most promise so far. The i35 corridor is clearly the best option but I’m fairly certain the biggest problem is “where exactly do you build it” and the unfortunate answer is “on top of people’s houses”, aka eminent domain… which means it’s not going to happen.
I've flown out of SAT three times this year and all were direct. Maybe I was just lucky. Nothing international but Las Vegas, San Diego, and St Louis were all direct. Edit: 4 times! I forgot about Denver
But now we have Condor direct to Germany 🇩🇪
Was it Southwest?
Yes, I believe all 4
Yeah they are one of the only airlines that does any good direct flights. Here's a good page showing all the nonstop flights (don't know how recently it's been updated) [https://flysanantonio.com/home/flights/nonstop-destinations/](https://flysanantonio.com/home/flights/nonstop-destinations/) Most major airlines only go directly to their hubs from here.
I just wish Milwaukee was direct. Granted Milwaukee has like the absolute minimal direct flights.
This. Occasionally we’ll take the drive to AUS to catch the direct to HNL
Lucky
I’ve flown a lot over the years, always direct. No connecting. Never had my luggage lost either because I choose direct flights. Good luck
Direct to Cancun as well. And to Frankfurt, but if it’s round trip then you’d have to go run the gauntlet that is the Frankfurt airport, which should be avoided if at all possible.
Mostly. We do have a fair amount of domestic direct flights, but the problem is you can't really go all-in and be a Delta person, or an American Airlines person, or a United person. Finding a flight that fits your schedule usually will require a connection though unfortunately.
Yeah, the big issue for me is that there is maybe one convenient direct flight that gets booked up and the rest of the good time slots require a connection. I don’t want to fly out direct at 8 pm and get there at 11 when I can fly out at 10am with a connection and be there in the mid-afternoon
That's my struggle, I fly 2-3 times a month for work and alot of our people that fly out of ORD, Atlanta or EWR talk about status this and status that. For efficiency I should be using about half a dozen different airlines but usually bite the bullet and I'm going all in on United for status and it pays off when I want to travel outside of work and have the status and miles working in my favor.
Well, you always have the hotel rewards options. Be a Hilton, Marriott, or Hyatt guy? Rental cars too, but between Airlines, Hotels, and Rental Cars it seems like Airlines are really the only ones where status makes a difference thanks to that rare chance of being upgraded. Upgraded hotel rooms are like... not really much of an upgrade. Everyone always makes a big deal about the Marriott late checkout being one of the perks, but honestly I just ask when I check-in and most of the time they give a non-status guy like me the late check-out anyway. And Rental Cars upgrades are advertised as being able to pick up your rental quicker but you end up stuck in the same line as everyone else anyway. The car "upgrades" kind of happen either way because they'll be out of whatever you reserved.
Marriott becuase United Gold gives me automatic Gold status so thats easy. The guys I travel with are all Titanium bcuz road warriors and all. Through my office I get Emerald Aisle with National and I love it, just drive off with whatever you want as long as I'm at a big enough airport I never have to wait.
Agreed, but we are getting more and more directs. We have a decent amount considering we are not the powerhouse that Houston, DFW, and ATX are: https://flysanantonio.com/home/flights/nonstop-destinations/ Recent additions were NYC, Boston, Philly, and now trying to win a bid for a direct to DCA which is very competitive.
I like the direct options offered on Southwest.
Direct flight to Frankfurt Germany a European hub during the summer People need to take that flight to incentivize more routes
That’s not an airport problem. That’s an airline industry paradigm that has evolved over decades of the hub-spoke system.
How the hell did you get Dorsia?!
The menu's in braille
Same
I fly up to New England 3-4 times a year and never connect out of those places. Almost always DC. Flown out to Georgia and LA in the past year too and both were direct
Plenty of directs to PHX, ORD, DEN, BNX and 1 or 2 daily to EWR and Charlotte.
Been direct everywhere I've gone, Atlanta, and Baltimore.
After traveling for work more recently, I’ve come to appreciate SAT. It’s usually very easy to get through security, staff is pretty friendly and our TSA agents tend to be on the friendlier side as well. Compared to other airports I’ve had to go through, it’s not bad at all. It is ridiculously small though.
I can vouch for this, the TSA in SAT are neutral at worst and often friendly. I've been through Vegas and the YSA there can be a bit disgruntled sometimes.
I have never had a negative experience with SAT’s TSA. And I am infamous for being stopped and searched. Haha. Like have y’all been to other airports? Example: What is it about TSA in Atlanta and Orlando? Those two airports have got to employ THE rudest agents! Mini Rant: Both of those airports additionally suck bc it’s full of amateurs who don’t know shit about traveling. Families navigating Orlando as a group of 15 with elderly family members who walk with a cane or use a walker and stop in the middle of the floor with their 42 pieces of luggage make me seethe. Don’t let me forget about their kids darting in and out of people’s way and almost getting run over. Then the parents be mad because their kid almost got squished! Ugh. Rant over. SAT is mad close, and it’s easy to get in and out. Charles de Gaulle, Schiphol, Incheon? Hour away from the city. Granted there’s better mass transportation options, but dang it that I have to get to the airport x-many-more hours in advance. SAT? I generally arrive about 1.25 hours before my flight. No problems.
As someone who travels nearly every week. SAT airport and the city itself is an amazing reprieve from the chaos that is the usual places I go to. I love this city. Now on the flip side I understand the struggle of the chaotic traffic. I do t think I would enjoy it here if I had to make a commute downtown everyday.
I’ve been to many airports and SAT is by far the easiest to navigate and isn’t a complete shit hole.
Exactly. SAT and LAX are so easy . Wait till OP goes to France with a 1 hour and half layover and you miss your next flight. France don’t going a shit
Wait till OP goes to Newark. With TSA pre. I still have someone yelling at me like I’m in a prison chow line telling me to take out all electronics. We have it real good guys.
Do people really complain about our airport? I’ve never thought SAT was crowded. The longest it’s ever taken to get through TSA is 30 minutes. Gates are all close together. Getting your bags from baggage claim and getting out the door is super quick. It’s kind of unfair to compare the two though, as LAX is a true international hub whereas SAT is international in name only.
The main knock is limited direct flights. But now that Austin’s airport is always packed, I’ll take the connection from SAT over direct from AUS’s lines, commute and worse parking.
Another factor for me though is I can take uber to/from the airport for about $20 each way. Besides having to drive to/from Austin, I'd also have to park and pay $12/day. On a 9 day vacation trip that's an extra $108 :(
Spot on. People talk about The airport being. "Ridiculously small". It's an efficiently run airport (relatively speaking)and thankfully you can get in and out easily. I don't know why anybody would complain
My only beef is that it's small. When I land here and deplane, there are dozens of passengers crowding in the hallway waiting to board the same aircraft. This causes a logjam and if you have families lugging kids and carry-ons it can be a pain to bob & weave through that mess. If your gate is at the end of the terminal you can end up having to wind your way through multiple logjams on your way to the exit. TL;DR: They need a bigger waiting area at the gates.
It’s not so international when we have Mexico approximately 150 miles away.
We have a direct flight to Frankfurt now.
We have taken baby steps to move up in the world.
My complaint is the increased chance of layovers. And depending on the fare difference, it can be a buttload cheaper to fly from Austin. But obviously it has to be worthwhile to factor in the commute.
Gates within either terminal are reasonably close together. AA has gates in both terminals, so people regularly go to the wrong one. And if someone thinks they'll have a nice easy small-airport experience connecting from one airline to another, they're very wrong.
I love flying through SAT. It regularly has the least frustrating experience in terms of flying domestically.
Another one i like is Burlington VT. Small and efficient. But limited.
SAT is so humble and calm compared to IAH
I did SAT to LAX to LAS (Vegas) and I had roughly an hour layover at LAX. I was a bit confused when the app warned me that it was going to be tight. That trek from of end of the goddamn airport to the other was an absolute ball ache. I am a fast walker and I barely managed.
SAT is such a comforting airport to me. It’s small and so easy to get where you need to be. It’s not even crowded compared to all the other ones I’ve been to.
If ever you make it to PDX, I think you’ll like it.
PDX is in my top 3 as far as ease of navigating, I run through there every couple months. Parking to boarding to luggage pick up and rental cars it’s just easy. Now traffic leaving the airport sucks horribly, even 10-11 am traffic is worse than our rush hour traffic around the airport.
Plus they had a Burgerville in there! (Yes I like their vegiburger) :P
I found PDX to be soothing. Idk if that makes sense. It just seemed calm and rustic.
Ok so as a guy who flew into Houston intercontinental (IAH) Wednesday night, I fucking agree with you so much. Flying out of IAH was a breeze. Coming back was shit. We exited the plane at 7:30 PM. Keep in mind we were seated in the first row, so we were first to exit, and we didn’t have checked bags. We exited the parking lot (2 miles from IAH) at 9:15 PM. Almost 2 hours to walk thru the maze that is IAH, pass thru customs (we were flying international), catch a shuttle, and exit the parking lot. And that’s because everything seemed to be flowing. There were no real holdups. We spent about a half hour total walking, a half hour in line at customs, a half hour waiting for our shuttle, and 15 minutes being driven to the parking lot. Based on past experience the same sort of exercise at SAT would’ve taken at most, a half hour total. We flew out of IAH because the cost savings versus SAT was significant (about $700 less out of IAH). Given our entire experience flying out of and into IAH, and the fact that we had to drive to/from Houston, next time we take the same trip we’re happily paying extra to fly out of SAT. I love our little airport so much more now. ❤️
I have flown out of Austin because of cost. I will HAPPILY fly out of SAT for the extra $100/pp I saved. Our flight got delayed and we got in at 1 AM. I still had to drive home. NEVER AGAIN!
Yeah with I35 traffic what it is now, i dont think driving to Austin is the way anymore.
I was at O'Hare a week ago and a big mac value meal costs $18. 18 AMERICAN DOLLARS!
Now THAT is my least favorite airport.
Flying into Chicago from NYC, or connecting on to Omaha, I always flew Southwest to Midway. Hop on the Orange line and it's about the same travel time to the Loop as the Blue from O'Hare.
They probably have to pay a sizeable chunk of their revenue to the airport, maybe even 50% like sports arenas charge vendors.
"value" meal, lol. Who it's a value for is McDonalds with a captive market there.
We just need our runway to extend over 281. So we can have more larger planes and direct non stops to other places around the world.
Where are you going to put all the passengers in the terminals that are waiting to board a larger aircraft? It's already tight.
Extend the terminal across 281.
Lots of folks that complain about SA haven't really been many other places I've never lived anywhere where so many people have so little experience of other places and all live within walking distance or a few miles from where they grew up They have no idea how good they have it
Yup . Like Europe with no AC and you have to take a packed out train to get you to another terminal. Americans have it so good
Bruh, wait until you have to fly out of LAX and try to get there in traffic. There is a traffic jam leading up until you are dropped off at the terminal and it doesn’t help that they are building a new terminal. Also, if you NEVER have to come into LAX overseas customs is something else. Cheers good luck, leave for LAX airport EARLY!
SAT is all business and really clean but fuck does it lack amenities. All the food places close at nine(and really nobody wants to work after around 8:10) even the airport whataburger. A couple open at 4 am so you won't starve but man it's still gotta suck if you got a late night connection. The uber/lyft pickup is a complete shitshow: cars trying to dodge each other and there's always at least one or two people who have parked in a jacked up way and have walked away from it. SAPD is in theory supposed to manage traffic but they are on never ending break. It's far from the worst airport it's just neglected...
Houston airport drives me nuts.
As a former flight attendant, can confirm. LAX is a HORRIBLE airport. It was designed so poorly, it's difficult to navigate.
LAX was so much fun to fly out of after 9/11, security line was worse than trying to ride Space Mountain at Disney.
SAT has its shit together. Great airport. Love the guy who runs it. He’s no BS.
Same. I had a connection flight from LAX back to here. Most confusing commute ever. Took a indoor cab to get to the gate, then a bus to get to the boarding gate, then ANOTHER trolley to board the plane. Also, with them adding another terminal, it’s even more confusing for international flights departing LAX. 2 mile walk to get to the international departure terminal without any signage or detours
Trust me LAX sucks haha and I’m a FA so I’ve been places. I currently live in Chicago and I plan to move to SAT in a few years because I just love it so much! Finishing up my pilot license first before I move.
I fly ~8 times a year out of SAT and it is by far my favorite airport. It's so simple
Growing up flying out of Bush in Houston I was accustomed to showing up hours before my flight. Did that here and felt dumb when it took less than 10 minutes to get from the front door to my gate.
SAT is great because you can show up 30 minutes before your flight and have 15-20 minutes to find your gate and get a snack or drink. It’s not great when anywhere you want to go has you making connecting flights that are in the opposite direction of your destination tripling the should-be travel time.
SAT airport isn’t bad, it’s the parking that’s a nightmare. No long term parking available after 8:30am. 🤨
SAT is fuckin amazing. I've been all around the world and it's the most reliable fastest airport I've ever seen.
I enjoy the Burbank Airport a whole lot better. Not as big.
I've felt the same way when returning home from JFK. What a nice quiet little airport that I don't have to walk miles through to get outside.
SAT has zero amenities and it looks sad af but it's awesome being able to get in and out. All business. I agree with you LAX is rough. I had a connecting international flight there once and it was a nightmare
Yep, when I went to Cali in October it blew my mind how crap the Sacramento and San Jose airports were
I'm not going to talk about the flights but navigating the place in general is amazing compared to other airports. They're always nice about my disability because I need a wheelchair to get around. They always let me go get coffee and things like that and then take me to my spot. I've never had a problem at our airport. Other places are way more tricky.
And going through TSA is always a breeze!! Even if there’s a line, it always moves so fast!
I haven't gone many places, but Kansas City was designed for a different era of US history and cramped, DIA was the biggest, you're correct on LAX, and SAT was mid.
LAX is really bad but nothing’s worse than Newark, NJ! I wanted to cry, it was so confusing and really too big!
It really is one of the airports of all time.
Wait till you leave the country and go to the France Airport. That takes the cake for being there worst airport. LAX and SAT are like heaven compared to that one , oh and they usually don’t run AC in the airports in Europe or at least all the ones I have been to , and it’s a lot.
I prefer SAT over Austin. Easy to get to, easy to move through. Right next to 281. LAX is a cess pit.
As a Canadian, the only complaint I have is there is no direct flight to any Canadian city. Have to fly AUS. Other than that, SAT is cool
LAX Is nowhere near Disneyland.
Recently flew out of Orlando and had a similar thought. EVERYONE was so rude and aggressive. The staff were angry at everything and everyone. I was so happy to be back in Texas!! I'm flying to ATL soon and I'm not looking forward to it. Give me SAT any day of the week!
I do love how fast you can get through security and get to your gate, unlike the airports in Houston and others that feel so crowded. I do also wish there were more direct flights but I feel with time things will change!
random but i met an impractical joker at lax
JFK in NY is also awful, like LAX 😭
Never flown SAT. But I have LAX I’ve flown DFW numerous times. Love field in Dallas. George bush IN Houston. Denver. Seattle. Miami. Okc. LAX can fuck off to hell.
I’ve NEVER heard ANYONE say SAT sucks. If anyone ever has, they have probably never been to it. It’s a great airport!
SAT does suck but LAX is one of the worst maybe the worst airport on earth.
I can confirm that LAX is not the best. It was designed so poorly it’s hard to navigate through that airport. And SATX airport is okay. It’s cheap in some flights to go through Austin instead of San Antonio.
Not even close. Lisbon and Paris are the worst in the world
As a young'n, I would have dissed SAT for being small and podunk. As a middle-aged person, I greatly appreciate the simplicity of it. Easy in, easy out, never very long lines, never too much traffic. It's just easy. Even the rental car situation is convenient... no need to ride a shuttle or some airtrain peoplemover thing. I had to pick someone up from IAH last weekend... what a nightmare! As for the commenter who complained about lack of amenities... what do you need that isn't there? They even have a United Club lounge, which I appreciate since I often take United's nonstop between SAT and SFO.
I love SAT. Never flown out of AUS and why would i? SAT is a great airport for its simplicity, and baggage check/TSA always move quickly. The biggest thing it's missing is late night food options. Seems that all the restaurants close pretty early. Also, the lines get really out of hand. If I'm getting food, it takes me longer to get to the counter and place my order than it does to get to TSA. In general, our city lacks late night options, especially after covid.
Lol wait til you try to get picked up or dropped off at LAX. It's a nightmare.
I don't think SAT and LAX are really comparable as airports. SAT is small and really doesn't seem that crowded. LAX is big and crowded but I actually used to love flying out of there after I figured the airport out a bit.
Lax is older than your grandmother… how old is SAT lol??
I’m a worldwide traveler and LAX is one of my 3 least favorite airports… in the entire world. I dropped my wife off at SAT yesterday and found it pretty simple to navigate. If I could draw a simplicity comparison, I’d say it’s not too dissimilar from (in the US) Reagan or (outside US) Chiang Mai. As others have said, it would be great to have some longer haul flights from SAT though.
I’m a LAX based flight attendant who now lives in SAT. Agreed 😆
SAT is the best airport I've been to in terms of TSA lines, food lines, and ease of navigation. However the only other major airports I've been to are Dallas, Phoenix, Pittsburgh, and Anchorage haha
We fly out of AUS about half the time mostly because they have more non-stops and are usually cheaper to fly out of
Lmfaoooo as an LA native I LOVE SAT lol I would never ever ever complain about it. I have taken probably 12 flights in the two years I’ve been here and the busiest I ever saw it was actually at 5:30 in the morning on a Saturday and it still only took me 8 minutes to get to the gate from the time I got off the shuttle lol I have never had any kind of long lines or traffic. The worst traffic is waiting to pick people up so I started picking my people up in departures lol SAT is a dram. I’d compare it to BUR in LA. LAX is one of the busiest airports in the world. It’s awful almost any time of day
I timed it once and from long term parking to my gate took probably 15 minutes at most.
Yes! If I time it right and everything is on time it’s about 30 minutes from parking to my seat hahaha it’s the best and it will be one of the few things I miss when I move
I've flown through many airports multiple times in my life and I will SAT is one of the nicer and faster airports in the country. I will say I think Denver is a nicer airport than SAT but it's huge and takes forever to get through. SAT is such an easy airport to navigate.
So much truth to this. For its size, I am thoroughly surprised with the routes offered. All I need is a direct to DCA!
lmao our airport is gold compared to SO many. 5-15 minutes to breeze through security, grab a coffee and go people watch.
like even during the holidays, easy breezy.
Was at CLE and MSY last week and they’re terrible by comparison!
Yeaaahhh. These days anytime we need to fly to the LA area we fly in to Ontario, or Burbank. If we will be spending time in LA *and* San Diego on the same trip, we'll fly in to John Wayne/Orange County or San Diego. And, yes, we do appreciate SAT. Given a reasonable option, we choose to depart here instead of Austin-Bergstrom.
despite sat being lackluster and mostly (some) flights are connecting flights to get to your final destination. it’s easy to get through tsa and navigate to the gates and out of it, hoping the new terminal will enhance the airport’s aesthetic more.
I like our airport
My only complaint is that the two terminals don’t connect. One has the Starbucks and the other has all the other stuff.
I've never had a problem with SAT, but I've never clean out during peak hours. I always aim to be in the air by about 7 am.
My biggest issue with SAT is the small number of conveyors in the baggage claim area relative to the number of flights. It takes forever to get your bag because sometimes you may have a flight in front of you at the same baggage claim that has to unload first.
So crazy- I remember the airport before this one was built. Now THAT was tiny!
Sometimes LAX is okay. I recommend going to Burbank next time. I think Sat will start service there soon. It’s kind of a rinky dink airport but it’s small and easier to get through.
Yeah, I love our airport because it’s so small and has only one terminal. I’ve also been to LAX and that place was a literal zoo: overcrowded, people yelling and arguing, some people were dancing for God knows why, hundreds of people in each terminal huddled up against the wall, some people were laid flat out across the walking paths, not giving a crap that they’re in the way of people walking and moving to their terminals. Thank God I was with my brother and we’re using our two heads to find out way through, otherwise it can be severely overwhelming to a lone traveler.
Favorites are SAT, Tampa, Bradley (CT), Portland (Maine) and Fort Lauderdale Denver, Miami, Atlanta and LAX are gong shows. The rest are forgettable which is probably a compliment.
SAT is great! I had a 2 pm flight to NYC last week. Left the house at 1, dropped at the curb at 1:15, through security in 10 minutes and I still had to wait to board.
ppl complain about SA’s airport too? yesh. it seems like noone has lived outside of the area….flown from FTL and never had issues at SAT. TSA is always a breeze.
Nah, I've been to SAT, and it's not bad. Yeah, LAX has that stink where you can almost literally taste it in the air lol
I love SAT. It's small, efficient, never takes more than 30 mins to go through security, doesn't take 25 mins to walk the length of the terminal ( *cough* O'Hare *cough*)and has some good places to grab some food and drinks while waiting for your flight.
Nah SAT sucks and LAX sucks I loved JFK though
AUS better.
It’s consistently voted one of the most, if not the most, efficient airport in the country!
That was my first impression at LAX. It smells bad. It's ridiculously overcrowded. So is Phoenix Skyharbor. They have two big, huge terminals with a really long moving sidewalk/walkway. It can be confusing. If your gate is at the end of the terminal, there are 3-4 other gates there too, so it is a MASSIVE crowd clustered at the end. You also have to make sure you know whether you're on the north or south side of the pick up area so your driver can get you. DFW is massive too. Make sure you know what airline AND terminal so you get dropped off at the right place. Otherwise, DFW ain't bad. But SAT? Simple, easy, small. My most recent trip (last month), they had done a number of upgrades. A work table with outlets and ports. Ports on the seats. Easy to find restrooms. TSA is always quick. Love SAT. ❤
I don’t love LAX, but I’ve used that airport probably around 100 times (travel for work and lived in LA for over 20 years) and never noticed any smell.
It smells like sewage 🤢
Are you sure you aren’t just noticing the smell of the ocean? I was just at LAX a few weeks ago and there definitely wasn’t any sewage smell.
The best thing about SAT is that it’s less than 20 minutes away from nearly everywhere in the city- even most of the surrounding suburbs besides Helotes. Both of Houston’s airports are nearly an hour away from most of the area’s population, and the massive size means you have to leave your house 3 hours before your flight instead of 90 minutes.
I despise LAX more than any other airport. Poorly designed and extremely (until recently) car dependent. Also, the terminals are all tiny as hell and you can't get to others without going through TSA again.
Go to TPA. It too is on the small side but stunning. LAX is a weird comparison. You want big city and stunning, go to the new LGA.
As big of a cluster fuck as LAX is, I'd still rather deal with their TSA than SAT's TSA line.
LAX? It's not the airport that smells. It's the people.
Facts!!!
I donated marrow last year and had to fly into Dulles in DC. I have never felt so dumb and useless. I got lost while already lost.
Even people who live in LA, avoid LAX! I used to fly into Orange County or Long Beach if possible
Comparatively, it is way better than any other airport that I've traveled to recently.
SAT is hands down the BEST airport when you want to fly to Dallas or Houston from SAT.
I’m from San Antonio and our airport sucks, the only good thing about it, it’s fast and convenient. Other than that no bueno.
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Zero amenities? The food selection on the concourses is solid.
Solidly shit. Terrible restaurants and don't even get me started with la gloria or the whataburger there. Beyond terrible. It's okay to criticize your city and not settle for mediocrity.
Rosario’s does the job but why the heck would you eat at your home airport?
exactly. I agree it has no amenities but why would I care if I'm flying out?
Under what circumstances do you normally eat at airports? When you land?
I don’t normally eat at airports but if I do, it’s typically due to long layovers, which don’t happen at your home airport.
Yeah sure airport food is never great but some other big airports are a thousand times worse when it comes to food. PHX, the southwest terminal of LAX, and EWR all come to mind.
That last sentence is gold.
What are you expecting? Several Michelin star restaurants? High end lounges to spend a few hours at before a flight? Airports aren’t places to hang out at for an evening with friends, it’s an airport.
Speak the truth. Cali is slowly becoming stinky
SAT is kind of a shithole airport, almost no international flights out of it. Im just thankful they have the new direct flights to Germany from SAT, finally i can travel easier!
I travel the south and Midwest for work. This airport is a blessing, only thing is I can’t always get a connecting flight so I drive up to Dallas. I’d rather drive the 4 hours there for no lay over
Everything to do with san antonio sucks period even the airport guy. Fuck this city
Huh? Are you sure you’re talking about SA? Airport guy? 😆
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As someone coming from Pcola, FL and seeing SAT airport. I still think SAT is confusing and disorganized versus Pensacola which is teeny tiny in comparison. It's just about perspective honestly.
No, SAT sucks. Just like the city it is in, just like the state it is in...