Bob Hope Airport officials offer tips for busy holiday travel season
Frequent travelers at Burbank Bob Hope Airport know getting through the terminal can be a breeze, but airport officials are recommending passengers plan extra travel time during the busy holiday season that starts this month.
With holiday travel expected to ramp up just before Thanksgiving, airport officials are advising travelers to arrive 1.5 to 2 hours ahead of their scheduled departures to allow more time to find parking, check bags and clear security during the busy holiday season.
“We don’t want people coming frazzled,” said Lucy Burghdorf, an airport spokeswoman. “It makes a nicer holiday for them.”
To help handle the holiday surge, the airport is expanding its parking options by re-opening and re-designating lots in its existing inventory.
On Monday, it re-opens remote Lot B, located across from the airport entrance on Hollywood Way. The economy lot with nearly 640 spaces was temporarily closed during slower periods.
Parking in the lot costs $13 a day, the same as nearby Lot C on the corner of Thornton Avenue and Ontario Street. Free shuttle service to the terminal will run about every 10 minutes.
The same day, the airport will also open another parking option within walking distance of the terminal. The newly designated Lot G, with roughly 250 covered parking stalls, can be accessed from the main airport entrance at Hollywood Way and Thornton Avenue and from the entrance at Empire Avenue, across from the Bob Hope Airport train station.
The rate will be $23 a day — the same as valet parking in front of the terminal and self-parking in Lot E. It’s adjacent to Lot E, an uncovered lot officials say is often sold-out, and they hope the covered lot will be popular with travelers, too.
Both lots B and G will be unstaffed and paid for by credit card only at lot exits or at “express pay” stations that issue pre-paid tickets. Attendants will be available via intercoms at lot entry and exits.
Express pay stations are located at the Terminal A exit, Terminal B entrance, shuttle island in front of the terminal, the short-term parking structure and Lot E.
The remote economy Lot A, at $10 a day, remains the most inexpensive parking option offered by the airport. It’s located at Hollywood Way and Winona Avenue, with free shuttle service running roughly every 10 minutes.
There is also a short-term parking structure near the terminal for those picking up or dropping off travelers. The rate in the parking structure is $3 for the first 30 minutes, $5 for an hour and $31 a day.
With construction on the Golden State (5) Freeway causing traffic delays, airport officials are also encouraging passengers to consider alternative travel options, such as Metrolink and Amtrak trains that stop at the Bob Hope Airport train station on Empire Avenue.
BurbankBus and Metro buses also service the airport’s transit center. More information about bus and train services is available online at www.bobhopeairport.com/parking/buses-trains.html.