The worst US airports for holiday travel

Air travel can be very grueling, and it will probably only get worse as more regulations, such as the most recent TSA screening rule regarding food and electronics, are put in place. Just the ordeal of packing, getting to the airport on time, going through check-in, security, and then boarding is enough to tire a person out. All of that gets amplified, however, during the holiday season. The holidays are a time when many people are traveling to spend time and celebrate with family or friends and a lot of families with children are taking advantage of winter break. This means airports are that much more chaotic, that much more tiring to go through. Due to the volume of travelers, and sometimes weather conditions, delays and cancellations are far more frequent. At some airports, they almost feel guaranteed.

Click here for the The Worst U.S. Airports for Holiday Travel gallery.

Finance technology company SmartAsset conducted an analysis in which they took a look at every airport with at least 4,000 domestic flights scheduled for December from 2012 to 2015. Each airport was ranked according to three factors: cancellation rate, delay rate, and the average time of those delays. Those rankings were then averaged, giving half weight to delay rates and full weight to both cancellation rates and average length of delays. The airports were then given a score out of 100, with higher rankings meaning they had longer delays and a higher percentage of cancellations and delays. We’ve compiled a list from that data to help you determine which airports to avoid this winter, as these US airports are the worst for holiday travel.