Denver airport braces for record-breaking Labor Day travel surge

The latest: Airport officials predict more than 444,500 passengers will travel through its security checkpoints between Thursday and Sept. 3.

• That's up from roughly 410,000 passengers during the same period in 2023.
• The two busiest days of the holiday weekend will be Friday and Monday, when DIA will see nearly 178,000 people.

What they're saying: Travelers should arrive at the airport at least two hours before their flight and be prepared for long security lines, DIA officials advise.

State of play: The airport is expanding its security line reserve system from three days in advance to 14.

• Travelers can make a free reservation and skip the security screening line.

Zoom in: United Airlines is preparing for its "busiest Labor Day weekend ever," chief commercial officer Andrew Nocella said in a statement.

• United plans to operate more than 450 daily departures out of DIA — the most of any airline in the city — with an average of more than 45,000 people per day flying out.
• Top destinations from the Mile High City include Boston, San Diego, New York, Seattle and Orlando, Florida.

By the numbers: For car travelers, peak congestion in the Denver metro will be on southbound Interstate 25 from Fort Collins to Denver on Sept. 3 at 7:30am, per INRIX, a traffic analytics company cited by AAA.

• INRIX predicts travel time will be 36% above normal taking an average 1 hour and 24 minutes.

The big picture: Nationwide, more than 17 million people are forecast to fly between Thursday and Sept. 4 — the busiest Labor Day travel period on record, per the latest TSA projections.

• Meanwhile, domestic travel over Labor Day weekend is up 9% compared to last year, new AAA data shows.
• Travelers taking road trips might be pleased to know they are expected to pay less for gas compared to last year.