Airports in North America

Formerly known as Port Salines International Airport, Maurice Bishop International Airport (GND) is located on Point Salines, about five miles (8km) south of the town of St George’s on the island of Grenada.

Grenada’s airport has a colorful history as the hub of the US military invasion of the island in 1983. Since then, the Grenadian government has expanded the airport as an important piece of tourism infrastructure. In 2009 it was renamed for the late Prime Minister who oversaw the expansion. While the airport is still tiny by international standards, it wins rave reviews for its friendly and helpful staff and efficient service.

Flights to Maurice Bishop International Airport come from the Caribbean (Barbados, San Juan, Port of Spain, St Vincent and Canouan); North America (Toronto, Miami and New York); and Europe (London).

Port Columbus International Airport (CMH) is located six miles (10km) outside of Columbus, Ohio. A relatively small airport with only one terminal, Port Columbus nevertheless is the main gateway to the state of Ohio.

The airport maintains a casual and welcoming atmosphere with art exhibitions and museums, and sweetens the deal with the gold standard of airports: free wireless. With a reputation for efficiency and Midwestern friendliness, it’s easy to see why more than 6 million passengers per year choose to fly from here.

Direct flights to Port Columbus International Airport come from a number of cities in the US, Canada and Mexico, including Atlanta, Boston, Cancun, Chicago, Dallas, Denver, Houston, Las Vegas, Los Angeles, Miami, Minneapolis, New York, Philadelphia, Phoenix, St Louis, Toronto and Washington DC.

Portland International Airport (PDX) is the busiest in the state, providing up to 90 percent of the air traffic to Oregon. Nearly 15 million passengers pass through its gates each year.

While its name says international, flights to Portland International Airport are mostly regional with a few routes from Canada. Direct connections can be made to cities such as New York, Las Vegas, Philadelphia, Toronto, Vancouver, Calgary, San Francisco, Boston, Chicago, Honolulu, Seattle, Dallas, Atlanta, Minneapolis, Detroit, Salt Lake City, Denver and Los Angeles. Delta operates the airport’s only intercontinental route to Amsterdam.

The airport is attractive and relatively efficient, but tends to be ranked somewhere in the middle in terms of US airports. With no diversions more exciting than free Wi-Fi and an ice-cream cone from Baskin-Robbins, passengers coming through Portland International will find it as adequate as they require.

Portland International Jetport (PWM) is located two miles (3km) east of downtown Portland, Maine. The busiest airport in the state, the facility processes more than 1.6 million people every year.

With a reputation for friendly and efficient service, the Jetport is a pleasant introduction to the cozy New England region, though it’s small enough that a stopover of several hours would be tedious. A new terminal is scheduled to open in October 2011 however, with expanded waiting rooms, security facilities, and a new food concourse to improve passenger experience.

Flights to Portland International Jetport mostly come from the Eastern US, Midwest and Canada, with destinations such as Toronto, Baltimore, Atlanta, Newark, Cleveland, Minneapolis, New York, Washington DC, Chicago, Orlando, Detroit, Charlotte and Philadelphia.

Raleigh-Durham International Airport (RDU), located 4.5 miles (7 km) northeast of the town of Morrisville in South Carolina, has direct service to more than 40 cities and is equidistant from the cities of Raleigh and Durham.

The airport processes roughly 10 million passengers each year. Despite its label as an international airport, nearly all of the flights to Raleigh-Durham International Airport are domestic, with one or two routes to destinations in Canada, Mexico and the Caribbean.

The airport has two terminals, with the newer Terminal 2 winning raves for its airy environment and abundance of shops and restaurants. Raleigh-Durham is known for its short queues and spacious waiting areas, and is a popular hub for quick flights from Atlanta, Charlotte and Baltimore.

Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport (DCA) is 3 miles (4.3km) from the city center of the capital Washington, D.C. It served 18.5 million passengers in 2010.

It is a focus airport for US Airways, the largest carrier. Flights to Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport come in from across the US, with busiest services from Atlanta, Chicago, Boston, Dallas, Miami, New York, Orlando, Charlotte, Fort Lauderdale and Houston, in that order. International flights here can only land with US customs pre-clearance, and include flights from the Bahamas and Bermuda, as well as a few Canadian cities. To keep traffic down, international flights mostly go through Dulles Airport further away.

Although cramped and congested at peak times, the airport is so conveniently close to the city and well connected via the public Metrorail system that travelers are unlikely to stop using Reagan Airport anytime soon.

Reno-Tahoe International Airport (RNO) is located three miles (6km) southeast of central Reno. The airport is the second-busiest in Nevada because it’s so close to the vacation and ski resort of Lake Tahoe.

The facilities are limited but sufficient, with enough food and shopping to entertain passengers. There are slot machines in the terminal if you want to try your luck, but in Reno-Tahoe you aren’t tripping over them like in Las Vegas McCarran Airport. The airport rarely feels crowded, and is a pleasant introduction to the beautiful mountains of the resort area.

Flights to Reno-Tahoe International Airport are mostly regional, coming from destinations like Seattle, Chicago, Houston, Minneapolis, Salt Lake City, Dallas, Las Vegas, Los Angeles, Denver, San Francisco and Phoenix.

Richmond International Airport (RIC) is located five miles (8km) east of Richmond. The primary airport for central Virginia, Richmond handles about 200 daily flights and nearly 4 million passengers each year.

Flights to Richmond International Airport are available from most cities in the eastern half of the US, but direct connections can be made from Minneapolis, Chicago, Dallas, Houston, Detroit, Cincinnati, Atlanta, Orlando, Cleveland, Fort Lauderdale, Miami, Charlotte, Washington DC, New York and Boston. The only direct international route is to Toronto, operated by Air Canada.

The stylish airport is beloved for its small size and stylish look, making it easy to navigate and pleasant to fly through. The atrium has an airy feeling thanks to the glass roof and large windows, avoiding the claustrophobic stuffiness of many other small airports.

Located seven miles (11km) southwest of central Rochester, Minnesota, Rochester International Airport (RST) is a tiny regional air field serving only two airlines. Processing fewer than 400,000 passengers each year, the airport’s main function is as a hub for AirMed, a medical airline.

Many passengers flying into Rochester do so to get to the renowned Mayo Clinic, a state-of-the-art non-profit medical practice and research facility. The airport was founded by the Mayo Foundation in 1928 as a way to transport patients from far-flung locations.

Flights to Rochester International Airport come in from only a few cities, with direct connections available from Chicago, Detroit, and Minneapolis. Many more able-bodied passengers choose to fly into Minneapolis-St Paul International Airport, which is only a 90-minute drive from Rochester and is connected by bus and train. Those who fly through Rochester International Airport however, get an immediate taste of Minnesotan hospitality from the friendly and welcoming staff members.

Sacramento International Airport (SMF) is 10 miles (16km) from Sacramento, California.

Southwest Airlines accounts for more than half the flights at Sacramento International; the low-cost pioneer carries about 4.6 million passengers each year. Flights to Sacramento International come in from destinations across the US such as Denver, Charlotte, Phoenix, San Francisco, Chicago, Salt Lake City, Atlanta, Detroit, Dallas, San Jose, Houston and Washington, as well as Guadalajara in Mexico.

This small, easy-to-use airport can nonetheless get overcrowded at peak times, so head for the check-in counters early as most shops, restaurants and other facilities are after security.

Sacramento is the state capital of California, founded at the confluence of two rivers, and has a long and interesting settler history. Be sure to check out the many museums during your stay.