Seems one of the best ways to boost airport WiFi use is to make it free – at least if what happened at Boston Logan International is any indication.
According to the Massachusetts Port Authority, the folks who run BOS, when the decision was made to make access free, usage jumped 412 percent. Consider: 1,441,833 sessions logged on in 2010. In 2009 the number was 349,381.
“We knew this was something our customers wanted,” says Massport CEO and Executive Director Thomas J. Kinton Jr. Not surprisingly, he says the busiest day in 2010 was the day before Thanksgiving. That’s when the airport recorded 8,235 sessions.
Advertising pays for Boston’s system, not passengers. But you’ve got to eyeball the ads before accessing the Internet.
It’s a model lots of airports across the country have taken under wing. According to Wi-Fi Free Spot, “many airport authorities are adding free high-speed Internet access as an amenity for travelers.”
When Cheapflights studied this extraordinarily useful site one thing stood out: lots of smaller and mid-size airports in the United States give you Wi-Fi gratis, and some key airline hubs don’t.
Starting from the West Coast and working eastward, Wi-Fi Free Spot shows Seattle/Tacoma, Portland International, San Francisco, and Oakland offer free Wi-Fi. Los Angeles doesn’t – at least not outside of Air Canada’s Maple Leaf Lounge.
In Arizona, Phoenix Sky Harbor International—a major hub for US Airways and focus city for discount airline Southwest—boasts free access. Salt Lake City International, a significant Delta hub, has free Wi-Fi. So too does Denver International, another Southwest focus city and hub for both United and Frontier.
In Texas, Dallas/Fort Worth, an American hub and third busiest airport on the planet, is bereft of free Wi-Fi on an airport-wide basis. Bush Houston Intercontinental, a major Continental hub, and Houston Hobby, a Southwest focus airport, provide quasi-free Wi- Fi. But, the Houston Airport System says they only “include real-time flight information and a log on screen for further Wi-Fi access beyond the free interface.” At that point, you’ve got to pay.
Neither Chicago O’Hare International, out of which both United and American hub, nor Chicago Midway, another major Southwest focus airport, have free Wi-Fi. Delta hub Minneapolis/St. Paul does.
Detroit Metro Airport, a Delta hub, isn’t on the for-free list either. Continental’s Cleveland hub is. As for Cincinnati, a Delta hub, the airport says it offers free wireless connectivity in Terminals 2 and 3, and in the cell phone waiting lot.
In the south, Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International, the busiest airport in the world still doesn’t sport free Wi-Fi. Charlotte-Douglas International, a US Airways hub, does.
In Florida, you won’t find complimentary access at Miami on Wi-Fi Free Spot’s list. MIA is American’s Latin American gateway. Fly in or out of Orlando and log on for nothing.
Baltimore/Washington International Thurgood Marshall Airport doesn’t have free Wi-Fi. United’s transatlantic gateway at Washington Dulles doesn’t either.
As for New York/New Jersey Airports, if you want to log on for free you’d best fly out of discount airline JetBlue’s Terminal 5 at JFK. Otherwise you have to pay. Ditto if you’re traveling through Newark Liberty International, a key Continental hub.
Wherever you decide to access the Internet, make sure you do so via a VPN – a virtual private network. That’s the advice of Christian Gunning, Boingo Wireless’ director of corporate communications. Otherwise, you could be leaving yourself open to thieves stealing vital information. “As a user, you single greatest tool to thwart all of the exploits is a VPN,” says Gunning.
He says some VPNs are free, and others aren’t. Free VPN providers include AnchorFree, SecurityKiss, and LogMeIn Hamachi2
Story by Jerry Chandler
