What to know before flying out of Orlando for spring break travel (hint: it's gonna be busy)

Michelle Spitzer, Florida Today
·2 min read

If you thought airports were crazy during winter travel, you may want to brace yourself for spring break.

Orlando International Airport officials warn those traveling now through Easter to be prepared and pack patience. The airport is expecting a record number of spring break passengers, an increase of 11 percent over last spring break.

“We expect to set a new spring break benchmark with more than 7.6 million passengers,” said Kevin J. Thibault, Chief Executive Officer of the Greater Orlando Aviation Authority. “This growth is actually a continuation of what we saw in 2023. For the year, we shattered all passenger records with more than 57.7 million travelers.”

The current MCO daily passenger record was set on December 30th of last year with 98,521 going through security at Florida’s busiest airport.

How early should travelers arrive to the Orlando International Airport?

Orlando International Airport is expecting a record number of passengers for spring break this year.
Orlando International Airport is expecting a record number of passengers for spring break this year.

Officials are recommending travelers abide by the 3-2-1 rule.

Arrive at the ticket counter at least three hours in advance of your flight. Be at the security check-in at least two hours before your departure time. Finally, arrive at your gate at least one hour prior to boarding.

Have a parking plan before arriving at the Orlando International Airport

Parking at MCO is notoriously an issue. Consider taking advantage of a new reserved parking program.

There also is an MCO mobile app that allows passengers to reserve and pay for parking ahead of time. However, this is only available for Level 4 of parking garage C. The cost is $32.

If you don’t want to deal with onsite parking, there are a number of private, off-site parking lots that provide shuttles to and from the airport.

What are the biggest spring break travel days at Orlando International Airport?

  • Saturday, March 23 - 197,697

  • Saturday, March 31 - 197,401

  • Saturday, March 16 - 196,920

  • Saturday, March 9 - 194,649

  • Sunday, March 24 - 191-788

  • Sunday, March 17 - 191,146

  • Sunday, March 10 - 190,742

  • Sunday, March 31 - 189,946

  • Friday, March 29 - 188,977

  • Friday, March 15 - 188,146

Where are Floridians traveling for spring break?

A study by AirportParkingReservations.com found the 10 most popular destinations for Florida residents during spring break were:

  • New Orleans, Louisiana

  • Miami Beach, Florida

  • Punta Cana, Dominican Republic

  • Fort Lauderdale, Florida

  • Las Vegas, Nevada

  • San Juan, Puerto Rico

  • Montego Bay, Jamaica

  • Panama City Beach, Florida

  • Cabo San Lucas, Mexico

  • Key West, Florida

More Florida spring break destinations: Mexico under caution warning from U.S. for spring break. 5 Florida beach towns to go to instead

Spitzer can be reached at Mspitzer@floridatoday.com

This article originally appeared on Florida Today: Know before you go: How to prepare to fly out of MCO for spring break