Edmonton – The Friday before Christmas is typically the busiest day of the year at the Edmonton International Airport (EIA), and the trend was expected to continue this year.
“We’re expecting between 20,000 and 23,000 passengers to come through the airport today, and then in addition to that we have another 40 or 50,000 that are coming because they’re dropping people off or picking people up,” said Heather Hamilton, EIA.
On Friday morning, airport officials were advising travellers to arrive early and prepared.
“To go through security, just really important to remember not to bring wrapped gifts through because you may need to open them at screenings which slows down the line,” explained Hamilton.
Airport officials also warned passengers to stay away from novelty gifts.
“We had someone bring though a 50 millimeter bullet which turned out to be a bottle opener, so things like that can really slow down the line,” said Hamilton.
Being aware of gels and liquids in luggage can also speed up the process for a passenger.
EIA called in extra staff on Friday to help travellers get on their flights on time.
“We also have extra crews that are sort of queued up and ready to go in case there’s bad weather because we are in that time of year where winter weather really does make a big difference,” said Heather Hamilton, EIA. “We definitely have a lot of things sort of poised and ready to handle the extra volume.”
Go on-line to book an advanced parking spot and get up-to-date information on parking availability at EIA.
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