Flying Out Of Denver For Memorial Day Weekend? Here’s What To Know

Memorial Day, much like most, if not, all other major holidays is notorious for being one of the busiest travel days of the year.

In fact, a recent holiday travel forecast put together by AAA suggests that a whopping 39.2 million people are expected to travel 50 miles from home or more throughout this Memorial Day weekend. 

That anticipated number is an increase of 8.3% over 2021, bringing travel volumes almost in line with those in 2017; in addition, AAA says that air travel continues to rebound, and is now up 25% over last year - the second-largest increase since 2010.

Get our free mobile app

Anyone who's planning to travel this Memorial Day Weekend - whether it's by car, by bus, by train, or by plane - should give themselves extra flexibility time.

However if you, in particular, have plans to fly out of Denver International Airport (DIA) this Memorial Day Weekend, you might want to leave yourself even more time, as the airport is expected to experience heightened passenger volumes, delays, and more during the holiday break.

Flying Out Of DIA This Memorial Day Weekend? Here's What You Need To Know

According to airport officials at Denver International Airport, nearly 1.2 million passengers are expected to travel through DIA from Thursday, May 26 to Friday, May 3 - meeting or exceeding the number of travelers over the comparable period pre-pandemic, back in 2019, Denver7 says. 

As per reports, the busiest travel days are expected to be Friday, May 27, and Monday, May 30, with approximately 210,000 passengers estimated to travel through DIA on both days.

In response to anticipated delays, DIA officials are actively encouraging all travelers to arrive for their designated flight, at minimum, two hours before their scheduled boarding time to ensure that they'll have more than enough time to both make it through security and to the gate for boarding.

Security Checkpoints At DIA

According to Denver7, the peak times at DIA's security checkpoints have been from 5-11 a.m. and 3-6 p.m. — particularly on Thursdays, Fridays, Sundays, and Mondays.

In response to the current increase in airport traffic and the expected rise in the number of those traveling through the airport through the summer season, TSA has reportedly started to bring in additional staffing resources.

Should you have any additional questions or concerns regarding your upcoming travel plans out of Denver International Airport, you can reach DIA’s customer service team by calling 303-342-2000 or 800-247-2336, by texting 720-370-9002 or by clicking the chat button to connect with a live agent anytime from 6 a.m. and 11 p.m. daily on FlyDenver.com