Miami International Airport said Monday that in November, for the first time since the coronavirus pandemic began in March 2020, the airport recorded more passengers in a month than the same period in 2019 before the public health crisis.
The airport had 3.9 million ticketed passengers pass through security last month, compared to 3.7 million passengers in November 2019, a 6% percent increase. The air travel passenger milestone raises the expectations for South Florida’s tourism industry for the busy winter travel season.
Although the uptick in passenger volume is a positive indicator, it’s not yet clear that regional tourism has fully rebounded to pre-pandemic levels. And the omicron variant presents a risk that could slow travel later this month, in the first quarter of 2022 and beyond.
According to preliminary data from STR, a hospitality data and analytics company, hotels in Miami-Dade County were 70.1% booked in November, compared to 78.4% occupancy in November 2019.
“The airport data is certainly a positive sign, but there’s a fair amount of apprehension among travelers who are scientifically literate,” said Gary Deel, a travel industry consultant based in the Orlando area. “Until we reach a level of hard immunity in the U.S., with the newest wave of news coverage of each variant, you’re going to see dips in travel that correlate with the rises of new variants.”
Deel also pointed to certain travelers potentially being discouraged by travel requirements like the recent U.S. temporary requirement for negative COVID-19 tests for international visitors by airline submitted within one day before traveling. Most cruise lines are also requiring negative COVID-19 tests to board a ship, in addition to showing proof of vaccination.
Miami airport officials attributed the strong November to Thanksgiving holiday travel and the full return of Miami Art Week. That included Nov. 28, the Sunday after the holiday, when the airport recorded 164,000 passengers, its busiest day on record.
Overall, during the 12-day Thanksgiving travel period, from Nov. 19 to 30, 1.7 million passengers went through the airport, up 14% from the same stretch in 2019.
In addition to Art Basel and busy holiday travel, airport officials also credited the end of U.S. travel restrictions for non-U.S. citizens coming from 33 countries, including Brazil and the European Union — two areas from which many tourists come to Miami — for the air traffic comeback.
Also, three of the five airlines providing the most service at MIA added flights. Discounters Spirit Airlines added service to 19 destinations from the airport in mid-November, a month after starting Miami service in October with nine routes, and Frontier Airlines expanded service to 36 nonstop domestic and international destinations — its largest number.
American Airlines, the airport’s largest carrier, recently added four year-round international flights to Latin America and the Caribbean and six domestic routes for the winter season. American Airlines is operating 378 daily flights from Miami, its most ever. However, American announced last week it would have to slightly reduce its international travel schedule from Miami starting near the end of March 2022, due to delays in aircraft delivery from jet manufacturer Boeing.
Looking ahead to travel prospects through the winter, a Miami airport spokesperson said the record-high passenger volume is expected to continue at least through December. This month the average number of daily departing flights is up almost 12% compared to December 2019. On Sunday, Dec. 12, the airport had its second-busiest day in history, with 163,000 passengers. The spokesperson said it’s too early to project passenger traffic for January and early next year.
Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport also appears to be on the road to recovery, but to a lesser extent than Miami. The latest figures available show Fort Lauderdale airport logged 2.4 million passengers in October, compared to 2.7 million in October 2019, a 12% decrease.
While Miami airport officials and area tourism industry leaders are optimistic about the outlook for South Florida’s winter tourism season, the looming threat of the omicron variant remains the biggest challenge for airports and hotels.
“People are certainly anxious to resume their travel habits, especially leisure travel, following 18 months of being sequestered in their homes,” consultant Deel said. “Whether it stays that way, may depend on mutations and variants and if travel restrictions will need to be reapplied.”
