What Real People Actually Recommend to Other Real People: Bob Hope Airport

This one is especially timely after the Orlando International Airport’s TSA fiasco on Wednesday, which I’m sure other TMRE 2017 attendees will recall with fondness for years to come. At least spending an hour going through security is a rare occurrence these days.

And at smaller airports like Burbank’s Bob Hope, the flying experience is consistently just a little less cumbersome, making it recommend-worthy in our book. But then, of course, you still have to deal with the actual airlines…

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From our very own, Carey Lefkowitz:

“Oh, you’re flying out of Burbank? Niiiiiice.”

Tell anyone in Los Angeles that you’re going on a trip and not flying out of the clogged behemoth known as LAX, and that’s the response you’ll get. LA has several airports in addition to that monstrosity, but Bob Hope Airport in Burbank is the gem of the bunch and is something that I have recommended to people on several occasions.

The location is ideal for people living in the San Fernando Valley, but even those who live in the basin are drawn to it by the lack of traffic congestion around the airport. Bob Hope is nestled between office parks and industrial warehouses in the northern part of the city of Burbank, so while the area isn’t much to look at from the air, the lack of development means it won’t take you very long to get in or out of there. Even the recent development of new parking lots and fast food options in the immediate vicinity was done in an effort to improve traffic flow, and has made the overall experience in the area better. For those who eschew the car, bus and train lines are just a five-minute walk from the terminal, too.

Once there, the airport’s capacity of 14 gates (nine of which are in Terminal A and the other five in Terminal B) means that getting through security is a relative breeze. So, get there an hour before your flight departs and you’re more than good. The reduced strain on the airport’s infrastructure results in happier TSA agents, and happier TSA agents result in happier flyers. Also, save a daily red-eye to New York, the vast majority of flights out of Burbank have a duration of under 90 minutes, so you’re not as likely to encounter people schlepping all of their prized possessions through security and onto a flight. When you’re there, you’re there to move.

The terminal areas aren’t much to write home about, but there’s something charming about them. The design is straight out of the 70s, and while there’s been talk about modernizing it and potentially moving it to a safer location (the terminal is very close to the active runways and does not meet federal design safety standards), the thought of building new restaurants and bringing it to the 21st century is not something that would appeal to me. Bob Hope Airport is an emblem of the if-it-ain’t-broke idiom, and I will always happily take a trip that starts or ends there. You should too.

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Photo credit: Visit Pasadena