Cleveland Hopkins International Airport travel tips

*Watch our past report in the video, above, on travel for Thanksgiving at Hopkins*

CLEVELAND (WJW) – Cleveland Hopkins International Airport is sharing some important tips with travelers this holiday season.

The airport expects 400,000 passengers to arrive and depart from Dec. 17 through Jan. 2, which is 90{32bc5e747b31d501df756e0d52c4fc33c2ecc33869222042bcd2be76582ed298} of the passenger levels seen in 2019.

Travelers are encouraged to arrive at the airport at least two hours before their flight to allow time for inclement weather, traffic, parking, checking in and going through security checkpoints.

The busiest times at the airport include 5 a.m. to 9 a.m., 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. and 4 p.m. to 6 p.m., so keep that in mind as well.

Travelers have several options for airport parking, including:

• CLE Curbside Valet, $30 per day
• The Smart Parking Garage, $20 per day
• The Red Lot, $18 per day
• The Blue Lot, $16 per day
• The Orange Lot, $15 per day

If you’re picking someone up from the airport, you can park and wait in the CLE Cell Phone Lot, which is located off of State Route 237 South. You will find the lot by following the blue directional signs.

Be sure to have a government-issued ID with you and ready when you go to the airline ticket counter and security checkpoint.

Here are some things to keep in mind before the screening process:

• Don’t bring any prohibited items with you in your carry-on or checked bags. You can find out what’s allowed by sending a Tweet to @AskTSA, downloading the free myTSA app or visiting tsa.gov.
• Foods like cakes, pies and cookies are allowed through a checkpoint but they may be subject to additional screening.
• Spreadable and pourable foods like syrup, jams and jellies must go in checked bags.
• Snow globes that are 3.4 ounces or smaller and fit into the 3-1-1 bag can go in a carry-on. Any snow globes that are bigger need to go in a checked bag.
• Consider not wrapping gifts using tape. If the gift triggers an alarm, TSA will have to open the gift to make sure it’s not a prohibited item.

For information on flight status, airline contact information, parking and TSA checkpoint wait times, visit the airport’s website.