Miami International Airport Bests Orlando For Busiest Florida Airport
Orlando International Airport’s seven year run as the king of Florida airports is finally at an end.
In 2022, Miami International Airport surpassed Orlando in passenger count for the first time since 2016.
An All-Time High
In order to claim the top spot, MIA had to shatter its previous record of 45.9 million passengers, to reach a new all time high of 50.6 million.
That number was enough to best Orlando’s 50.1 million passengers and claim the top spot.
Fueling the surge of traffic at Miami International Airport was the return of international travel. MIA increased its international traffic by 61% between the years 2021 and 2022.
Because of its location, MIA has benefited from the return of international travel to the Caribbean and also South America, which was one of the quickest sectors to recover from the pandemic.
Hub carrier American Airlines, also reported a record year with 31.2 million passengers served.
A Return To The Top
While Orlando had been the dominate airport for the last seven years, prior to that, Miami always came out on top.
Miami-Dade County airport, government and tourism officials announced the traffic count, with County Mayor Daniella Levine Cava releasing the numbers.
“In addition to leading our community’s successful economic recovery from the pandemic, it is again leading the way for the state of Florida, “ the mayor.
Orlando Did Well
Despite loosing out on the top spot in Florida, Orlando International Airport had a strong 2022. The airport saw and passenger increase of 24%, including a 184% increase for international traffic.
With such strong numbers, Orlando International Airport and Miami International Airport are both likely to land in the top ten busiest airports in the world. In 2021, Orlando ranked fifth worldwide, while Miami came in at number 11.
With a strong return of international travel it seems likely that Miami will catapult into the top ten.
Thanks for visiting MickeyBlog.com! Want to go to Disney? For a FREE quote on your next Disney vacation, please fill out the form below and one of the agents from MickeyTravels, a Diamond level Authorized Disney Vacation Planner, will be in touch soon! Thanks!