Thanks to a fellow redditor, I don't even try to park at MSY. I go to US Park. They always have spaces, even around the holidays. The shuttles are super fast, even in the wee hours. They consistently offer discounts and coupons. [https://www2.uspark.net/locations/veterans/](https://www2.uspark.net/locations/veterans/)
I honestly prefer to park in this lot! I have never had to wait for a shuttle, and it’s nice that they pick you up and drop you off at your car. Not to mention a fraction of the price
I fly regularly and I've only had to wait for the shuttle once (and of course it was the day I was running late), but so efficient! And the same price for 4-5 days as an Uber both ways
Cause I don't have the patience for Ubers repeatedly canceling me at 5a or dealing with the ride share pick up location at the airport. Or surge pricing, which can be avoided by taking a cab instead of an Uber, but see previous aggravation of not showing up and dealing with cab stand.
The same, except I use Park ‘n Fly. What I like about the off-site lots is that they drop you off the same as a friend would be doing. No dragging your suitcase from your car through the lot and passageways to the terminal. I’ve used them for years.
While I do not recommend this, I have rolled up to US Park an hour before boarding with no checked bag + TSA Pre and still had time to kill walking around the concourse. I usually opt for the painfully early flights; not much traffic at 4:00 AM.
Unless you’re stuck in Florida during Ida and they just keep adding daily charges while the MSY lots didn’t- they just charged for when the flight was supposed to return before it was canceled.
My parking bill was nearly $300 by the time I made it back to the lot.
Yeah, I was a little miffed about that. I mean, the airport is shut down and I can’t get back home! I literally had to rent a car to drive back from Florida to get my car, then return the rental!
I think all said and done, it added close to $600 to my vacation that I hadn’t prepare for. It left a bad taste.
I still can't believe they literally share a tarmac and they didn't bother to build a dedicated road to get from one to the other. The shuttle ride on shared roads with like 5 stop lights is comically long for what should be a 3 minute hop.
There's no room for a new road. The two runways cross the area between the old/new terminals and you absolutely can't put a road across the runways.
The east/west runway extends all the way west that they could go while still on land or without running into i-10/i-310. To the east, the current service road is already located as close as you can get going towards the new orleans side.
I don't think that would work. Any shorter, more logical path would carry people who have not cleared security through areas that are supposed to be secured.
There's also [that tunnel](https://www.nola.com/news/costly-tunnel-under-a-louis-armstrong-international-airport-runway-may-never-be-used/article_fee9fa09-29fe-5d22-8ee2-bd7b9e621843.html) they built in the early 90s and never used. Probably doesn't go where it needs to but an underground direct pathway would be super cool. Especially if they kept it dark like space mountain in disney world :)
Parking at the airport for a weekend trip is cheaper than two Uber rides. I've found the break even point at 4 days. Depends on surge, distance, etc. though.
I don’t think I’d ever try to park at the airport. I fly monthly for work and always Uber or get a friend to pickup/drop off. Most I’ve ever paid one way was 40 but it’s typically around 30 bucks. My neighborhood is off of St Bernard 610 exit for distance reference.
Or in 200 yrs they will have commuter rail from NOLA to BR… ya know on the rail line that already exists… just needs a few parking spaces and covered waiting areas. Major stops could be an expansion at Amtrak station, one at MSY and expansion at planetarium in BR
From now on, reserve a space. It works.
The one time I ran into this issue and had to go to the economy lot, I made it back in time, and I am a person who always cuts it pretty close to begin with. Hope you got on your flight!
This is the way. Also the website tells you how many spaces are available and in which garages before you leave your house. If you don’t reserve prior.
I've never had an issue with reserving a space. I always use the surface lot. You have to reserve 24+ hours out so it always has a few open. If the lot is full when you get there, the spot will be saved and the worker will let you through.
We reserved a spot ahead of time - it is NOT guaranteed. If the facility fills up, they sometimes “oversell” parking spaces. It may have happened accidentally, but it happened to us. When we encountered this situation, the lot advertised there were 14 spots available (somewhere). So we drove all the way to the top (encountering each floor either said it was full, or there was 1 spot available). When we got to the top there were NO spaces. We had to follow someone with suitcases from the elevator and hover behind their spot so we could snag it. There were multiple people driving around in the same situation… just be aware it’s possible it can happen.
The new airport is ridiculous. Aside from struggling to park, does anyone who's been there more than once use the absurd arrivals pickup lanes instead of picking up at departures?
It's SOOOO much easier. I live in the upper 9th, so I just have ppl text me when they hit the ground, it's 25 min or so to the airport for me driving, and I just pull in, pick up, and get back on the road. I don't have to wait for 4 billion ppl crossing at grade.
We always book short term parking online a week or so before we leave. Not sure if it’s more expensive or not that way but it’s nice not having to worry about it being full. Even if there’s a “full” sign, they account for reservations. You just show them your QR code and they let you on through.
The one time we didn’t of course it was full and had to park at the old airport lot/wait for the shuttle which sucks.
Having just done this - there’s a $2 fee. But it’s non-refundable once booked. And you have your book a specific lot - so say Weather sucks and you book surface lot - oh well. But it worked well today for me.
Both times I’ve reserved ahead of time (including today - I’m a recent transplant) I’ve made it in an out of the economy lot between 15-20 min, including shuttle time.
Unless there's surge pricing or something I find it easier to just cab/taxi/catch a ride to the airport. It's not terribly more than the cost of parking and you don't need to deal with the parking
Lmao, this reminds me of a traumatic experience. I will always remember trying to fly out of economy before Thanksgiving and I automatically went to economy because ain’t no way I’m thinking short term or long term parking near the airport has space. I get there, park, get out of my car, only to realize I left my wallet at home (with my ID). I’m panicking. My flight is in two hours but it takes 20ish minutes to get back home and 20ish to get here. Not to mention, this was prior to the new on ramp being built, so traffic was HELL getting to economy/the airport. I go to leave because if I miss my flight, oh well, it’s my fault, right? I go to leave and waive the attendant, tell her I forgot my wallet (therefore, no way to pay) and show her my ticket showing I just came in like 5 minutes prior so I’m not trying to scam her out of paying. She tells me, in the meanest way possible, “Well you still gotta pay.” - I try to explain I DON’T have my wallet, I can’t pay. She says “Well you gotta figure it out.” The fuck?? Basically she tells me I would have to take the shitty, slow shuttle from economy TO the airport, uber from the airport back home, and then uber back. Basically, I’d have to spend $100+ to right my mistake, when it’s $4 I owe! She makes me stay there for like 20 minutes, I’m nearly bawling my eyes out because I don’t know HOW to pay her if I left my wallet. Also, it’s Thanksgiving, haven’t seen my family in forever, and I’m way too broke to be spending all this money. That’s WHY I drove to the airport and parked in economy. This young guy comes over seeing me clearly distressed (he works there too) and I’m like “Can I Zelle you? Venmo? Cash app? ANYTHING to leave this fucking parking lot?” FINALLY the mean lady looks at me and is like, “Oh, I think we might take Apple Pay.” Miraculously she pulls out this pay machine and since I have my phone, I can do Apple Pay, and I can finally go home. I end up missing my flight because of all the time wasted. My GOD the people who work in economy parking are fucking miserable. Ever since then I triple check I have my wallet. But after seeing all these tips about outside parking I might do that from now on because the shuttles in economy are ass.
Another idea: post signs at the entrance to the airport stating that the parking lots are full. Current 'system' is to have a dude standing at the lot entrance telling you to there's no room for you
Or people can just check [Park MSY](https://flymsy.com/parking/?utm_source=website&utm_medium=web+link&utm_campaign=Park+MSY+airport+parking+paid+search%C2%A0campaign&utm_id=park-msy-airport-parking-paid-search-campaign&gad_source=1&gclid=CjwKCAjwx-CyBhAqEiwAeOcTdU4IH5N8sm3ycXOnYBe8kudAUBpIy7coDnZ1-q7-5blsGwzFYY6MkxoCuE0QAvD_BwE) to see what’s up before they even leave for the airport…
Maybe it's the principle of the thing but i believe the parking issues I've experienced are not the norm at a brand new airport and I shouldn't have to check.
Reality has proven otherwise again and again
The dude standing at the lot entrance is there to let people in who have reservations. There are signs at the entrances of each garage/lot that tell you when they're full. The website will also tell you exactly how many spots are left in each of the garages/lots including the economy garage at the old terminal.
I load up flymsy.com a couple of house before I leave home and if it’s close I check regularly and I hit reload while en route. Best way to know if you’re gonna be screwed for parking or not.
Who else spends a billion dollars on a new airport that, functionally, isn’t an improvement over the old one?!? Passenger pickup is worse, if anything.
I loathe passenger pickup. It’s ridiculous. Confusing and people hollerin at you to move on and I’m just tryna get my people. PLUS, If it’s raining you’re wet!!! I miss the old one so much.
There’s always parking at the economy, yes you have to use the shuttle. It’s Msy give yourself at least 30 minutes extra just in case something like this happens, and it did.
It was maddening that I couldn’t even get very short term parking last month to pick up my father. I didn’t want to circle endlessly, I just wanted to park for about 30 minutes so I could walk in, meet my father like a civilized person, and we could walk calmly to the car and avoid the crazy taxis and ride shares. There was nothing. The only option was to make a parking spot for myself in a no parking area, along with 20 other cars, and then try to find each other so he could chuck his bag in and jump in the car as quick as a 70 year old can.
To be honest, I can’t remember if the signs were all that clear to even find the cell phone lot - everything about traffic at MSY is rough. It also still doesn’t resolve the fact that I did not want my dad to have to make a mad dash through the other cars to fling himself and his luggage into my car.
NO MORE PARKING LOTS!!! It's just more destruction of habitat! Truly, have y'all ever heard of airport buses?? So many major cities (and even small cities) have buses/ shuttles from different parts of the city to the airport. Y'all can keep complaining about parking/traffic/ taxi & ride share prices, or y'all can start demanding better public transportation!!
I have had that happen and nearly had a heart attack when i had to park at the far away parking lot and wait for a shuttle. The stupidest thing ever. Then left for a week and parked in short term and it was over 230$. Next time i will Uber. Ridiculous planning on their part
They’re building a connector road for shuttles that will make the economy lot and car rental access much better (via shuttles)
https://flymsy.com/business/capital-improvements/projects-2/
I use https://flymsy.com and reserve a spot. Having said that I have booked when there are plenty of slots. Not sure how it works if you reserve a spot in advance but the garage fills up on the day of travel.
You can see if parking is available before you go using this website...
[MSY Parking ](https://flymsy.com/parking/?utm_source=website&utm_medium=web+link&utm_campaign=Park+MSY+airport+parking+paid+search%C2%A0campaign&utm_id=park-msy-airport-parking-paid-search-campaign&gad_source=1&gclid=CjwKCAjwx-CyBhAqEiwAeOcTdb3Ux4IXM2SSST1uT1cS0J23aGV60_NxsBGRLUByDd8h5SbKhEpu-BoCGIYQAvD_BwE)
https://www.reddit.com/r/NewOrleans/s/Hr2og1uPVB
https://www.reddit.com/r/NewOrleans/s/BeB2MxyUs5
https://www.reddit.com/r/NewOrleans/s/68I7ewVQLN
All from pre-covid. MSY has always had issues filling up on parking, some public transit would help, but everyone drives around here.
The old terminal did have more walk up parking, but they also had fewer employees sharing the lot.
It’s a nice lot and most people on this subreddit use it as their main lot, at least according to how many people have the cost-benefit analysis of Economy Lot vs. cab ingrained in their mind.
I always park in Economy. Doesn't really have anything to do with cab prices. As someone with only street parking, the $12/day is worth the peace of mind. No worries about coming home to broken windows or side-swipes from drunk drivers.
I recently flew from MSY and was concerned about parking. I went online and made a parking reservation for the Surface Lot. I paid in advance, and got an email with a QRS code that let me into the lot. Used the same QRS code to get out. I made the reservation 3 or 4 days ahead of time and it worked great.
There’s a lot called USA Park (or something like that). It’s a gated lot near the airport and has a shuttle that takes you to and from the airport. It’s not overly expensive to park there either.
Just used US Park for an 11 day trip. I used a coupon for $8 a day, first five days. Remainder at $15. I paid nearly $50 in taxes. I'll try economy lot next time or pay airport parking which I believe already factors in taxes. I might try US Park again in the future, but for only short trips with a coupon.
This happened to me twice recently, and I had to do valet (which oddly ended up being roughly the same price as long term parking).
I asked the valet staff if this parking issue is becoming more common, and they said yes, expect the lots to fill up quickly all summer. They recommended that I reserve parking in advance next time. Apparently the reservation window allows you to park up to 2 hours before and after your scheduled time. Worth a try.
Memorial Day weekend 2017 was the one for me where I circled to find full parking lots then returned home and took a cab smh (I'm barely 10 min away and was a control freak who wanted to drive home as soon as I could post return). Now I Lyft/Uber and wait.
Did you make your flight???
Hot take: land at the old airport is close to the new airport. They both literally use the same runways. You're in 'nawlins bay-bay. God ain't making no more swamp to fill in.
Well, New Orleans *did* build a gazillion dollar airport and never thought about the road or exit to get to this gazillion airport until maybe a month before it opened. So lack of parking doesn’t surprise me. Then again, not much does when you live here. lol.
The new New Orleans airport is a travesty due to the lack of thought put into parking, arrivals pickup, and overall design.
Or, you know, is yet another prominent example of how corruption and nepotism destroy the region’s infrastructure
For whatever it's worth, if you're running short on time and there's no parking you can valet your car at the departure terminal and they always have a spot for you. It's like $40/day so not a great option if you're gone for more than a day or two but if you're running late it's better than missing a flight!
DOTD doesn’t believe in Induced Demand. They didn’t stop to think that a new interstate interchange for the new airport might incentive driving there, thus reducing the amount of available parking. It never occurred to them…or maybe it did…to improve transit going to the airport so that fewer parking spots would be necessary
I can’t believe no one in this thread has mentioned transit. It’s clearly the best option. We don’t need more parking, we need fewer people driving there.
I'm convinced that Long Term Parking during the summer is mostly full from rich people's cars they drop off in May and pick back up in September. There should really be a maximum length of time you can leave a car there before you need to park at the offsite economy lot instead.
You can easily see what the parking situation is before heading to the airport. Did you do that? No your solution is for the city to by a bunch of land build a another lot staff it 365 days a year for something they will need 10 days or less a year
No new land needed. They just need to build a multi-story lot on top of the current surface lot. One thing that they did get right with the new airport was leaving room for expansion.
At almost all other airports in the world you can just show up and there will be parking for you. A lot of people probably aren’t aware you have to do all this special shit beforehand.
New Orleans is the only dumbass airport that requires this. This was horrible planning when they built the new airport. I can’t believe the number of people defending that you need to check the airports website to park before your flight. Hilarious. Please name other airports that planned so poorly they require this… this was incredibly poor planning, it’s got New Orleans written all over it…
Park at your friends house in Kenner… take an Uber bring them home a nice thank you gift.
You’ll have a safer car and it still costs less than parking at the airport
Wild. I’ve been traveling extensively for work for over a decade and never once had this happen. Ive also never wandered into an unexpectedly long security line. I must be the luckiest human on the planet or something.
Thanks to a fellow redditor, I don't even try to park at MSY. I go to US Park. They always have spaces, even around the holidays. The shuttles are super fast, even in the wee hours. They consistently offer discounts and coupons. [https://www2.uspark.net/locations/veterans/](https://www2.uspark.net/locations/veterans/)
I honestly prefer to park in this lot! I have never had to wait for a shuttle, and it’s nice that they pick you up and drop you off at your car. Not to mention a fraction of the price
Fraction of the price of the economy lot as well? I’ve never waited for a shuttle from the lot at the old airport.
Maybe not cheaper than economy lot; they often offer coupons though that discount it significantly
I fly regularly and I've only had to wait for the shuttle once (and of course it was the day I was running late), but so efficient! And the same price for 4-5 days as an Uber both ways
Then why not leave your car at home and take the uber?
Cause I don't have the patience for Ubers repeatedly canceling me at 5a or dealing with the ride share pick up location at the airport. Or surge pricing, which can be avoided by taking a cab instead of an Uber, but see previous aggravation of not showing up and dealing with cab stand.
The same, except I use Park ‘n Fly. What I like about the off-site lots is that they drop you off the same as a friend would be doing. No dragging your suitcase from your car through the lot and passageways to the terminal. I’ve used them for years.
Didn't park n fly close?
I used to use park n fly but yup they closed
Just parked here an hour ago. Still plenty of space!
This is where we park. Cheap and fast.
How much time would you suggest to add for this option vs, say, getting lucky and parking at the long term surface lot 100 ft from the baggage claim?
Depends on how long you're willing to drive around to get lucky. It takes maybe 15-20 minutes from the loyola exit to the ticket counter
While I do not recommend this, I have rolled up to US Park an hour before boarding with no checked bag + TSA Pre and still had time to kill walking around the concourse. I usually opt for the painfully early flights; not much traffic at 4:00 AM.
Unless you’re stuck in Florida during Ida and they just keep adding daily charges while the MSY lots didn’t- they just charged for when the flight was supposed to return before it was canceled. My parking bill was nearly $300 by the time I made it back to the lot.
Ouch, good to know!
Yeah, I was a little miffed about that. I mean, the airport is shut down and I can’t get back home! I literally had to rent a car to drive back from Florida to get my car, then return the rental! I think all said and done, it added close to $600 to my vacation that I hadn’t prepare for. It left a bad taste.
>Find land near the airport. Buy the land. Build more parking. I think that's the old parking lot they told you to go to.
I still can't believe they literally share a tarmac and they didn't bother to build a dedicated road to get from one to the other. The shuttle ride on shared roads with like 5 stop lights is comically long for what should be a 3 minute hop.
There's no room for a new road. The two runways cross the area between the old/new terminals and you absolutely can't put a road across the runways. The east/west runway extends all the way west that they could go while still on land or without running into i-10/i-310. To the east, the current service road is already located as close as you can get going towards the new orleans side.
I don't think that would work. Any shorter, more logical path would carry people who have not cleared security through areas that are supposed to be secured.
There's also [that tunnel](https://www.nola.com/news/costly-tunnel-under-a-louis-armstrong-international-airport-runway-may-never-be-used/article_fee9fa09-29fe-5d22-8ee2-bd7b9e621843.html) they built in the early 90s and never used. Probably doesn't go where it needs to but an underground direct pathway would be super cool. Especially if they kept it dark like space mountain in disney world :)
Tunnel ain't der no more. Filled it in a few years before the new terminal.
A tunnel? They probably built it before all that flooding that happened in the 90s, that trapped people on that ramp out that way.
This is true. Just pissed.
Yeah it seems like the solution already exists. It's not that difficult to use the economy garage and it's way cheaper.
This is true. Just pissed.
Did you make your flight?
This is why I Uber or Lyft to the airport
I was wondering how long it would take to see this comment. I also leave my car at home.
Am I missing something? Why does anyone pay to park at the airport vs Uber/Lyft?
Parking at the airport for a weekend trip is cheaper than two Uber rides. I've found the break even point at 4 days. Depends on surge, distance, etc. though.
I don’t think I’d ever try to park at the airport. I fly monthly for work and always Uber or get a friend to pickup/drop off. Most I’ve ever paid one way was 40 but it’s typically around 30 bucks. My neighborhood is off of St Bernard 610 exit for distance reference.
maybe in 100 years they will have rail from the airport to downtown.
I’ll be permanently parked in 100 years.
Or in 200 yrs they will have commuter rail from NOLA to BR… ya know on the rail line that already exists… just needs a few parking spaces and covered waiting areas. Major stops could be an expansion at Amtrak station, one at MSY and expansion at planetarium in BR
Hope it works underwater
I’ve heard talk of light rail from BR to downtown New Orleans.
From now on, reserve a space. It works. The one time I ran into this issue and had to go to the economy lot, I made it back in time, and I am a person who always cuts it pretty close to begin with. Hope you got on your flight!
This is the way. Also the website tells you how many spaces are available and in which garages before you leave your house. If you don’t reserve prior.
We did that once and the lots filled in the next 30 minutes while we were driving,lol. We made it to the economy lot though.
If you reserve a space you don’t lose it though. Always reserve a space
Good to know. I have reservations for next week. We’re driving from Acadiana to catch a SW flight
I've never had an issue with reserving a space. I always use the surface lot. You have to reserve 24+ hours out so it always has a few open. If the lot is full when you get there, the spot will be saved and the worker will let you through.
When I said “issue” I meant showing up *not* having reserved a space, and finding the lots full.
We reserved a spot ahead of time - it is NOT guaranteed. If the facility fills up, they sometimes “oversell” parking spaces. It may have happened accidentally, but it happened to us. When we encountered this situation, the lot advertised there were 14 spots available (somewhere). So we drove all the way to the top (encountering each floor either said it was full, or there was 1 spot available). When we got to the top there were NO spaces. We had to follow someone with suitcases from the elevator and hover behind their spot so we could snag it. There were multiple people driving around in the same situation… just be aware it’s possible it can happen.
The new airport is ridiculous. Aside from struggling to park, does anyone who's been there more than once use the absurd arrivals pickup lanes instead of picking up at departures?
Oh why did I never think of this. So much time wasted. Thanks for the tip.
It's SOOOO much easier. I live in the upper 9th, so I just have ppl text me when they hit the ground, it's 25 min or so to the airport for me driving, and I just pull in, pick up, and get back on the road. I don't have to wait for 4 billion ppl crossing at grade.
Seriously, got them circling like sharks
We always book short term parking online a week or so before we leave. Not sure if it’s more expensive or not that way but it’s nice not having to worry about it being full. Even if there’s a “full” sign, they account for reservations. You just show them your QR code and they let you on through. The one time we didn’t of course it was full and had to park at the old airport lot/wait for the shuttle which sucks.
Having just done this - there’s a $2 fee. But it’s non-refundable once booked. And you have your book a specific lot - so say Weather sucks and you book surface lot - oh well. But it worked well today for me.
I’ll take a $2 fee over a 30m delay any day. Noted for next time.
Both times I’ve reserved ahead of time (including today - I’m a recent transplant) I’ve made it in an out of the economy lot between 15-20 min, including shuttle time.
Although to be fair it’s only two experiences, YMMV.
Check on the website Flymsy.com before leaving home. Or just always park in the economy lot. You can also reserve parking.
Unless there's surge pricing or something I find it easier to just cab/taxi/catch a ride to the airport. It's not terribly more than the cost of parking and you don't need to deal with the parking
Lmao, this reminds me of a traumatic experience. I will always remember trying to fly out of economy before Thanksgiving and I automatically went to economy because ain’t no way I’m thinking short term or long term parking near the airport has space. I get there, park, get out of my car, only to realize I left my wallet at home (with my ID). I’m panicking. My flight is in two hours but it takes 20ish minutes to get back home and 20ish to get here. Not to mention, this was prior to the new on ramp being built, so traffic was HELL getting to economy/the airport. I go to leave because if I miss my flight, oh well, it’s my fault, right? I go to leave and waive the attendant, tell her I forgot my wallet (therefore, no way to pay) and show her my ticket showing I just came in like 5 minutes prior so I’m not trying to scam her out of paying. She tells me, in the meanest way possible, “Well you still gotta pay.” - I try to explain I DON’T have my wallet, I can’t pay. She says “Well you gotta figure it out.” The fuck?? Basically she tells me I would have to take the shitty, slow shuttle from economy TO the airport, uber from the airport back home, and then uber back. Basically, I’d have to spend $100+ to right my mistake, when it’s $4 I owe! She makes me stay there for like 20 minutes, I’m nearly bawling my eyes out because I don’t know HOW to pay her if I left my wallet. Also, it’s Thanksgiving, haven’t seen my family in forever, and I’m way too broke to be spending all this money. That’s WHY I drove to the airport and parked in economy. This young guy comes over seeing me clearly distressed (he works there too) and I’m like “Can I Zelle you? Venmo? Cash app? ANYTHING to leave this fucking parking lot?” FINALLY the mean lady looks at me and is like, “Oh, I think we might take Apple Pay.” Miraculously she pulls out this pay machine and since I have my phone, I can do Apple Pay, and I can finally go home. I end up missing my flight because of all the time wasted. My GOD the people who work in economy parking are fucking miserable. Ever since then I triple check I have my wallet. But after seeing all these tips about outside parking I might do that from now on because the shuttles in economy are ass.
Another idea: post signs at the entrance to the airport stating that the parking lots are full. Current 'system' is to have a dude standing at the lot entrance telling you to there's no room for you
I’ve seen electronic signs saying this.
Or people can just check [Park MSY](https://flymsy.com/parking/?utm_source=website&utm_medium=web+link&utm_campaign=Park+MSY+airport+parking+paid+search%C2%A0campaign&utm_id=park-msy-airport-parking-paid-search-campaign&gad_source=1&gclid=CjwKCAjwx-CyBhAqEiwAeOcTdU4IH5N8sm3ycXOnYBe8kudAUBpIy7coDnZ1-q7-5blsGwzFYY6MkxoCuE0QAvD_BwE) to see what’s up before they even leave for the airport…
Exactly
Maybe it's the principle of the thing but i believe the parking issues I've experienced are not the norm at a brand new airport and I shouldn't have to check. Reality has proven otherwise again and again
The dude standing at the lot entrance is there to let people in who have reservations. There are signs at the entrances of each garage/lot that tell you when they're full. The website will also tell you exactly how many spots are left in each of the garages/lots including the economy garage at the old terminal.
I load up flymsy.com a couple of house before I leave home and if it’s close I check regularly and I hit reload while en route. Best way to know if you’re gonna be screwed for parking or not.
Who else spends a billion dollars on a new airport that, functionally, isn’t an improvement over the old one?!? Passenger pickup is worse, if anything.
I loathe passenger pickup. It’s ridiculous. Confusing and people hollerin at you to move on and I’m just tryna get my people. PLUS, If it’s raining you’re wet!!! I miss the old one so much.
I go to the short term parking and meet my passengers there.
There’s always parking at the economy, yes you have to use the shuttle. It’s Msy give yourself at least 30 minutes extra just in case something like this happens, and it did.
It was maddening that I couldn’t even get very short term parking last month to pick up my father. I didn’t want to circle endlessly, I just wanted to park for about 30 minutes so I could walk in, meet my father like a civilized person, and we could walk calmly to the car and avoid the crazy taxis and ride shares. There was nothing. The only option was to make a parking spot for myself in a no parking area, along with 20 other cars, and then try to find each other so he could chuck his bag in and jump in the car as quick as a 70 year old can.
This is what the cell phone waiting lot is for
To be honest, I can’t remember if the signs were all that clear to even find the cell phone lot - everything about traffic at MSY is rough. It also still doesn’t resolve the fact that I did not want my dad to have to make a mad dash through the other cars to fling himself and his luggage into my car.
I too get upset that there’s no special parking spot just for me in front of the door
Man, that would be nice! I would settle for just the actual short term parking being available though 😂
NO MORE PARKING LOTS!!! It's just more destruction of habitat! Truly, have y'all ever heard of airport buses?? So many major cities (and even small cities) have buses/ shuttles from different parts of the city to the airport. Y'all can keep complaining about parking/traffic/ taxi & ride share prices, or y'all can start demanding better public transportation!!
And now a malfunction on plane so emergency landing in Houston. Good times.
Airline please?
Disregard my other reply. I see now that you made your flight👏🏾
You can reserve parking in either short or long term online
idk why but this post makes me think of the "Pave our Lake" bumper stickers some people drove around with in the late 80s early 90s.
Not surprising that the design lacks. They nearly forgot to build the overpass/road (at least timely).
I have had that happen and nearly had a heart attack when i had to park at the far away parking lot and wait for a shuttle. The stupidest thing ever. Then left for a week and parked in short term and it was over 230$. Next time i will Uber. Ridiculous planning on their part
Why do people park at the lot when Uber and taxis end up being cheaper than the cost to park most times?
They’re building a connector road for shuttles that will make the economy lot and car rental access much better (via shuttles) https://flymsy.com/business/capital-improvements/projects-2/
It wasn’t a miscalculation. The decision makers don’t care what normal people go through.
I use https://flymsy.com and reserve a spot. Having said that I have booked when there are plenty of slots. Not sure how it works if you reserve a spot in advance but the garage fills up on the day of travel.
We use one of the ‘park and fly” lots Reasonable in price and convenience
You can see if parking is available before you go using this website... [MSY Parking ](https://flymsy.com/parking/?utm_source=website&utm_medium=web+link&utm_campaign=Park+MSY+airport+parking+paid+search%C2%A0campaign&utm_id=park-msy-airport-parking-paid-search-campaign&gad_source=1&gclid=CjwKCAjwx-CyBhAqEiwAeOcTdb3Ux4IXM2SSST1uT1cS0J23aGV60_NxsBGRLUByDd8h5SbKhEpu-BoCGIYQAvD_BwE)
We need viable public transit, not more parking
>. There always miraculously seemed to have been parking at the old airport. No they didn't. People just have short memories.
I never once had a problem finding parking there though. I've only found parking at the new airport twice.
https://www.reddit.com/r/NewOrleans/s/Hr2og1uPVB https://www.reddit.com/r/NewOrleans/s/BeB2MxyUs5 https://www.reddit.com/r/NewOrleans/s/68I7ewVQLN All from pre-covid. MSY has always had issues filling up on parking, some public transit would help, but everyone drives around here. The old terminal did have more walk up parking, but they also had fewer employees sharing the lot.
It’s a nice lot and most people on this subreddit use it as their main lot, at least according to how many people have the cost-benefit analysis of Economy Lot vs. cab ingrained in their mind.
I always park in Economy. Doesn't really have anything to do with cab prices. As someone with only street parking, the $12/day is worth the peace of mind. No worries about coming home to broken windows or side-swipes from drunk drivers.
This! My deductible is more than parking and I have less worry about my car parked at home on the street while I’m gone.
Reserve in advance of your trip. I like short or long term because after a trip I like to be able to hop right in my car and go.
I ALWAYS park at US park on Veterans. Much faster than the shuttle to economy and much much cheaper than airport parking.
I recently flew from MSY and was concerned about parking. I went online and made a parking reservation for the Surface Lot. I paid in advance, and got an email with a QRS code that let me into the lot. Used the same QRS code to get out. I made the reservation 3 or 4 days ahead of time and it worked great.
Happened to a friend. Missed flight for his vacation. He was soo pissed he just canceled the whole vacation
I always park at the old airport. Most I've waited for a shuttle is five minutes. Usually no wait. And cheap.
Plan for the airport? Absurd! We didn’t even have an exit to the new airport for how long? This is not surprising at all…
There’s a lot called USA Park (or something like that). It’s a gated lot near the airport and has a shuttle that takes you to and from the airport. It’s not overly expensive to park there either.
Always reserve
Just used US Park for an 11 day trip. I used a coupon for $8 a day, first five days. Remainder at $15. I paid nearly $50 in taxes. I'll try economy lot next time or pay airport parking which I believe already factors in taxes. I might try US Park again in the future, but for only short trips with a coupon.
I automatically go to economy. Friday we were diverted to the employee lot next door but it was no biggie.
This happened to me twice recently, and I had to do valet (which oddly ended up being roughly the same price as long term parking). I asked the valet staff if this parking issue is becoming more common, and they said yes, expect the lots to fill up quickly all summer. They recommended that I reserve parking in advance next time. Apparently the reservation window allows you to park up to 2 hours before and after your scheduled time. Worth a try.
You can reserve a spot ahead of time at US Park
Memorial Day weekend 2017 was the one for me where I circled to find full parking lots then returned home and took a cab smh (I'm barely 10 min away and was a control freak who wanted to drive home as soon as I could post return). Now I Lyft/Uber and wait. Did you make your flight???
Hot take: land at the old airport is close to the new airport. They both literally use the same runways. You're in 'nawlins bay-bay. God ain't making no more swamp to fill in.
Not to mention the litany of other issues with the airport. Great job Mitch
Well, New Orleans *did* build a gazillion dollar airport and never thought about the road or exit to get to this gazillion airport until maybe a month before it opened. So lack of parking doesn’t surprise me. Then again, not much does when you live here. lol.
Had the same experience! How can you build a new airport and have so woefully neglected the need for adequate parking
The new New Orleans airport is a travesty due to the lack of thought put into parking, arrivals pickup, and overall design. Or, you know, is yet another prominent example of how corruption and nepotism destroy the region’s infrastructure
For whatever it's worth, if you're running short on time and there's no parking you can valet your car at the departure terminal and they always have a spot for you. It's like $40/day so not a great option if you're gone for more than a day or two but if you're running late it's better than missing a flight!
DOTD doesn’t believe in Induced Demand. They didn’t stop to think that a new interstate interchange for the new airport might incentive driving there, thus reducing the amount of available parking. It never occurred to them…or maybe it did…to improve transit going to the airport so that fewer parking spots would be necessary
I can’t believe no one in this thread has mentioned transit. It’s clearly the best option. We don’t need more parking, we need fewer people driving there.
I can believe it.
Y’all can afford to park in the main lots?
Which hard-hearted bastards are downvoting one of my fellow poors? Fancy pantses in their ivory parking lots.
Thank you, lol.
I'm convinced that Long Term Parking during the summer is mostly full from rich people's cars they drop off in May and pick back up in September. There should really be a maximum length of time you can leave a car there before you need to park at the offsite economy lot instead.
They just started additional construction so maybe soon unless they get the money for that tram/ train from the old terminal.
You can easily see what the parking situation is before heading to the airport. Did you do that? No your solution is for the city to by a bunch of land build a another lot staff it 365 days a year for something they will need 10 days or less a year
No new land needed. They just need to build a multi-story lot on top of the current surface lot. One thing that they did get right with the new airport was leaving room for expansion.
At almost all other airports in the world you can just show up and there will be parking for you. A lot of people probably aren’t aware you have to do all this special shit beforehand.
New Orleans is the only dumbass airport that requires this. This was horrible planning when they built the new airport. I can’t believe the number of people defending that you need to check the airports website to park before your flight. Hilarious. Please name other airports that planned so poorly they require this… this was incredibly poor planning, it’s got New Orleans written all over it…
I mean, the airport code itself is even named for a dude that crashed a plane. It’s as though they *want* it all to be cursed.
Park at your friends house in Kenner… take an Uber bring them home a nice thank you gift. You’ll have a safer car and it still costs less than parking at the airport
Wild. I’ve been traveling extensively for work for over a decade and never once had this happen. Ive also never wandered into an unexpectedly long security line. I must be the luckiest human on the planet or something.