"Safest" Hub for February Travel
Aug 27, 2016, 5:46 pm
#1
Original Poster
Join Date: Mar 2005
Posts: 6
"Safest" Hub for February Travel
I'm flying PIT to YVR in February. I have a choice of airlines and routes all involve changing planes at some point. I'm concerned, of course, about winter weather. So I'm asking the community for advice. Which of these hubs would you prefer to change planes in given expected February weather?
ORD, DEN, YYZ, MSP, DTW
Are there other better choices?
ORD, DEN, YYZ, MSP, DTW
Are there other better choices?
Aug 27, 2016, 7:05 pm
#2
Join Date: Aug 2015
Location: HNL
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I'm flying PIT to YVR in February. I have a choice of airlines and routes all involve changing planes at some point. I'm concerned, of course, about winter weather. So I'm asking the community for advice. Which of these hubs would you prefer to change planes in given expected February weather?
ORD, DEN, YYZ, MSP, DTW
Are there other better choices?
ORD, DEN, YYZ, MSP, DTW
Are there other better choices?
From the list of hubs, seems you're open to any airline? In my experience, United ops typically fall apart very quickly with winter wx. Maybe you'll have better luck.
Aug 27, 2016, 7:09 pm
#3
Join Date: Sep 2007
Location: Central Mass
Programs: Independent
Posts: 4,829
I am betting you are going to be more likely to have a problem with PIT than at the hubs. MSP, ORD, DTW, and YYZ are all essentially in a line - if a storm hits one, within a matter of hours if not days it will hit the other three. DEN is further south, but dont be fooled, they have problems too. If a storm is bad enough to hit a hub, it will bring EVERYTHING to a halt, not just the hubs.
You might be better off just being flexible and keeping your eye on the weather. Be ready to depart a day earlier, or wait a day.
You might be better off just being flexible and keeping your eye on the weather. Be ready to depart a day earlier, or wait a day.
Aug 27, 2016, 7:17 pm
#4
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from a fair amount of DL experience, while neither MSP nor DTW is immune from February weather, operations at both hubs tend to recover rather well (I don't think that DL operates DTW-YVR, however, so MSP would seem to be a more logical connecting point in terms of minimizing travel time)
Aug 27, 2016, 8:03 pm
#5
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DEN holds up pretty well considering its location. IME most issues are due to snowballing delays at outstations less able to cope with the weather, which causes ripples through the network.
Aug 27, 2016, 9:59 pm
#6
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I'd be more concerned about:
1) not taking the last flight of the day to YVR
2) ideally both flights being operated by the same airline
Personally, I'd probably choose to connect in YYZ.
1) not taking the last flight of the day to YVR
2) ideally both flights being operated by the same airline
Personally, I'd probably choose to connect in YYZ.
Aug 27, 2016, 10:22 pm
#7
Suspended
Join Date: Feb 2016
Posts: 157
YYZ would be my choice but I have not seen the schedule.
DL and AA don't cooperate when there is a cancelled flight but UA does with DL and AA. However, ORD is not too good a choice.
As far as how nice the airport is, I tend to like YYZ and MSP over DEN and ORD. DTW is ok
DL and AA don't cooperate when there is a cancelled flight but UA does with DL and AA. However, ORD is not too good a choice.
As far as how nice the airport is, I tend to like YYZ and MSP over DEN and ORD. DTW is ok
Aug 28, 2016, 8:50 am
#8
Join Date: Dec 2010
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Is DFW or IAH an option? Maybe a bit out of the way, but they hardly ever get snow. MSP and DTW can handle snow pretty well. DEN seems to get huge blizzards at times though.
Aug 28, 2016, 9:16 am
#9
Join Date: Mar 2005
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den is safest, those closures were after RIDICULOUS snowfalls (4+ft snowfalls overnight) and they bounced back fast
yyz and ord are the worst, yyz deice waits are 60-90 minutes. ord gets the most challenging conditions although they recover pretty well, but those challenging conditions happen a lot
yah if you're this worried go thru texas
yyz and ord are the worst, yyz deice waits are 60-90 minutes. ord gets the most challenging conditions although they recover pretty well, but those challenging conditions happen a lot
yah if you're this worried go thru texas
Aug 28, 2016, 11:21 am
#11
Join Date: Dec 2015
Posts: 21
Honestly, I wouldn't worry at all about which airport is best now. It all depends on what the weather is like that week, and that's impossible to predict. I've actually had good luck through ORD in the winter -- it can be open when the entire East Coast is closed.
I would just make sure you have a long layover (I'll book 2 - 3 hrs if I can in the winter) and absolutely have all flights on the same airline. Then monitor the weather -- if there's a storm coming through, they will probably issue a travel advisory and let you re-route through unaffected airports.
I would just make sure you have a long layover (I'll book 2 - 3 hrs if I can in the winter) and absolutely have all flights on the same airline. Then monitor the weather -- if there's a storm coming through, they will probably issue a travel advisory and let you re-route through unaffected airports.
Aug 28, 2016, 11:21 am
#12
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I commuted from BOS to MSP for a year, and I was pleasantly suprised with the ability for MSP to handle winter weather. And, they have better food options than DTW should you have a delay. I steer clear of ORD wherever possible. And with MSP, given it's a bigger hub than DTW, you have more options should things really get bad.
My 2 cents.
My 2 cents.
Aug 28, 2016, 11:33 am
#13
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Honestly, I wouldn't worry at all about which airport is best now. It all depends on what the weather is like that week, and that's impossible to predict. I've actually had good luck through ORD in the winter -- it can be open when the entire East Coast is closed.
I would just make sure you have a long layover (I'll book 2 - 3 hrs if I can in the winter) and absolutely have all flights on the same airline. Then monitor the weather -- if there's a storm coming through, they will probably issue a travel advisory and let you re-route through unaffected airports.
I would just make sure you have a long layover (I'll book 2 - 3 hrs if I can in the winter) and absolutely have all flights on the same airline. Then monitor the weather -- if there's a storm coming through, they will probably issue a travel advisory and let you re-route through unaffected airports.
Aug 28, 2016, 11:56 am
#14
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I'd pick DL through either DTW or MSP, with both being equally good. To choose between the two, try to pick the larger aircraft.
Aug 28, 2016, 3:24 pm
#15
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