Originally Posted by oopsz

I really don't understand all the griping in this thread.

MSY doesn't seem any worse than LAX, to me (at least, the bathrooms aren't any worse. I flew into LAX last week and because of a delay didn't have time to hit the lounge; changing in the bathroom by the continental gates was not an experience I want to repeat). I wouldn't want to connect through MSY, but on the other hand I can usually get from my car to the gate in 20 minutes flat, and the airport is 12 miles from the CBD. The USPark shuttle runs about every 3 minutes (I've never had to wait longer than that).

The airside concessions at MSY are, admittedly, awful. The landside concessions are just fine, IMO- there's decent coffee (PJs) and fast food (a popeyes and a sonic come to mind, plus a beignet outlet), and an acme franchise. The problem is if you're waiting at the gate, your options are quite limited- either a lucky dog or an overpriced smoothie. This is the main distinguishing factor between MSY and IAH-B, I think- at least at IAH-B, most (all?) the concessions are airside. Unfortunately, like many airports, MSY was designed before modern security procedures, and all the good stuff is outside. It sounds like the common thread is that frequent flyers tend to rush to the gate then look for something to eat- that kind of attitude will leave you stuck in NO. The design of the airport makes this difficult to fix without basically tearing the whole place down- something unlikely to happen. On the other hand, security is normally a pretty quick process (these new porno scanners are slowing things down though).

In a perfect world all american airports would be like IAH-E or PIT, with lots of check in space and a big open terminal. But honestly, considering the convenience of MSY to the city of new orleans, and the fact that it's so fast to get from check in through security to the gate, I think MSY works just fine.

As to the people who don't like the city of new orleans- well, if your idea of living is highways and "fine dining" chain restaurants, it's just not for you.