That's a break if you can leave your car in the lot for $3 a day. There's not much in the way of public transportation to the Sunport. I currently take the AirTrain/LIRR to save on whopper cab fees.

Do you know if the airport parking is secure? I heard there's lots of car theft in Albuquerque.

I'm back from ABQ, and have a couple of observations.

First, the public transportation to the airport is very good. There are two bus lines that go there frequently from the Alvarado transit center, and a ride costs a buck.

The Sunport is a very cute airport, uncrowded and easy to navigate. Aesthetically, it had a folksy western feel, and it was nicer than airports I'm accustomed to (JFK, LGA).

I had a moment of profound culture shock during my airport dropoff. When the driver stopped in front of the terminal, and it was just me and him there. A couple of empty cabs, no people, no traffic, nothing else. I asked where's the terminal? He said I was right in front of the main terminal.

Albuquerque's just so, SO different from NYC, LHR, IST, LAX and other cities I've flown to. I could not believe the solitude in front of the main terminal. This experience above all drove home the remoteness of Albuquerque.

Well, it's good that you made a trip to ABQ to see for yourself. New Mexico is, indeed, much different from what you're used to in New York. I lived in several major cities, including PHX for over 20 years. ABQ is a real pleasure to fly in and out.

Parking is available at several "off-airport" parking lots and they are secure. I park at the lot nearest the terminal, where AAA or any coupon pricing is $3 uncovered or $4 covered. I have never ever had to wait for the shuttle back to the lot, there is always a little bus waiting at the baggage claim curb.

Yes, there are security lines at times. I have Global Entry, even though I don't travel overseas but once a year. There is a GE interview station at the ABQ airport and ABQ's Pre-Check lane is never crowded.

Airfares are significantly better from ABQ than Santa Fe. Santa Fe's airport, as previously mentioned, is tiny and a throwback to early aviation days. I choose to drive to ABQ (1:45 from my house to the parking lot) rather than SAF (1:00 drive) for the more frequent schedules and better fares. Southwest, United, and American have good service to/from ABQ. Jet Blue flies non-stop to JFK, but it's a red-eye, the return flight has a better daylight schedule.

Flying from major airports is SUCH a hassle, I'm very glad to be able to use a low-key smaller terminal. You're right, when arriving at departures one can often be the only person on the sidewalk. To me that's fantastic. Living in New Mexico requires some attitude adjustments, life here is pretty laid back and slow. That suits me just fine.

This was my home airport for nearly 3 yrs & I couldn't agree more on the TSA there-one little smurfette in particular always seemed to be trying to start a fight.

Regardless, it's very easy in/out if you're living in the ABQ area & parking in the garage attached to the terminal is/was $10/day-hard to beat! Can't speak for most of the ground staff there, but the AA staff took VERY good care of me-I think I miss them the most, actually!!

In my experience, TSA staff have always been courteous and professional. This includes staff at the Sunport where I was given special security clearance for some reason. I flew to ABQ on AA using miles.

Where is the $3 a day parking lot? $10 doesn't sound so good.

Santa Fe looks like the coolest little airport ever, and I'd go there just to see it.

The $3/day is an off-site lot which requires a shuttle bus to/from the terminal.

$10/day in the garage attached to the terminal is a great deal compared to other airports that charge upwards of $25/day+ to park in their terminal garages.

I've lived in ABQ most of my life so I am very familiar with the Sunport. One of things I like most about it is how well located it is and how easy it is to get in and out of. I can get from my house to the gate in less than 30 minutes (with some help from pre-check).

Parking is $10/day in the structure immediately in front of the terminal and $7/day in the long term lot right next to it. That lot is nice because it's right next to baggage claim, but you don't have to drive through the airport to get to it. There are offsite lots that are even cheaper.

Obviously ABQ is not a hub, so generally the only flights available are to the major hubs of each particular carrier. WN is the exception and has the most destinations direct from ABQ, but ABQ definitely benefited from the Wright Amendment and now that it's gone WN has gotten rid of a few flights. UA also seems to have downsized its ABQ operations dramatically in the last year or so, we lost our non-stop to IAD and they're down to one a day to LAX and SFO. Of the legacies, AA probably has the best service with 8x/day to DFW it's pretty easy to get a good connection from there. They also serve ORD and LAX. US serves PHX, and AS serves SEA and both count for AA status/miles. DL has a few a day to SLC and ATL and seasonal service to MSP.

The airport itself is pretty distinctive with it's southwestern design, you definitely won't forget your out west when your here. There are no lounges, (which isn't too surprising since the only airline that ever really connects here is WN), but there is a very nice observation deck upstairs, between the two main concourses, which is free to access.

In general public transit to the airport isn't very good. You can get downtown pretty easily (if your flight happens to get in when the buses are running), but that's about it. To get there from my house is three buses and would take an hour vs 10-15 minutes driving.

While I do wish we had a few more direct flights, the time you save getting to the airport and getting airside vs somewhere like DEN almost makes up for needing to connect.

Also, while SAF is usually more expensive, I've seen some flights pop up where, due to the dark arts of airline revenue management, it is actually cheaper. It doesn't hurt to search both. It also makes me feel like we're finally a real city now that we can check *two* different airports in the area for the best flights.

Thanks for commenting. Which nearby hub would you consider the best? I'm figuring Chicago would be my go-to place as an international hub, and it's just 2 hours away.

Santa Fe looks cool, but I'd worry about delays and cancellations without alternative flights. When in ABQ, my flight to JFK via Dallas got canceled. We were rerouted to Chicago instead.

ABQ is a nice change of pace if you've traveled through LGA, the world's ugliest airport. It was done up beautifully and was great to pass through.

Probably DFW just due to the massive number of flights available and being a bit closer than ORD. ORD is actually more like 3 hours away, and all service is on RJs. DFW is only about 1:45 and is split between RJs and mainline service on S80s. Really it just comes down to the specific connection times/price.

I've never actually flown out of SAF, I've just started seeing come up when I search flights. They only got commercial service back there a few years ago. There are less flights, so it is riskier if one gets canceled. It's the same reason I try not to fly DL if I can avoid it. They only have 2-3 flights a day from ATL, so I worry about their ability to get me home if something goes wrong.

The $3/day parking that I use is called "Park & Shuttle," it's on Yale. Exit I-25 at Gibson East, drive east to Yale, turn right/south and look for the big orange arrow on the right/west side of the road. It's the last off-airport lot before the terminal.

Pricing is $3 uncovered or $4 covered parking with a coupon, military ID, or AAA card. $1 more without coupon or aforementioned ID. Using this lot is pleasant, the shuttle bus is always prompt and I've never had to wait either leaving or returning on a trip. Their website is http://www.parkandshuttle.com

Be aware that if you return to ABQ on an evening flight there is practically nothing still open inside the terminal, just the Hudson news shop. I landed at 9:35pm the other night and nothing was still open. I was glad I still had my stash of Clif bars after flying on Southwest from LGA-MDW-ABQ.

Just saw this thread, welcome to ABQ! I fly between ABQ and Europe, usually either GOT or CPH 2-3 times a year.

I find routing through DFW the most convenient. You land and depart without a second trip through security, which you will get in ORD. I also found returning through Phoenix a hassle, as customs was crowded and obnoxious, and security was very slow and disorganized.

As mentioned there are a few cheaper long term parking lots around the airport all with convenient shuttles day and night. Taxis from the airport can be hit or miss.

If you're only taking 1-2 international trips a year, the other 11 months of sunshine make the extra connection worth it!

You are so right, Hank (weren't you in Breaking Bad? ). I already calculated that my property tax savings alone would pay for three economy trips to Europe or two first-class.

What's your experience flying east? I know there's a non-stop on Jet Blue to JFK, although it's a red-eye. Landing in NYC at night wouldn't be so horrible because I could hit the ground running, but how are the other eastbound flights?

Many airlines offer cheap fares leaving from Boston, D.C., etc.

I take the Thursday night JetBlue ABQ-JFK redeye and it is almost always a full flight. I'm very happy to have it, but it's quite short for a redeye, perhaps 3.5 hours in the air, so not nearly enough time to catch a decent night's sleep. Departs ABQ at 11:41, arrives into JFK around 5:30 AM.

That said, it's the only non-stop back to NYC from ABQ, so I couldn't do without it.

Fully Concur. And I live 2.5 hr from ABQ in a VERY rural area. I like to tell folks the closest WalMart is 65 miles away.

Why does the ABQ Sunport call itself an "international" airport when it's anything but? I see it's serviced by a short list of airlines that fly domestically only.

It will be nice to get away from highly strung NY people, but I'm already slow enough about things.