Phoenix Sky Harbor is the best of the U.S.'s 30 largest
airports and New York JFK is the worst, according to a ranking published by the
Points Guy website.
For its semiannual ranking, the Points Guy used a formula in
which airports were graded in three categories: timeliness, accessibility and
amenities.
Timeliness, which gets the most weight in the ranking,
accounts for on-time and cancellation performances at airports. For the
accessibility category, the Points Guy considered how convenient each airport
is to local travelers, including factors such as public transit options and the
cost of parking. The amenities category weighs airport offerings such as
lounges, restaurants, spa treatments and pet relief areas.
Phoenix earned its top ranking through consistency. The
airport came in second in accessibility, fourth in timeliness and 15th in
amenities.
Photo Credit: The Points Guy
"Like last time, Sky Harbor didn't come in first in any
one category but made strong showings in nearly all of them, including being
easily reached by car or bus, having cheap parking, negligible wait times at
security compared to other airports and respectably low delay and cancellation
rates (though it could use more lounges for its size)," wrote the report's
authors.
Rounding out the Points Guy's top five large U.S. airports
were Salt Lake City, Portland, San Diego and Tampa.
JFK claimed the ranking's last place spot even as its wide
selection of lounges helped it place third in the amenities category.
Outweighing that performance were last place rankings in both timeliness and
accessibility. A rideshare to JFK, the authors noted, can cost as much as $80
from midtown Manhattan, even when it's not rush hour.
Also fueled by timeliness and accessibility issues, the New
York area's other two maligned airports, LaGuardia and Newark, placed 29th and 28th,
respectively. Los Angeles and Fort Lauderdale rounded out the ranking's bottom
five.