For decades, New York City’s LaGuardia Airport had been the butt of many jokes. Back in 2014, then-Vice President Joe Biden infamously said that if someone were taken blindfolded to the Queens airport, they would think they were in “some third world country.” Then in 2020, Saturday Night Live spent more than eight minutes mocking the airport in a musical extravaganza, calling out birds in the terminal, non-working electrical outlets, and shoddy baggage handling.
Four years later, LaGuardia is getting the last laugh.
In the 2023 Airport Service Quality (ASQ) awards announced Tuesday, the airport took top honors in the best airport category for airports serving 25 to 40 million passengers in North America, alongside Minneapolis/St. Paul Airport International.
This marks a complete turn for the terminal, which was ranked the “worst” in 2018 in the same passenger feedback survey—tangible proof that the multi-billion redevelopment program completed in 2022 has paid off.
“Taking LaGuardia Airport from worst to best is now more than just an aspiration, it’s an accomplishment that passengers have now resoundingly recognized,” Port Authority Executive Director Rick Cotton said in a release shared with Condé Nast Traveler. “When we started out on our $8 billion transformation of LaGuardia [in 2016], few believed we could create the world-class airport our region deserves.”
The overall satisfaction of the more than 4,200 LaGuardia passengers surveyed throughout 2023 was a 4.24 out of 5, marking a 20% increase over the last five years. In the same period, the overall satisfaction at all North American airports only increased by 1%.
The top factor driving LaGuardia’s positive feedback from travelers was the airport’s overall “ambience,” which has increased 21% since 2018. Cleanliness, both of the facilities themselves and the restroom, also rose 15% in the last five years. LaGuardia also saw increases in scores for security screenings, gate areas, and dining facilities over the same time period.
“There is no better judge of our new airports than the passengers who use them, which is why the ASQ award for best airport going to LaGuardia is so meaningful,” Port Authority Chairman Kevin O’Toole said in the statement.
The new honor is not the only award that the revamped LaGuardia has snagged. The airport was also named the best new airport in the world by UNESCO’s Prix Versailles in 2021 and its Terminal B scored Skytrax’s 5-star rating in 2023, making it only one of two terminals in the nation to earn those high marks.
