For Irvine resident Ilene Feng, it’s worth paying a premium on ticket prices to fly out of John Wayne Airport.
Compared to Los Angeles International Airport, she said, the lines at Orange County airport are shorter, the terminals closer and the parking more convenient. She can park across the street and reach the terminal within minutes, she said.
“It’s the best airport, especially if you have a family,” Feng said Monday morning, on her way to Vancouver with her two young children, Skylar and Emmalie.
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For a second consecutive year, JWA ranked highest in overall passenger satisfaction among large airports in North America, according to new research from consumer data firm J.D. Power.
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The firm’s 2025 North America Airport Satisfaction Study, released Sept. 17, draws on feedback from more than 30,000 U.S. or Canadian travelers between July 2024 and July 2025. The rankings are based on flyer satisfaction scores across seven broad categories.
Among large airports, defined as those that handle 10 million to 32.9 million passengers annually, JWA ranked first in five of those categories: departure and arrival experience, ease of travel through the airport, terminal facilities and level of trust with the airport. The airport, which sees about 11 million flyers in a year, finished in the Top 10 in the two other criteria: airport staff and food, beverage and retail.
“We spend a great deal of time here, as the administration, trying to engage with the passengers and upgrade our amenities,” said Charlene Reynolds, the airport director at JWA. “We’re really focused on the guest experience.”
Several other Southern California airports also performed well in the study. Ontario International Airport came second in the medium-sized category, for airports with 4.5 million to 9.9 million annual flyers. Hollywood-Burbank Airport ranked in ninth place among medium-sized airports.
Los Angeles International Airport, meanwhile, dropped two spots in the rankings for mega airports — those with 33 million or more annual flyers — coming in at No. 15 of 20. San Diego International ranked 15th among large airports.
Other Southern California airports, including Palm Springs and Long Beach, don’t have large enough passenger volumes to make the study.
“John Wayne appeals to the car culture in SoCal,” said Michael Taylor, the managing director of travel, hospitality and retail for J.D. Power. “It’s much easier to park near the terminal, and people can access terminals more easily.”
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Taylor, who has led the study for several years, said travelers found JWA to be “very calm” and “reliable” for a large airport, which contributes to its high “reputation” score.
Nick Robertson, a traveler from Fort Collins, Colorado, said the airport’s proximity to Disneyland and the beach makes planning a visit convenient when he’s on vacation with his wife and their two children.
“It’s easy to get in and out of,” he said, while heading into one of the terminals on Monday. “Our flight is boarding in 20 minutes, and we’ll be just fine.”
The 2025 report revealed that the overall flyer satisfaction rate at airports has increased from the previous year despite widespread flight cancellations and delays.
The shift is driven largely by improvements in food, beverage and retail and ease of travel at many airports. Satisfaction meter has a strong impact on consumer spending: travelers who said they had a “perfect” airport experience spent an average of $42.39 in the terminal, $16.54 more than those who had a “just OK” time, the study found.
“The airport industry is investing hundreds of billions of dollars to improve passenger experiences,” Taylor said. “Many construction projects finished in 2024 and the positive results have shown up in the current J.D. Power data.”
Reynolds said she initially thought JWA’s ranking might slip this year because the airport has been undergoing active construction, which could disrupt the flyer experience. Instead, the airport not only retained the top spot, but widened its lead over runner-up Tampa International Airport.
“That speaks to the JWA brand and how much it’s adored by the community,” Reynolds said.
JWA is on track to spend about $700 million on major infrastructure upgrades by 2031, including modernizing restrooms, resurfacing taxiways and installing new elevators and escalators. The airport is also expanding its dining and retail offerings. Reynolds said a host of new restaurants, including local favorites such as Tacos La Piña, Sgt. Pepperoni’s Pizza and Five Vines Wine Bar, are expected to open at the end of the year.
Daniella Parker, a real estate agent in Huntington Beach, said she sometimes opts for layover flights just so she can fly out of JWA. Along with the seamless layout, she said the airport’s selection of food and retail options is a big draw. Stopping at Greenleaf Kitchen and Cocktails for her favorite street tacos has become a pre-flight ritual, she said.
“It makes going to the airport fun.”
Photographer Jeff Gritchen contributed to this report.