Favorite Major U.S. Airport

[Mr. Smith]

Because the States and Presidents seem to be smashing hits, I figured I'd extend this same "Survivor" sort of thing to something a little more unorthodox.

That unorthodox thing being the great limbo outside the city...airports.

Because of things such as security, expensive and tacky goods, and often boring designs, they are an easy target and even those who have never flown ever have heard about that through the grapevine.

Which makes it more interesting to ask instead, which ones are the most tolerable. Which ones have the best laid out security, the best shops, aren't an inescapable labyrinth, and have the most tolerable management.

I am also keeping this to 32 American airports with passenger traffic exceeding 10 million (Hobby and Love are exceptions,included for respectable alternative hubs) because there are too many mid-size and regional airports and because the major international ones (sans Heathrow perhaps) are by and large painless.

16 choices tops, but if you've only ever used one or two of these that's okay. Regardless, the bottom ten fall out.

[Mr. Smith]

@muon: Then take it up with retromike, as for this, it's certainly okay here.

O'Hare seriously fails at that now, if it weren't for Los Angeles, it'd be the pits. Phoenix and the other Washington airport (National) are pretty lousy as well.

San Francisco I've never used as a connector, but it's easily one of the best around as long as one avoids 1 terminal. Go to the correct place, and you get a Yoga room. But fog literally screws everything up where delays are concerned.

Washington Dulles is hit-or-miss, I've never had  anything wrong with it, but it's remote and they still use  "mobile lounges" at parts and there are too many freaking stairs. Philadelphia is tolerable as long you don't need help. Also it's a pain trying to connect from regional to mainline. Still some of the best food though.

But Charlotte is absolutely fantastic, with an open atrium, great food options, short taxi times. Never seen a bad security line, and the employees take the tops. This is pretty much my go-to when I can't get a nonstop.

Also voted for Midway, Hobby, and Dallas- Love because they have decent enough connections to make them good alternates,which is a good thing in the case of O'Hare (which is also why Detroit is on here).

JFK's 5th Terminal left a decent enough impression

[Mr. Smith]

Ya' know what, given how the polls are working, I think I'll fashion the next round as a proper survivor.