Memorial Day weekend is officially here, and the timing matters: AAA projects this will be a record-setting holiday for U.S. air travel, with 3.66 million Americans flying domestically over the long weekend, a small jump over 2025 and the highest Memorial Day air-travel volume ever recorded. New York consistently lands in the top three domestic destinations, which means JFK, LaGuardia, and Newark are about to feel it — both at the curb and at the security checkpoint.
Here’s what New Yorkers heading out (or hosting visitors flying in) need to know for the next 96 hours, plus a fresh look at what’s actually happening with the JFK Terminal 6 rebuild.
The Memorial Day Travel Picture
AAA’s official forecast pegs the full Memorial Day travel period at 45 million Americans traveling 50+ miles from home — a new record, up from 44.8 million in 2025. The mode breakdown:
- By car: 39.1 million (87% of all travelers)
- By air: 3.66 million (8%)
- By bus, train, or cruise: 2.2 million (5%), up 5% year-over-year, driven partly by the Alaska cruise season opener
Average domestic round-trip airfare for the holiday is $800 per AAA booking data, actually down 6% from 2025 because most travelers locked in tickets before recent jet-fuel price increases worked their way through the system.
The road-side hit on NYC departures
According to INRIX traffic-data forecasts cited in the AAA release, the worst metro-NY congestion of the holiday window already hit — Friday, May 22 at 2:15 p.m., New York to Jersey Shore via the Garden State Parkway South, with travel times running 102% above typical. If you’re driving out today or Friday from the five boroughs, late morning before 11 a.m. and after 9 p.m. are your friend; the 3–6 p.m. window on Thursday and Friday is the worst.
JFK Terminal 6: Where the Project Actually Stands
The Port Authority and JFK Millennium Partners (JMP) — the consortium led by Vantage Group, with American Triple I, RXR, and JetBlue — confirm on the official JFK Terminal 6 project page that the first five gates open in 2026. The full terminal is being delivered in two phases: phase one with the arrivals/departures hall and the first five gates, and phase two (the second half of the building, taking over the old Terminal 7 footprint) starting in 2026 and finishing by 2028.
By the numbers, straight from the developer:
- $4.2 billion terminal redevelopment
- 1.2 million square feet when complete
- 10 total gates (9 wide-body capable)
- 4,000 solar panels integrated into the design
- 4,000 jobs, with $1.9 billion in payroll wages over the project
Terminal 6 is part of the larger $19 billion JFK transformation — two new terminals (Terminal 1 and Terminal 6), modernization of Terminals 4 and 8, a new ground transportation center, and a simplified roadway network. JetBlue is the anchor airline, and Terminal 6 is designed to integrate physically with Terminal 5 for seamless connections.
What that means for you this weekend
If you’re flying JetBlue or one of the prospective international partner airlines, you’re still using Terminal 5 today. The first-gate opening at Terminal 6 has not occurred as of this writing, and we’ll cover the exact opening date when JMP and the Port Authority announce it.
The Subway-to-Airport Backup Plan
This is where Memorial Day weekend gets tricky for budget-conscious airport runs. The MTA’s Memorial Day Weekender bulletin confirms major service changes on the 4, 5, 7, J, Z, and G trains from 11:30 p.m. Friday through early Tuesday. Two specific implications for airport travel:
Heading to JFK
The AirTrain to JFK connects to the subway at Howard Beach-JFK Airport (A train) and Jamaica Station (E, J, Z, LIRR). With the J running in two sections this weekend and stopping at Broadway Junction northbound, riders coming from Williamsburg or the Lower East Side should take the M to Broadway Junction and transfer, or skip the subway entirely and use the E from Manhattan to Jamaica Station. The Howard Beach-JFK route via the A is unaffected.
Heading to LaGuardia
The Q70 SBS bus to LGA from the 7 train at 74 St-Broadway is the cheapest fast option. Bad news: 7 trains aren’t running between 74 St-Broadway and 34 St-Hudson Yards from Friday night through Monday morning. The MTA’s free T320 shuttle bus runs that segment, but a shuttle-bus-to-airport-bus combo can add 30+ minutes. If you’re flying out of LGA this weekend, factor in an extra 45 minutes versus a normal weekday, or splurge on a car service for the airport leg.
Heading to Newark Liberty
The NJ Transit Northeast Corridor and North Jersey Coast Line trains from Penn Station to Newark Airport Station (and the AirTrain Newark connection) are the cheapest way out. NJ Transit runs its standard weekend schedule and is not affected by MTA subway work. From Penn Station, this remains the most reliable airport route in the entire system this weekend.
Commuter Tip
If your flight is Saturday or Sunday morning out of LGA or JFK, build in a 90-minute cushion beyond your normal pre-flight buffer. The combination of subway shuttle buses, record holiday volume, and the lingering checkpoint variability that’s defined 2026 so far means a Saturday 8 a.m. departure should have you leaving Manhattan by 4:30 a.m. Use the TSA wait times feature in the MyTSA app the night before to spot-check your terminal, and remember that EWR (via NJ Transit from Penn) is the only major NYC airport whose transit access is untouched by this weekend’s MTA work.
One last note: limited LIRR shuttle bus service that ran during the strike has wound down now that full service resumed May 19. The LIRR is your best Penn Station-to-Long Island option again, and over the holiday weekend it’s also accommodating 7-train riders between Queens and Manhattan at no extra cost — useful if you’re connecting from a Queens neighborhood to Penn Station for an NJ Transit ride to Newark.
Service details verified via MTA Weekender: Memorial Day Weekend 2026, AAA’s official Memorial Day 2026 forecast (May 11, 2026), and the Port Authority’s JFK Terminal 6 project page.
