Laguardia Named Best Airport in North America Serving Domestic and Short Haul International Flights

Photo Courtesy of PANYNJ

International Airport Rating Organization’s Global Passenger Survey Confirms LaGuardia Airport’s Transformation from Worst to Best

Skytrax CEO: ‘LaGuardia Airport’s Evolution Over the Past Decade is Nothing Short of Extraordinary’

The Port Authority of New York and New Jersey announced that the world’s preeminent international airport rating organization, Skytrax, has named LaGuardia Airport as the best airport in North America for domestic and short haul international travel. The award was presented at the 2025 World Airport Awards ceremony held at the Passenger Terminal Expo in Madrid, Spain. The Skytrax award for best regional airport in North America reflects the success of LaGuardia Airport’s historic $8 billion transformation from worst to best in the nation.

The World Airport Awards from Skytrax are the most prestigious accolades for the airport industry, voted by customers in the largest, annual global airport customer satisfaction survey. The awards are recognized as the quality benchmark for the world airport industry, assessing customer service and facilities across more than 565 airports.

The World Airport Awards began in 1999, when Skytrax launched its first global airport customer satisfaction survey. The survey and awards are independent of any airport control or input. The 2025 awards are based on the World Airport Survey questionnaires completed by over 100 nationalities of airport customers during the survey period from August 2024 to February 2025. The survey evaluates the customer experience across all front-line areas of airport service and facilities, from check-in, arrivals, transfers, shopping, security/immigration through to departure at the gate.

In addition to the Skytrax award for LaGuardia Airport, representatives from the Port Authority and LaGuardia Gateway Partners were presented with a plaque for Terminal B, which received its second 5-star rating from Skytrax. LaGuardia Airport’s Terminal B and Newark Liberty International Airport’s new Terminal A are the only two airport terminals in North America to receive 5-star ratings from Skytrax.

Port Authority airports, including LaGuardia, Newark Liberty International and John F. Kennedy International (JFK), are undergoing a historic $30 billion transformation with the goal of creating world class and award-winning passenger facilities. Acclaim for Port Authority’s airports includes:

2025:  

• Skytrax, best regional airport in North America: LaGuardia Airport 
• Airport Service Quality Award, best North American airport in its size class for 2024: LaGuardia Airport 
• Skytrax, 5-star rating: LaGuardia’s Terminal B 

2024:  

• Forbes Travel Guide, nation’s best airport: LaGuardia Airport 
• Airport Service Quality Award, best North American airport in its size class for 2023: LaGuardia Airport 
• Skytrax, 5-star rating: Newark Liberty’s Terminal A 
• Skytrax, world’s best new airport terminal: Newark Liberty’s Terminal A 
• UNESCO’s Prix Versailles for Exterior Design: Newark Liberty’s Terminal A   
• Business Traveller Magazine, nation’s best airport: JFK  

2023: 

• Skytrax, 5-star rating: LaGuardia’s Terminal B 
• Skytrax, world’s best new airport terminal: LaGuardia’s Terminal B 
• American Society of Civil Engineers NJ, project of the year: Newark Liberty’s Terminal A 
• U.S. Green Building Council, LEED gold certification: Newark Liberty’s Terminal A and LaGuardia’s Terminal B 
• Rick Hansen Accessibility Certification, gold rating: LaGuardia’s Terminal B 

2022: 

• National Academy of Construction, recognition of special achievement award: LaGuardia’s Terminal B 
• National Design-Build Institute of America, national award of excellence in aviation: LaGuardia’s Terminal B 
• Urban Land Institute/NY excellence in civic development: LaGuardia’s Terminal B 

2021: 

• UNESCO’s Prix Versailles, world’s best new airport terminal: LaGuardia’s Terminal B 
• Conde Nast Traveler Hot List, best new way to travel: LaGuardia’s Terminal B 
• Queens Chamber of Commerce Building Awards, best public work infrastructure and civil project: LaGuardia’s Terminal B 
• Municipal Art Society of NY masterworks award, best new infrastructure: LaGuardia’s Terminal B 
• US Green Building Council LEED gold v4 certification: LaGuardia’s Terminal B 

2020: 

• Engineering News Record, best projects award NYC: LaGuardia’s Terminal B 

About the LaGuardia Redevelopment Project 
In 2015, a comprehensive plan to construct a whole new LaGuardia Airport was unveiled with the goal of creating a world-class, 21^st century passenger experience featuring modern customer amenities, state-of-the-art architecture, more spacious gate areas and a unified terminal system. The $8 billion project, two-thirds of which is funded through private financing and existing passenger fees, broke ground in 2016 and was substantially completed in 2022. 

In February 2018, the new Terminal B parking garage opened with more than 3,000 spaces and a dedicated level for Uber, Lyft and other for-hire car services. In December 2018, the first 18 new gates and the first new concourse in Terminal B opened. In June 2020, the soaring new 1.3 million-square-foot arrivals and departures hall at Terminal B opened. Terminal B, with 35 gates, has since won awards as best new airport terminal in the world, including the Prix Versailles from UNESCO and Skytrax, which also gave the terminal the first 5-star rating in the nation. In June 2022, Delta Air lines opened the new 1.3 million-square-foot Terminal C, which features 38 gates across four new or transformed concourses, world-class amenities, state-of-the-art technology and inspiring public art. Delta’s Terminal C was completed in 2024. 

The Port Authority of New York and New Jersey is a bi-state agency that builds, operates, and maintains many of the most important transportation and trade infrastructure assets in the country. For over a century, the agency’s network of major airports; critical bridges, tunnels and bus terminals; a commuter rail line; and the busiest seaport on the East Coast has been among the most vital in the country – transporting hundreds of millions of people and moving essential goods into and out of the region. The Port Authority also owns and manages the 16-acre World Trade Center campus, which today welcomes tens of thousands of office workers and millions of annual visitors. The agency’s historic $37 billion 10-year capital plan includes unprecedented transformation of the region’s three major airports – LaGuardia, Newark Liberty and JFK – as well as an array of other new and upgraded assets, including the $2 billion renovation of the 93-year-old George Washington Bridge. The Port Authority’s annual budget of $9.4 billion includes no tax revenue from either the states of New York or New Jersey or from the city of New York. The agency raises the necessary funds for the improvement, construction or acquisition of its facilities primarily on its own credit. For more information, visit www.panynj.gov or check out the Now Arriving blog.