McGhee Tyson Airport – TYS

It’s a very very small airport so you do not have to get here super early for your flight and meeting up with people is easy. The parking is cheap too. I usually give it 30 minutes before my boarding time. The food options are limited and the amount of free floating staff is limited. There’s rocking chairs o. O; I wonder if my ex flew to me to be on these rocking chairs, he loved it.
The bathroom is clean!

Flown into this airport many times and have just had one bad experience which was when there had been numerous flight cancellations and everyone was rebooking their flights. This airport is not usually busy so when it does get busy, bare with the workers, they’re not accustomed to it!

McGhee is a friendly airport to fly into. It is small but does a good job getting you in and out on time. The cab drivers here are quite nice and really know the area. There are also some places to eat though not many, but adequate. At least, one familiar icon you’ll see here is Starbucks. Too bad they don’t have a mom and pops coffee place here though!
Most of the planes that fly here are smaller planes like American Eagle and United Express, so your usual carry on may not fit on the overhead compartment, but the airlines are pretty good in checking them in for you for free. One memorable icon that leaves me here was their rocking chairs. I thought that was quite clever, and I took advantage of it by rocking on one. It was great!
Until then, Cheers! ~ :p

I really love our airport! It’s large enough to function without hiccups and it’s small enough to still carry that small-​town Knoxville feel.
When flying out of Knoxville, I have never had an issue. The TSA agents are always friendly. I have actually gotten a little too comfortable with how short our security lines are and how quickly you can zip right through them. The airline staff is always accommodating and happy to help in any way that they can.
For the size of the airport, it is well outfitted with restaurants and shops, though if I had my way, I’d get rid of the Quiznos and replace it with something a little more relevant. That’s just me being picky.

For a medium size aiport, TYS has a very nice airport with employees that are friendly. Very easy to find from I-​75 or I-​40. The parking lots at the airport are large, and getting through security is easy. I would suggest the airport management work on getting more locations available to fly from Knoxville especially going west.
The shops and food options are good, and the prices are reasonable inside. Would fly out of TYS again.

This was my first time to Knoxville, TN. I was pleasantly surprised.
It’s not too large and modern. Not at all what I expected. The layout was easy.
The waterfall as you proceed to retrieve baggage was something I’ve never seen inside an airport before. Very nice.

Pros: fast security lines, inexpensive parking, on site rental cars. Never very crowded. Friendly staff. Easy to get in and out in a hurry.
Cons: limited direct flights;one of most expensive airports to fly out of in country; few food options which all close early every day (7pm?), poor on-​time departure rate
We live in knoxville and find it more convenient, and often significantly less expensive to drive to Atlanta or Nashville. This Usually makes for a direct domestic flight and one less layover for long international flights. Direct flights to Chicago used to be reasonable (under 300) but now most between $ 500 – 700!

Small, quaint, super clean, easy to navigate, friendly people… What more could you ask for!!!
When I first saw this airport, I thought it was a joke. I’m used to airports that resemble cities, so seeing this 1 terminal airport was quite funny. However, the more I pass through it, the more I love it. When I get home from a trip, I hate spending another hour weaving through terminals and trams trying to get to my car or to a cab. In this airport, I can be in the confines of homeward bound transportation in 5 to 10 minutes.
Keep up the good work in getting more carriers and flights!

I am going to start out by saying this: I have had good and very bad experiences at Knoxville but I’m going to exclude this here as I feel when it is an airline issue that it should not be the airport’s fault.
Perks:
— clean airport & restrooms
— easy to follow signage for departures
— good size for long-​term parking
Quirks:
— parking garages only have stairs (that I can tell)
— staff tries to run you off too fast while awaiting to pick someone up (I understand why, it’s just really annoying)

As a recruiter, I use this place A LOT! For a regional airport, I think TYS is one if the best. The entire place is about 12 gates deep, but it is one of the cleanest and friendliest airports I’ve been in. I once had a Pandora bracelet fall off my wrist while rushing through TSA. When I realized it was missing after boarding my flight, the flight attendant had someone bring it to me. That level of service doesn’t happen everywhere. TYS also has free wifi and a decent amount of amenities. I’ve been in state capital airports that barely have a coffee shop. This place has Starbucks, Quiznos, a full Ruby Tuesday, and a couple of other admittedly random eateries. Again, for a place with 12 gates, I think that’s great. There are also gift shops inside and outside the gate.
The only thing that is annoying about this place is if you land after 10pm almost everything is closed. This isn’t a 24 hour type of airport. Parking at 12/​day isn’t cheap either. That aside I’ve seen great service and care in the years I’ve gone through TYS. Various carriers may have flight delays, cancellations, etc…, but the airport itself is really nice.

For a small market airport, this place is really nice! very modern with all the amenities a business traveler would expect. Beyond security, there is only one sit-​down restaurant, Ruby Tuesday’s. Food was pretty good. The airport space is nice and open, well lit, with plenty of seating. Had an nice little art exhibit facing the runway, with lots of rocking chairs to chill out in. Also, had plenty of plugs for recharging.

Five stars for cleanliness, great layout, ease of checking in & out and for having rental cars on site, no shuttle required! I also liked the proximity to the highway. Flying in and out of this airport is as easy as it gets. And if you’re looking to drive across TN this is a good place to kick off. The drive from here to Nashville to Memphis is beautiful.

I seriously doubt that you’ll be in TYS for a layover so you’ll most likely only experience this airport if you’re flying into Knoxville.
Pros: No traffic. I mean, you’re not dodging your way to get around people like you would have at a busy airport. Getting off the plane and out of the airport is quite easy.
Cons: No traffic. And by this I mean there aren’t many places TYS fly to so if there’s a delay in another airport, you don’t have much of a choice but to stay longer in Knoxville.
There’s not a lot going on and for once in my life, I was actually okay with the quiet travel plans!

Flew in one fall morning. It’s a small airport with free wi-​fi so that’s great in my book! There’s not much here.
Signage could use some work. Baggage claim signs are confusing as are signs to get out of the airport.
It’s $ 1 to park for 20 minutes. $ 10 overnight at the economy lot. Kentucky airports are spoiling me with their lower fees.

Overall, I love TYS– it’s small, easy to navigate, you get free wifi, security is fast even when the line is long, and parking is easy. Luggage comes off the planes quickly and gets to the terminal fairly fast compared to other airports. My one complaint would be the limited airline options and the cost of flights here. But you can’t have everything.
I’ve stayed at the Hilton at the airport and it is fine– a standard airport hotel– a little tired but it’s been updated and was clean and the staff was great. You can walk from the hotel to the terminal which is awesome.
Eating options include Ruby Tuesday, Quizno’s, Starbucks, and a few others. There are a couple of souvenir shops as well. Restrooms are typically clean. You can walk from one end of the terminal to the other in less than 5 minutes.
Overall, this is a great airport!

Great airport, very clean. Body scanner makes it go faster, the employee line is great. The TSA workers and gate agents know me by name, they are very nice and accomodating.
They have awesome gift shops with the great smoky mountain gifts. Very nice huge and long waterfall as your walking up or down the walkway inside to get to security or walking out of the airport.
Several carriers fly in and out. American Eagle, United, Delta, Frontier and US Airways.
The Gate Agents are very friendly and informative. You could ask them anything and they’d have you a truthful answer instead of a «this is what they want to hear» answer.
They also have a secure parking garage.
Lots of hotels in the area. Lots of rental cars.
Avis, Thrifty, Hertz, Enterprise, Dollar and Alamo.

With a few visits a year and over 20 total trips here I can give an honest opinion of TYS. I Like it! It’s tiny and has limited airlines and services but it is fast and simple. I like how new it looks and how clean they keep it. Rental cars are in a nearby walk in garage so no shuttle bus hassles or train rides. Security is fast and always had multiple lanes open.
Only 3 stars??? Well it is tiny limited and when there is a delay you are trapped with little to do and only 1 bar restaurant.
There are a couple other places to eat though. No admirals club either.

The McGhee Tyson Airport Knoxville appears to be a small, outdated airport from the exterior yet leads to a very pleasant, clean and comfortable interior. Assuming you have your boarding passes and have no checked luggage, as I did, then I can convey that the experiences during a weekday afternoon led to no inconveniences upon arrival. When departing, I was easily cleared through the TSA checkpoint and arrived at my nearby gate without issues.
Overall, the tone, décor and ample, clean comfortable space makes for a very comfortable experience from entrance to boarding of the flight. My flights have been on United and can not speak to the experience specific to other airlines.
Overall, this is one of the most pleasant and well equipped «small» airports that I have traveled to or through.
PS It’s easy to buy a lot of TN Volunteer State souvenirs in their newsstands/​convenience shops. I’m at least $ 100 poorer but, have lots of refrigerator magnets, shirts, etc… :)

Not a bad airport. I spent some time here recently as I flew into and out of Knoxville. This is a small airport, but it is well set up. We had no issues on the way in what so ever.
On the way back, our family dropped us off early because they had to get on the road. We were shocked to find out that the Allegiant counter wasn’t open yet. We had to wait in the terminal for them to open with no restaurants available. That was annoying.
From there our experience improved. We went through security in minutes and got to have a lunch at Ruby Tuesday. Our flight boarded in an organized manner. Definitely an easy airport to travel through!

«Welcome to Knoxville.» Yeah, it’s a regional puddle jumper hub, but so is everything within a few hours of here. Long term parking is $ 12/​day. I’ll drive here to save a couple hundred bucks on a flight sometimes. It’s actually a peaceful and chill airport experience compared to most. Remember when airports had shoe shine stands? This one still does, and it’s staffed normal business hours.
Plan on a 30 minute drive from KnoxVegas to the airport here in Alcoa and you’ll be on time unless you run into construction, rush hour, or something unforseen. Small choice of eateries inside and nearby, but if you want to buy a car you’re in the right neighborhood as there are several dealerships close to the airport. The closest long term parking is usually on the top (uncovered) level close to the elevator. Expect that comfortable Southern hospitality here.