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Houston airports prepare for record-breaking Labor Day surge with travel and parking tips

As Houstonians prepare for Labor Day travel (to, say, beachy Gulf Coast destinations) local airports are bracing for a record-breaking weekend.

Houston’s two airports — George Bush Intercontinental Airport and William P. Hobby Airport — are slated to see more than 15 million passengers from Memorial Day weekend to Labor Day weekend 2023, a record for the City of Houston's airport system. According to a Houston Airports announcement, that number is greater than summer 2019, also a behemoth travel year.

Speaking of big numbers, Bush IAH and Hobby will greet more than 830,000 passengers between Thursday, August 31 and Monday, September 4. Travelers should take note of these Houston Airport stats:

The busiest airport travel day will be Friday, September 1, per Houston Airports.
Hobby will see nearly 200,000 people during the holiday travel period.
Bush is anticipating more than 636,000 people to move through its five terminals (that's nearly the population of El Paso).
Nearly 80 percent of passengers will board a domestic flight, while more than 20 percent are headed to international destinations.

With that in mind, travelers to Bush should anticipate large crowds and traffic as well as jam-packed parking. Follow Bush IAH traffic updates here; reserve valet, terminal parking, and economy lots here. For faster pickup, returning Bush passengers are advised to move to Terminals A, B, or C.

Hobby’s big expansion

This record-breaking travel news comes as Houston City Council approved a $250 million installment of airport funds towards the $470 million expansion at Hobby's West Concourse on Wednesday, August 30. Expansion work is slated to begin in early 2024 and last two years, per project guidelines.

Plans call for seven new gates that to accommodate domestic and international flights; an expanded and renovated baggage handling system and baggage claim area; and an overhead canopy along the departures curb to protect travelers from extreme weather and will also connect the Red Garage to the terminal — welcome news for anyone who's every been rained on trudging from car to the terminal.

It's been quite a 12 months for Hobby: as CultureMap reported, Hobby is the first airport in Texas, the U.S., and North America — and one of just 16 airports across the world — to land the coveted 5-star Skytrax World Airport Star rating.

George Bush Intercontinental Airport Houston

Photo courtesy of Visit Houston

More than 630,000 will travel through Bush Intercontinental this weekend.

H-Town's Moo Deng

Houston Zoo welcomes Akobi, an adorable pygmy hippopotamus

Akobi is Houston Zoo's newest pygmy hippoptamus

Photo by Jackelin Reyna/Houston Zoo

Houston Zoo welcomes itOH MY THAT IS ADORABLE

The Houston Zoo welcomes Akobi, its newest pygmy hippopotamus right as the species is having a massive resurgence in popularity.

Thanks to Moo Deng, a baby pygmy hippo born Khao Kheow Open Zoo in Si Racha, Chonburi, Thailand this summer, pygmy hippopotami are more popular than ever. Moo Deng became a viral sensation thanks to cute videos of him playing and drinking from a spraying hose. He was even parodied on Saturday Night Live, where he was played by Bowen Yang.

Akobi is a four-and-a-half-year-old, 477-pound male pygmy hippopotamus who recently moved from San Francisco to Houston as part of an Association of Zoos and Aquarium (AZA) Species Survival Plan (SSP) Program. His name means “first born” in Yoruba. This is definitely one California transplant all Texans can agree on.

As their name suggests, pygmy hippos are quite a bit smaller than their more famous counterparts. Common hippos can weigh up to 4,000 pounds and are among the most dangerous megafauna in the world because of their fierce territoriality. By contrast, pygmy hippos rarely get above 500 pounds and are comparatively docile.

Unlike their larger cousins, pygmy hippos spend most of their time on dry land and live solitary lives rather than in large herds. Akobi is the first pygmy hippo in the Houston Zoo since the death of Silas, their previous pygmy hippo. Acquired in 2020, Silas quickly became a favorite of zoo visitors. He died in 2022 after a short illness.

Akobi comes at a time of massive expansion and progress for the Houston Zoo. The 55-acre zoological garden just opened its massive Birds of the World exhibit, featuring bird species across three continents. It also swept a series of industry awards for its innovative Galapagos Island area, which introduced penguins to the zoo among a host of other species. These were all part of the Houston Zoo’s centennial celebration.

Hopefully, Akobi will have an easier time than Moo Deng. Visitors to the viral star’s enclosure would sometimes spray water or throw items at the hippo, leading to the zoo having to build more security to protect Moo Deng. Houston Zoo visitors should remember that pygmy hippos (and all zoo animals) should not be disturbed or molested for their health and the visitor’s safety.

akobi houston zoo pygmy hippopotamus

now boarding

Houston airports prepare for record-breaking Labor Day surge with travel and parking tips

H-Town's Moo Deng

Houston Zoo welcomes Akobi, an adorable pygmy hippopotamus

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