Need answers kinda fast on this one. Ok, I have a flight booked at 6:15 am, however, I will be getting to the airport at 11 pm prior to that. (I won’t get into details why, just the way it is.) I will be bringing in two bags. One large one on wheels and a backpack. I contacted United Airlines and they told me the earliest I can check in my large, rolling bag is 4 hours prior to departure. Ok, no sweat, I can roll it around for 3+ hours.
My concern is that I read an article that said that there is a huge homeless problem in LaGuardia, to the point that tent cities exist. A close friend recently confirmed this. My first question is this: are there any 24 hour restaurant/bars I can hang in for a bit to feel safe in the airport? Anyplace I can hang out that I can feel relatively safe? For point of reference, I will be in Terminal B but I will go to any terminal where I can sit down and relax.
My second question is: I’m a geology student. I’m flying out to Billings, Montana to do Field work. Some of my equipment seems a bit dicey to bring with me and I was wondering if the TSA will have a problem with it. I don’t want to have it confiscated. I am supposed to bring a rock hammer, chisel, small hand sledge, pocket knife, and a small multi-purpose tool.
I use LaGuardia several times a year, including three round trips last year. I have never seen a homeless person there, either inside the terminals or outside when getting ground transportation, or entering or leaving by taxi. This said, I’m rarely there later than the early evening. They may be more evident later at night.
It seems like there were a lot of reports last winter, when homeless people were taking shelter from the cold. (Although I didn’t see any when I flew in for Christmas or left after New Year.) In response, LaGuardia announced a policy of closing the pre-security areas (lobbies and baggage claim) to anyone who wasn’t a ticketed passenger. This may have alleviated the problem.
I understand from checking some sites that they actually move anyone staying overnight at LaGuardia to Terminal B because it has a pre-security food court. I don’t know though if any of the restaurants would be open all night. This review alleges that last summer they actually provided cots, pillows, and blankets for those staying overnight. I can’t vouch for this. In any case, the Food Court in Terminal B would most likely have security and other overnight travelers so you should be OK there.
I wouldn’t think that would be a problem in checked luggage.
If you are flying on American I would suggest getting breakfast before going through security because the food choices on Concourse D are pretty limited.
PS. I think you’re being a bit more nervous about it than you need to be. LaGuardia sucks, but it’s not Kinshasha International.
Or you could just have a bite to eat then get in line for the TSA screening. You will be through by 6AM.
I flew into La Guardia several times last year and don’t recall ever seeing a homeless person. In fact, we remarked that it was the only airport that checked and matched our luggage tags to the boarding pass stick-on tag (although, only once or twice).
I’ve stayed overnight at LaGuardia. There were some homeless people and a lot of isolated areas, and it was actually pretty uncomfortable, even for someone who has slept in a lot of airports.
Eventually I asked an airport employee (I was hesitant because my ticket was actually for JFK the next day) and he pointed me to an area where travelers were bedding down for the night. There was a pretty good crowd, Including families. By the time I got there most of the good seats had been staked out, but it was a safe place to wait. It wasn’t comfortable but it wasn’t the worst airport overnight of my life (that’s reserved for JFK).
TLDR Ask an airport employee where the best place to stay is.
Reading the Sleeping in Airports page, it seems at least one other person stayed where I stayed, which was a waiting space that was behind the ticket counters. It was a little difficult to find and I’m not sure I would have stumbled there on my own.
Some people were sleeping atop large carts. They were by far the most comfortable people. Snag one if you can. Airport staff seemed okay with it.
Bring something warm to sleep in. I always bring a cable lock to secure my luggage when sleeping at airports. It’s not perfect security but it is a decent deterrent.
