Orlando International Airport

Orlando Airport pin exchange + Win a Tokyo trip

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In March 2024, Orlando International Airport (MCO) joined the Pin Trading world with its very own line of collectible “MCO Icons” pins.

Since then, travelers have picked up pins (and pairs of the airport’s snazzy socks) through occasional giveaways and pin exchanges online and onsite.

Here’s another chance to get those goodies.

There’s an MCO Pop-Up Pin Exchange scheduled for Tuesday, May 20, between noon and 2 pm.

Travelers who stop by Level 3 – by the fountain – can trade their enamel pins for pins from the MCO Icons Collection and some new edition pins.

As a nice bonus, extra prizes – including some snazzy new MCO socks – will be awarded to those who spin the prize wheel.

(Note: the pin exchanges is limited to 3 pins per customer, while supplies last).

Win a trip from Seattle to Tokyo

To celebrate the new Alaska Airlines nonstop service between Seattle and Tokyo-Narita, operated by Hawaiian Airlines on Airbus A330-200 aircraft, Seattle’s much-adored Westland Distillery is hosting a digital sweepstakes.

Entries to the Fly West, Land in Tokyo sweepstakes can be made through July 31, 2025.

One grand prize winner will receive two Alaska Air roundtrip vouchers from any major US city to Tokyo, Japan, plus four nights at a premium double-occupancy hotel in Tokyo. The prize also includes $500 for incidentals and ground transportation and a Westland travel kit.

(The sweepstakes is open to all 50 U.S. states plus D.C.; entrants must be 21 or older.)

While you’re waiting to win, you might want to try the new Narita Banana cocktail being offered exclusively at the Alaska Airlines lounge on the N Concourse.

Created in collaboration with Tokyo’s celebrated cocktail bar Tokyo Confidential, the cocktail features Westland’s Flagship American Single Malt, banana liqueur, pineapple juice, rich simple syrup, milk and a pinch of salt.

Orlando Int’l Airport ready for National Public Sleeping Day

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Have you ever fallen asleep in an airport or on an airplane?

If so, you will appreciate and want to mark National Public Sleeping Day, which takes place each year on February 28th.

The unofficial national holiday celebrates and encourages taking a nap in public places, including airports and on airplanes, a skill most travelers have down pat.

The holiday gets special attention at Orlando International Airport (MCO), which is home to Duane Hanson’s hyperrealistic sculpture commonly referred to as The Sleeping Man, but officially titled “The Traveler.”

The sculpture has been part of the airport’s art collection since 1985 and now sits in a display case on Level 3 of MCO’s Main Terminal. According to the airport, when the sculpture was first installed, “the model who posed for the piece – a neighbor of Hanson’s – was in attendance, sitting next to the finished sculpture. When the model abruptly stood up and walked away, it caused quite a stir among the staff and visitors.”

In 2024, “The Traveler” underwent a refresh from a local conservator who was able to complete the job “without waking him up from his almost 40-year slumber.”

This year, in honor of National Public Sleeping Day – February 28 – Orlando International Airport is hosting a look-alike contest inspired by “The Traveler” sculpture.

To enter, all you need to do is dress up as the sleeping man and show up by the sculpture at MCO airport between 11 am and noon on Friday, February 28th. The prize: an MCO Icons pin for your collection.

Snooze and you lose. Or, in this case, win.

Button, button, who’s got an Orlando Airport button?

Free Stuff, , ,

Here’s something free you can pick up at an airport.

Orlando International Airport (MCO) will unveil a new logo on November 13.

Before that happens, passengers can pick up a free souvenir button on their travels through the airport.

There are three different buttons in the “Memories Created in Orlando” program. And with each one the airport says passengers will have a chance to “celebrate special occasions, share their love for MCO, and take home a unique keepsake that highlights their experience in Orlando.”

This first round of buttons is a limited-edition collection, available only until MCO’s rebranding is unveiled on November 13. Then a new line of commemorative buttons will be introduced.

You can pick up your free Orlando International Airport souvenir button at the MCO information booths from 4:30 a.m. to 11:00 p.m., daily.

Where You Can Find MCO Information Booths to get a free souvenir button
Terminal ATerminal BTerminal C
Level 3 across from Gates 1-59 security checkpointLevel 3 across from Gates 1-59 security checkpointLevel 2 across from Gates C230-C245 security checkpoint
Level 3 across from Gates 70-129 security checkpointLevel 3 across from Gates 70-129 security checkpoint

While you’re there, ask if there are any Orlando International Airport trading cards to add to your collection.

Travel Tidbits from airports near you

Free Stuff, , ,

Happy Friday! Here are some travel tidbits we’ve spotted over the past few days.

Airport WiFi. Free now, but it wasn’t then.

We remember when free airport WiFi was hard to come by. Now, almost every airport you visit offers free WiFi for a few hours or the entire time you’re there.

Norfolk International Airport (ORF) shared a snap of the CyberFlyer internet stations that once offered airport WiFi access for 33 cents per minute.

The visitor program at Orlando Int’l Airport is now permanent

After testing it out for a year, Orlando International Airport (MCO) has made its MCO Visitor Pass Program a permanent amenity.

The pass gives guests without boarding passes the opportunity to shop, dine and hang out with friends or family post-security at Terminal C.

Want to visit Orlando International Airport without a plane ticket?

To apply for a Visitor Pass, apply at Experience MCO up to seven days in advance.

After filling out the form and agreeing to the terms of the program, TSA will notify you of your status and send you a pass after midnight on the day of your requested visit.

MCO isn’t the only airport that offers gate passes to non-ticketed flyers. Here’s a list of the other airports where you can enter the terminal without a plane ticket.

The list includes Seattle-Tacoma International Airport (SEA), Nashville International Airport (BNA), Philadelphia International Airport (PHL), and at least a half dozen others.

Free parking for shoppers at PDX Airport

The recently opened pre-security lobby at Portland International Airport (PDX) is pretty darn swanky, with trees, stadium seating, giant video screens and a nice selection of cool shops and restaurants.

For those who want to visit the airport and check it all out (we highly recommend it), PDX is offering free parking to anyone who spends $25 in the pre-security area on Saturdays in September.

The free parking days at PDX are September 7, 14, 21 and 28.

Here’s how to get your free PDX parking offer:

Bring your airport parking ticket with you to the airport.

Shop or dine at one or more of the pre-security venues listed below.

After you make a purchase, show your ticket to one of the staff and save all your receipts. Once you’ve spent at least $25, show all the receipts to the staff at your last stop.

You’ll receive a validation coupon. Bring both the coupon and your parking ticket to the PDX parking structure and use that validation coupon to pay for your first two hours of parking.

Here are the shops and dining venues where purchases will count towards your free parking:

The Country Cat

Hello from Portland

Loyal Legion

Missionary Chocolates

Orox Leather Company

PiPH by Paper Epiphanies

and Portland Coffee Roasters

Aces for airports on National Card Playing Day

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(Courtesy of the Phoenix Airport Museum)

December 28 was National Card Playing Day, so the Stuck at the Airport games department asked the teams from the Phoenix Airport Museum at Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport (PHX) to share pictures of some of their favorite airline playing cards from the more than 300 decks in their Aviation History Collection. Here’s what they sent.

PHX wasn’t the only airport shuffling the decks on National Playing Card Day. Orlando International Airport (MCO) gave away some of their MCO-branded card decks to some lucky travelers.

We also did an online search through the airline playing cards in the collection of the SFO Museum at San Francisco International Airport (SFO) and found some cool decks.