San Diego International Airport

San Diego Int’l Airport expands visitor pass program

Uncategorized, Visitor pass,

San Diego International Airport (SAN), which recently opened a brand new Terminal 1, is expanding its visitor pass program allowing non-ticketed guests to visit the terminals.

Until now, visitors could only apply for a SAN Pass to enter Terminal 2, but now the program has been expanded to cover both Terminals 1 and 2.

“If you’ve ever wanted to see off family or friends at their gate or enjoy the outstanding dining and retail options in Terminal 1 and 2 without flying, this program offers that opportunity,” said Kimberly Becker, President and CEO, San Diego County Regional Airport Authority.

How the SAN Pass works

To apply for a SAN PASS, visitors provide their full legal name, date of birth, and gender (as listed on a TSA-approved photo ID). If approved, visitors will receive their SAN Pass via email as a PDF attachment and go through general screening with their pass and a TSA-approved REAL ID.

Which other airports offer a visitor pass?

Cleveland Hopkins Interational Airport (CLE) offer the Hopkins Hangout Pass

The Wingmate Pass at Philadelphia International Airport.

Seattle Tacoma International Airport (SEA): SEA Visitor Pass Program.

The MSY Guest Pass Program at Louis Armstrong New Orleans International Airport (MSY)

DTW Destinaton Pass at Detroit Metropolitan Airport (DTW)

BNA Passport at Nashville International Airport (BNA)

Capital Region International Airport (LAN) in Lansing, MI: the LAN Visitor Pass.

OC AirPass at John Wayne Airport (SNA) in Orange County, CA,

ONT+ Visitor Pass Program at California’s Ontario International Airport (ONT)

Kansas City International Airport (MCI) recently rolled out its MCI Guest Pass Program

Palm Springs International Airport (PSP) has a Stay and Play Visitor Pass

Tampa International Airport brought back its TPA All Access pass in October 2025.

How to best test an airport terminal

Airport Terminals, Uncategorized,

You’d think that after hiring the best architects and builders and spending billions of dollars, a new airport terminal would be ready to spring into action when the work is done.

But before flights begin to come and go from a new terminal, airports usually run a dress rehearsal day with volunteers pretending to be passengers.

Here’s a slightly different version of a story we wrote for The Points Guy about why and how airports do these tests.

Why ask fake passengers to test airport terminals?

Pittsburgh International Airport (PIT) is putting the finishing touches on a new $1.7 billion terminal set to open in October. Architectural and engineering firms Gensler, HDR and Luis Vidal + Architects designed the terminal and all systems and areas have been completed and rigorously tested.

“But construction and operational readiness aren’t equal,” Daniel Bryan, the consultant leading PIT’s operational readiness and transition team, said. Before the official opening date can be set and announced, PIT is conducting two public trial days, or dress rehearsals, where volunteers act as passengers to help make sure everything — and everyone — is truly ready for the big day.

The first terminal-wide test took place Saturday, Sept. 20, and included about 1,000 of the 18,000 people who responded to the airport’s initial call-out for volunteers.

Pretend passengers traveling on a pretend peak travel day were asked to do all the things real passengers do when they travel from the curb to the gate — checking bags, skis and golf clubs, going through the security checkpoint and finding their gate.

“This will be the first time we’ll see the building come alive,” Bryan said, so the team planned to check the acoustics, the public address system levels, signage and more. The test day was also a day for airport staff to do a run-through for the first day.

San Diego International Airport’s new terminal

It was the same story at San Diego International Airport (SAN) on Sept. 14. Opening day for is Sept. 23 for the $3.8 billion Terminal 1 designed by Gensler in partnership with Turner-Flatiron.

All went well, with adjustments planned in response to feedback that the paging system was too loud in some areas and not loud enough in others, and that better signage was needed for the outdoor dining deck and the oversized baggage belt.

What did Kansas City International Airport learn from its test?

Kansas City International Airport (MCI) held a test day back in 2023 ahead of the opening of its new $1.5 billion terminal.

All systems worked well, said airport spokesman Justin Meyer, and in response to volunteer feedback, the airport ordered more hefty paper towels for the restrooms.

Then there was the problem of test day volunteers missing their fake flights because they were spending too much time checking out the terminal.

Snaps from San Diego Int’l Airport’s lovely new Terminal 1

Airport Terminals

San Diego International Airport’s existing Terminal 1, built in 1967, closes on Tuesday, September 23, and the swanky new light-and-art-filled $3.8 billion Terminal 1 officially opens.

(A few flights will arrive at new T1 on the evening of September 22).

Designed by the Gensler architecture firm in partnership with Turner-Flatiron, the new terminal boasts five impressive commissioned art pieces – including Matthew Mazzotta’s jellyfish-inspired Rise, up above -, an outdoor patio with views of San Diego Bay and downtown, 13 security lanes, 7 bag claim carousels, and more.

We had a chance to tour the terminal as finishing touches were being put in place. Here are a few snaps from our tour.

Views galore

The terminal was designed to be “open and inviting – a glassy pavilion in a garden,” said Gensler’s Terence Young, Principal, Design Director and Project Designer. Passengers can see out to the airfield from plenty of spots along the concourse, but the coziest seating is likely the area behind the center information bank.

Cool concessions

New Terminal 1 at San Diego International Airport opens with 5 specialty stores and a dozen food and beverage outlets.


Beautiful bathrooms

We already made SAN’s new Terminal 1 restrooms our Airport Amenity of the Week.

Not just because they’re lovely, but because each sink has three fixtures.

One dispenses soap.

One dispenses water.

And the third is a personal hand dryer.

So no need to drip your way across a counter to find a paper towel.

Did we mention all the art at SAN’s new T1?

We did. But here are a few more snaps.

Vessel of Light, by Erwin Redl, in the dining hall, is made of triangles that respond to music from the stage beneath it, and to ambient noise

.

Amy Ellington’s A Day in the Sun includes six mosaic-covered columns in the recomposure area just past the security checkpoint.

More than a million hand-set glass tiles create patterns that are inspired by the transition from sunrise to sunset along the Pacific shoreline.

Be sure to look on the floor around each column; there are tiles set into the terrazzo too.

Airport amenity of the week

Bathrooms,

The Stuck at the Airport team spent a long day touring San Diego International Airport’s lovely new Terminal 1 facility, which is scheduled to begin hosting flights on September 22, 2025.

We’ll be back with more images and information, but because it’s Friday, we’re declaring one of the SAN’s new restroom features Airport Amenity of the Week.

In each restroom, every sink has three fixtures.

One dispenses soap.

One dispenses water.

And one is the airport amenity of the week: a personal hand dryer.

This should cut down, or perhaps eliminate, icky wet counters that result from hand washers searching around for and walking over to communal hand dryer machines or paper towel dispensers.

Good thinking, San Diego International Airport!

Turn travel into poetry at San Diego Int’l Airport

Art,

 

Passengers traveling through San Diego International Airport (SAN) may have their travel tales turned into poetry.

Now through April 29, the airport’s Spring 2025 Performing Arts Resident, Poets Underground, will be onsite in the terminals at their luggage-inspired stage called The Great Poetic Baggage Exchange.

The artists will be inviting and enticing travelers to engage in conversations and mural paintings around five travel-inspired themes: Adventure, Baggage, Connection, Checkpoint and Rise.

The stories and images gathered at SAN will help the arts residents create poems and other artworks that will be then be featured in three airport performances on May 2, 6, and 8.

Could be fun!

Fresh art at San Diego Int’l Airport

Art,

(Artist: Guillermo Arias)

Mirror, Mirror exhibition at San Diego Int’l Airport

Mirror Mirror, the newest temporary exhibition on display at San Diego International Airport (SAN), features more than 100 works by 16 contemporary artists from the region, all exploring the fascinating interplay between light, color, and space. 

(Artist: Sophia Allison)

SAN’s Mirror, Mirror exhibition draws on the legacy of the California artists who were part of the 1960s Southern California Light and Space movement.

According to exhibition notes, artists were inspired by the unique quality of Southern California’s light “revolutionized minimalism” by using then-new light-interactive materials such as resin, plastics and neon.

The light-interactive materials were handy, thanks to the local aerospace manufacturing and industrial design industries.

Look for the Mirror, Mirror exhibit at San Diego International Airport in both the pre- and post-security areas of Terminal 2 throughout 2025.

(Artist – May-ling Martinez)

(Artist: Wendell Kling)

Places to go. Things to do.

Astronomy, , , , , , ,

Here are some travel tidbits to get the week started

(The night sky above Kitt Peak National Observatory, the Burrell Schmidt Telescope. Courtesy KPNO/NOIRLab/NSF/AURA/J.Dai)

Things are looking up in Tucson

You’ve likely heard of Donut Trails, Cocktail Trails, Pie Trails and Barbecue Trails.

They are all good ways to explore a city or a region.

Now there’s an Astro Trail in Tucson, Arizona that highlights night sky viewing options.

Available as a web app and printed guide, the Astro Trail is billed as your “personal guide to the galaxy,” exploring all the dark-sky-related stops in Tucson.

The trail includes world-class astronomy institutes such as Kitt Peak National Observatory and the Richard F Caris Mirror Lab where the largest telescope lenses in the world are made, to casual stargazing at national and state parks.  

We’re planning our trip there now.

San Diego Int’l Airport Presents Dance Performances Inspired by Travelers’ Stories

As part of San Diego International Airport’s (SAN) Performing Arts Residency Program, San Diego-based dance company Malahock Dance will present newly choreographed works in Terminal 2 West on January 27, 29, and February 3 at 2 p.m.

The dances are inspired by the diverse stories of nearly three dozen passengers who have traveled through the airport and reflect the dance company’s three-month residency inside the airport.

During the residency, the dancers talked with nearly 300 travelers and ultimately collected 30 oral histories from passengers of all ages about their San Diego experience.  The dancers interpreted these histories into dance, developing their choreography in the airport where travelers and visitors could witness the creative process unfold.

Airports helping to save the earth

Airports pretty much everywhere are doing what they can these days to be light on the earth.

Recycling bins at airports were once a rare sight, but now you’ll see them pretty much everywhere.

But figuring out which bin to put your discards in can be confusing.

We’ve stood in front of bins trying to figure out if our coffee cup is compostable or recyclable. And what about the lid?

Seattle-Tacoma International Airport (SEA) is one airport where artificial intelligence has been helping out for a while.

The airport uses an AI-assisted tool called Oscar, from Intuitive AI, that helps passengers sort waste items into the proper compost, recycling, or trash bins.

When someone walks up to the machine, which is mounted over the bins, they place an item in front of a camera for the system to analyze. Oscar then tells the user which bin to use to dispose of the item. For those worried about privacy, the cameras only capture images of the waste items presented and not the person presenting the item.

Look for the Oscar at SEA Airport in the Central Terminal, the North Concourse, the South Concourse near gate S2, and in the C Concourse near gate C17.

California’s Long Beach Airport (LGB), which officially identifies as “America’s coolest airport,” is also doing its part to save the earth and recently shared this video about all the food waste it has been keeping out of landfills.

“A Necessary Departure” at San Diego Int’l Airport

Art, ,

(“Blue Corona: Sunset Dances”/Artist: Lori Hepner/Location:Terminal 2 West, Post-Security, Stone Brewery Wall)

San Diego International Airport (SAN) is featuring a new temporary exhibition, titled A Necessary Departure, throughout Terminal 2 pre-and-post security.

A Necessary Departure is a collection of works from 17 local artists and organizations that examines personal transformations and how the community has remade itself after the pandemic.

Featured work in the exhibition includes sculpture, painting, photography, ceramics, site-specific installation, and more. All exhibition pieces will remain on display through 2023.

Here is a sample of artwork from the show.

[“Oneness.” Artist: San Diego MTO School/Kerry Soori McEachern. Location: Terminal 2 East, Pre-Security, Gallery]

(“The Wonders of Plastic”/ Artist: Terri Hughes-Oelrich/Location: Terminal 2 East 2nd floor, Post-Security, gate 24)

(“Farverig Sol”/ Artist: Kaori Fukuyama/Location: Terminal 2 East, Pre-Security, Checkpoint six)

All photos courtesy of San Diego International Airport

Would You Drink Beer Made With Water Dripped from Airport Air Conditioners?

Beer, ,

Back in 2019 San Diego International Airport (SAN) partnered with local brewery Ballast Point and an industrial water purification company to create a special beer called SAN Test Pilot.

The beer was a sellout. Even though (or perhaps because) the water for the beer came from condensate that was dripping from the bottom of air conditioning units attached to the airport jet bridges.

Now SAN is at it again. The East Village Brewing Compan has two beers made with purified condensate collected at the airport.

Hoppy Travels IPA is a West Coast IPA with flavors of grapefruit and guava. Pre-Flight Pils is a German-style pilsner with bready and lemon zest flavors.

Both beers are currently on tap at The East Village Brewing Company and will soon be available at San Diego International Airport’s Terminal 2.

We can’t wait to taste them.

Here’s a video that explains how air-conditioning drippings at San Diego International Airport (SAN) become great-tasting, good-for-the-planet beer.

Fresh Art at San Diego Int’l Airport

Art, , ,
Artist: Beliz Iristay

Are you sick of staying at home? Or maybe still trying to get home after being stuck somewhere due to the pandemic?

Perhaps some art will help.

In a new temporary exhibition at San Diego International Airport (SAN), 16 artists explore the concept of home.

From the exhibit notes:

“Home is a lens through which people explore memory, identity, and belonging in an increasingly nomadic world. More recently, in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic, home became a safe haven–an all-in-one workplace, classroom, and living space for millions of people around the globe. The term also took on significance as a desired destination that was not possible to reach for some, whether due to travel restrictions or health limitations.“

Artist: Cheryl Tall

Make Yourself at Home, located pre and post-security in Terminal 2 at SAN through May 2022, includes sculpture, painting, photography, video, woven textiles, ceramics, site-specific installation, and more.

[The] “exhibition takes on new and imaginative ways to view the concept of home,” says Kimberly Becker, San Diego County Regional Airport Authority President and CEO. “We hope passengers traveling through San Diego take a moment to embrace the art and find new meaning in what home means to them.”  

Here are few more selections from the exhibition.

Artist: Judith Christensen
Artist: Jane Brucker
Artist: Nasem Navad