AUSTIN, Texas — If you are looking to fly on some of the busiest travel days of the season, leaders at Austin's airport say reserving a parking space ahead of time is a game changer.
Officials say that they've run out of parking spaces several times this year, so they've been working to launch an updated system.
Now, instead of having a set number of reserved spaces in the Red and Blue garages, you can reserve a spot in any of the garages or parking lots, including Economy, which only costs $12 a day.
“Even if you use the same garage over and over again when you fly out of the airport, sometimes it takes a little bit to find a parking space,” said Elizabeth Ferrer with Austin's airport. “You get a choice now in terms of ... Where you want to park, what's more convenient, what's more affordable for you ... So you're not bound to the parking garages."
The reservations must be made online no less than 24 hours before you plan to arrive at the airport. There is a small service fee of about $2 for all of the garages and lots, but the airport says making a reservation is well worth it.
“That gives you that little leverage and little peace of mind to know that you've got that much less time to worry about trying to find where to park,” Ferrer said.
The airport says having a reservation also helps you avoid the stress of losing a parking ticket because when you pay completely online, all you have to do when you arrive and leave is to scan a QR code on your device.
Another tip the airport offers for getting dropped off or picked up is to switch it up.
If you notice a long line of cars at departures, you can get dropped off at arrivals and then go upstairs, or vice versa.