J.D. Power Says New Kansas City Airport One Of America’s Best!

Last year, the website Travel Awaits named Kansas City's new airport the best in the world. Having recently flown in and out of the airport, I had some nits to pick with that designation. You can read that here. This year, Kansas City International Airport has ranked third among large airports in an annual J.D. Power Airport Customer Satisfaction Study; I also flew in and out of the airport again, so is the J.D. Power Airport Customer Satisfaction Study on the money?

According to J.D. Power, here's how the study measured overall passenger satisfaction:

"The 2024 North America Airport Satisfaction Study measures overall passenger satisfaction with mega, large and medium North American airports by examining their experience across seven core dimensions (in order of importance): ease of travel through airport; level of trust with airport; terminal facilities; airport staff; departure/to airport experience; food, beverage and retail; and arrival/from airport experience."

Kansas City International was in the large airport category and finished third behind Tampa International and John Wayne Airport, Orange County. It beat some airports I've enjoyed flying through, including Love Field in Dallas and one of my all-time favorite airports, Autin-Bergstrom International Airport. In my mind, that says a lot.

I re-read what I wrote about Kansas City International last year when I was poking holes in the Travel Awaits article that named Kansas City International the best in the world. I wondered if my opinions had changed now that I had another flying experience in and out of the airport.

Yes, they have. Some of my complaints about how far the airport is from Warrensburg or even Lee's Summit are still valid. Yet, spending more time in Kansas City over the past year and familiarity with the roads made the drive easier.

One of my biggest complaints about the terminal was related to the stresses involved in flying. How easy would it be to find my car in the remote lot upon my return? How easy or hard would it be to get through TSA? When I did it a year ago, those things added a lot of stress.

This time, my stress level was significantly lower, and the familiarity and confidence of having done it before made it substantially more straightforward. I also had an excellent, relatively friendly TSA experience through security. I still had to walk, but flying a different airline, the walk wasn't as long as it had been previously.

Being less stressed about everything made it way more enjoyable. I'd also say the bathrooms are impressive. They were some of the cleanest, freshest, and non-stinky airport restrooms I've ever experienced. One year later, Kansas City International still has that new airport feel.

So yeah, in the case of Kansas City International Airport, the #3 ranking from J.D. Power seems on the money to me, or maybe even a little low. I still might hesitate to call it the best airport in the world, but any hesitation I had about flying out of Kansas City from last summer is gone.