Airports, anxiety and adventures: Students and faculty discuss their holiday travel decisions

Dec. 6, 2025

By Nicolle Alvarez
Editor

This piece is part of a six-part in-depth reporting project about the holiday season.

Luggage crowds the bustling airport terminals, passengers clutch their boarding passes and the hum of announcements echoes overhead. All the while, holiday music streams from airport gift shops and a lavishly decorated Christmas tree fills the open space beyond the security checkpoint.

For some, this scene signals a holiday adventure. For others, it’s a test of patience.

Italian teacher Signor Raguseo said he has firsthand experience with the challenges and rewards of holiday air travel.

“If you are going to go during a busy time, then you just have to accept the delays.”

“As a teacher, my travel is limited to when I’m off from school,” Raguseo said. “If it were summer and things looked chaotic, I would rebook… but it’s not as easy to change plans during holiday break.”

Raguseo said he has no intention of traveling during the holidays.

“The last time that I flew over the holiday break, which was 15 years ago, my checked bag did not arrive at my final destination of Naples, Italy, until two days later. It was quite an inconvenience, and a reason why I am resigned to not travel during the holiday season,” Raguseo said.

Senior Julia Tadros said she will travel to Barranquilla, Colombia, in February, but she typically goes during the holidays to visit her mother’s family. She said it is her favorite time of year to make the trip.

“The way we celebrate [Christmas and New Year’s] there is way different than here,” Tadros said. “One of the main traditions is staying up all night on the 24th [of December] and opening gifts at 12, rather than [on] Christmas morning…. If I’m there during Christmas, I’ll stay till New Year’s too, and another tradition is to walk around the block with luggage, promising a good year.”

Tadros said the benefits of traveling over the holidays outweigh the drawbacks.

“If you have the opportunity to spend Christmas in a whole different country, I would,” Tadros said. “If you are going to go during a busy time, then you just have to accept the delays.”

FACT BOX BY ZAHARA CHOWDHURY This fact box represents the responses of 101 students. Survey results were collected using Google Forms between Nov. 17-19.

Unlike Tadros, senior Tyler Herman said he prefers spending the holidays at home. 

“I won’t travel over the holiday break because there’s no need. My grandparents live 5 minutes away, my cousins are 5 minutes away and my other cousin is 10 minutes away,” Herman said.

He said another reason he avoids holiday travel is the expense. 

“Save some money. Especially on Christmas, when you’re spending money on gifts, the plane ticket’s not really worth it,” Herman said. 

According to the travel website Upgraded Points, on average, travelers pay $100 more for flights during the holidays than they would at any other time of the year.

“If you don’t get the funding in time, you may not be able to travel. There will [also] be many delays, and it’s really crowded,” Herman said.

Senior Sayaka Martinez, who will be traveling to Tokyo and Kichijōji, Japan, over the break, said she will be taking a 14-hour direct flight with her mother and younger brother.

“I’m thrilled to experience New Year’s in Japan, because I know they go next level. I haven’t visited my family during the holidays since preschool, so I am just really excited to be able to spend that time with them,” Martinez said.

She said even though she is looking forward to the trip, there is nothing wrong with spending the holidays at home.