With spring break travel around the corner and staffing shortages with the Transportation Security Administration, an Illinois Valley based travel agency is urging residents to prepare for longer airport wait times and full flights.

Georgia Brown, an agent with Ottawa Travel and Cruise, said she’s been telling callers to expect significant delays compared to previous years, with airport arrival times increasing well beyond traditional recommendations.

“What used to be an hour to an hour and a half has turned into two hours, then three,” Brown said. “Now we’re telling people three hours for domestic flights and up to four or five hours for international. It’s insane.”

Brown said ongoing staffing shortages with TSA due to the partial government shutdown paired with high travel demand are contributing to longer security lines and delays at airports across the country.

“Some of these airports are seeing waits of several hours, and people are missing flights,” Brown said. “People are still traveling because they booked their trips months ago. Nobody knew this was going to happen.”

Brown recommends arriving at the airport as early as possible or even the night before for early morning departures.

“I go up the night before myself so I don’t have to worry about traffic or unexpected issues,” she said. “You’re better off sitting there waiting than missing your flight.”

Brown also strongly encourages travelers to look into travel insurance, just in case.

“That’s the best waste of money you’ll ever spend,” she said. “You hope you never have to use it, but if something happens, you’ll be glad you have it.”

While the situation may be somewhat unavoidable, Brown said preparation is ultimately the best and only way to avoid complications if you’re flying in the next week or two.

“We’re all at the mercy of the system right now,” she said. “There really aren’t any easy answers unfortunately, just plan ahead and give yourself plenty of time.”

Delays and warfare aren’t necessarily keeping travelers from hitting the skies, however. One travel agent said business has been brisk despite fuel costs, delays and conflict.

Erin Foster, manager at Travel Connections in Peru, said travelers today are accustomed to a degree of worldwide upheaval and aren’t easily dissuaded by global events, fuel prices or travel cautions.

“This has been one of the busiest first quarters we’ve had since the post-pandemic rebound,” Foster said. “We’re not seeing any hesitation from our clients when it comes to booking, whether it’s Europe, Mexico, Caribbean, which all continue to be in very, very high demand.”

While some domestic destinations (led by Alaska) are popular, Foster said demand for international trips is strong and isn’t merely limited to Europe. In addition to a sold-out northern Italy group tour in May, Travel Connections has a sold-out group tour of Egypt departing in November.

“There are always global events taking place and, of course, safety is always on top of people’s minds. I think that’s why it’s important that travelers are working with professional travel advisers: We’re able to provide real-time, verified information to help people make from informed decisions rather than just reacting to headlines or social media.”