ORLANDO, Fla. — Hundreds of thousands of people are expected to pass through the Orlando International Airport this Memorial Day weekend. 

Memorial Day weekend marks the first major holiday since the enforcement of REAL ID on May 7.

MCO spokesperson Angela Starke says they are expecting a nearly 2% increase in travelers this year compared to 2024. The holiday travel period is measured from May 22 to May 27.

Data shared from airport employees says they are expecting about 173,900 people at the airport on Monday. When the period is over, they estimate nearly 981,000 people will have passed through MCO after the six days.

“We are prepared, we are fully staffed, we have customer service ambassadors on hand at the ready,” said Starke. “We have been working with our airlines, concessions, all of our partners to ensure that passengers have the smoothest journey possible.”

Starke recommends travelers arrive three hours before their flight if they plan on checking a bag, visit their website ahead of time to see what parking garages have space, and utilize MCO Reserve, which allows travelers to reserve a time to pass through security checkpoints.

Travelers tell Spectrum News parking has been their biggest battle so far.

“Right now it’s not as bad, but the traffic. I think they’re just getting in now, but later I’m sure it’s going to be really busy,” said Helene Hernandez.

Lawrence Salaam arrived to MCO from Ohio and says he got his REAL ID a week before his vacation, and wouldn’t have made his trip without it.

“We’d have to turn around,” said Salaam. “We’d have to turn around, then plan B.”

Signs are placed throughout MCO to remind travelers a REAL ID is required for domestic travel, however, you can present a valid passport instead.