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Construction and weather risks at 4 airports and routes this Thanksgiving

Thanksgiving travel 2026 faces construction and weather risks at JFK, LAX, Chicago O'Hare and Atlanta's west side — 4 of 7 trouble spots the Farmers' Almanac flags

Several of this Thanksgiving's travel hazards sit on the ground rather than in the air. A flight can land on schedule and still leave the person meeting it stuck in airport traffic. Road detours, a closed terminal or a tight connection can stretch a trip well after the wheels touch down.

The Farmers' Almanac has flagged seven places and routes as trouble spots for Thanksgiving travel 2026. This selection covers four of them, each with a link to air travel. They are John F. Kennedy International Airport in New York City, Los Angeles International Airport, Chicago O'Hare and Atlanta's west side. The almanac's other three items — Denver, I-95 and Lake Tahoe — fall outside this selection.

This is not a ranking of the most delayed airports. The almanac does not report on-time rates or minutes of delay. It points to two kinds of risk instead. One is construction that changes how people reach a terminal. The other is weather that can complicate travel during the holiday week.

The construction picture differs by city. In New York, the almanac cites the airport's official 2026 advisory on JFK's $19 billion redevelopment, which may bring delays, reroutes and closures on roads inside the airport. In Los Angeles, construction has shut Terminal 5, and the airport's terminal guide anticipates a 2028 reopening. On Atlanta's west side, a Georgia DOT reconstruction involves 19 bridges, ramp changes and added lanes. Substantial completion there is expected in 2030.

Weather adds a second layer. The almanac's outlook calls for colder conditions and scattered snow showers or flurries across the Great Lakes and Midwest. That matters for anyone with a connection in Chicago. Across much of the Southeast, the outlook favors mild, pleasant weather. Both calls come from the publication's own outlook, not from a forecast for any single day.

The key dates to plan around are Tuesday, November 24; Wednesday, November 25; Thanksgiving........

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