Oh the airports during holiday periods - it's not only passengers that cringe, but those who work at the airports as well. Flights are full, often delayed, and sometimes those freak weather storms sweep in - especially when every flight is full or overbooked. Thanksgiving travel in the United States may not be as heavily booked as some other years, but with reduced capacity from the airlines, it probably won't feel much different than other years.

It's time to look at a few aspects of travel during this Thanksgiving holiday week if you are traveling within the United States, or to a US destination...

I wrote and compiled the Holiday / High Season Air Travel Guide to cover some of the important aspects of traveling during this time of year. The topics covered are - searching for cheap airline tickets; travel with infants; travel with pets; online check-in; luggage fees and allowances; what kids can do at the airport; TSA Secure Flight; airports during peak travel periods; rule 240 and canceled/ delayed flights; what to do when flights cancel because of weather; travel health tips; and travel comfort tips. Hope it helps make your holiday travels a bit easier.

SeatGuru decided to take a look at which 5 airports in the United States are the best to get stuck in. So if you are stranded at an airport, these are the best for a bad situation.

This one is ending soon - November 23 - but is pretty close to the very last minute for booking a Thanksgiving airfare.

Airfares are traditionally high during this travel period, so some of the prices seem particularly decent with this sale on United Airlines.

Sample airfares - roundtrip airfares include - Buffalo, NY / Richmond, VA $208, and Lansing, MI  /  Washington, D.C. $247.

A bit of an oddball story in air travel - unusual carry-on luggage.

A man was stopped by US customs for his carry-on - a bunch of live lizards! The Associated Press reported this story, but a big question remains...if the passenger was only caught with the lizards in Los Angeles after returning from Australia, exactly how did he make it on a long haul flight without the live luggage being noticed on board?

Lots of discounted airline tickets and vacation packages are on sale right now- too many to list so many are posted in the Air Travel Forum. Some of the airfare specials on sale this week...

American Airlines holiday airfares. One way airfares now start at $50 based on roundtrip purchase.

SAS Europe Sale. Book by December 7. Travel dates - January 11 - March 25, 2010.
Sample Airfare -  one way airfare (roundtrip purchase is required) - Chicago / Moscow $285.

Southwest Airlines 2010 Vacations. Book by December 11.

Frontier Airlines sale. Book by November 23. One way airfares start at $49. Travel dates continue through March 10, 2010. Several blackout dates in November/December and January. Sample one way airfares from Denver start at $49. Several airlines are matching this deal.

Hawaii flight and hotel from $399. "Get a complete trip that includes a flight to Oahu, Maui, or Kauai and a 3-night, upscale hotel stay from $399*. Longer stays are available. Travel on select dates, Nov. 9-Dec. 10, 2009; Jan. 11-25, 2010."

Don't forget to check the Air Travel Forum - lots of airfare specials/airline promotions are listed, as are plenty of opinions!

Airfare Travel Deals this Week - Cheap Airline Tickets

image from the public domain