LAX holiday travel rush continues; 200K passengers expected daily

LOS ANGELES - The holiday traffic rush continues, as throngs of people go through the Los Angeles International Airport this week. The peak season has begun. LAX is expecting 200,000 passengers daily between Dec. 16 and Jan. 3, with vehicle traffic spiking by more than 10% this week, the week before Christmas. 

The surge at the airport has many stressed. Ruby Salvator Palmer flew out of LAX Monday. She spoke with LAX despite running late with an overweight bag. 

"Oh my gosh, I forgot my jacket," she said. In it, her passport to help her get home for the holidays.

PREVIOUS COVERAGE: LAX expecting 200,000 daily passengers during winter holiday travel rush period

Chris Smaling's supposed to be in Guatemala.

"I'm stuck her. I have no flight to Guatemala," he said. "I was trying to visit my parents for Christmas, trying to see family. I bet they're sad. They've got three other kids, they've got replacements. Don't buy discount travel." 

Other travelers have had a smoother go of it.

"It's not as bad as it can be," one traveler told FOX 11. "I've left out of LAX on the 23rd or the 24th. Absolute murder."

After Monday, Dec. 19, the two busiest travel days are Dec. 23 and Jan. 2. One tip to help with travel to LAX is to follow the Twitter account @FlyLAXstats, which has updates on parking availability and real drive times. 

Aside from that, the best tips to avoid a travel disaster remain the same as always: plan ahead and leave early.