People who live in cold climates and want to escape the snow, wind, ice, and chill of winter understandably will desire traveling to a sunny destination — and once that ticket is purchased for a flight to escape to the warmth of a tropical destination, the respite from freezing temperatures becomes a reality…
The Only Major Airport Which Offers Coat Check Service in the United States Is…
…but regardless of the transportation mode used to get to the airport, one must still brave the brutality of the frigid air — and that usually means lugging coats, scarves, gloves and other outer garments needed to keep warm not only to wear to and from the airport, but also to carry throughout much of the time spent in the warmer climate, which can be rather inconvenient and uncomfortable.
Enter Milwaukee Mitchell International Airport — officials of which announced in this official press release yesterday, Thursday, February 13, 2020 — and its boasting of being the only major airport in the United States which now offers a coat check service that allows passengers to check their coats prior to traveling to that warm weather location.
“We believe we’re the only major airport in the nation to offer coat check services, and it’s a great fit during our harsh winters,” said Brian Dranzik, who is the director of the airport. “Heavy winter coats can take up a lot of space in luggage. This new option allows travelers to wear their coats to the airport, leave them with a friendly attendant in the Summerfest Marketplace, and then claim them after landing back here at MKE.”
The coat check service is offered inside the newly opened Summerfest Marketplace store, which is located in the concession mall in the airport prior to the security checkpoint. That means that none of the outer garments to be checked will be screened.
The location is easily accessible to travelers using any of the concourses of the airport; and will be available to travelers on all flights, seven days per week. The cost is two dollars per day, with a maximum charge of ten dollars.
“Paradies Lagardère is excited to offer this innovative new service for travelers at MKE,” said Mike Barnes, who is the regional vice president of Paradies Lagardère, which is a retail partner of the airport. “We’re committed to developing solutions for both travelers and our airport partners that deliver ease, convenience and first-class experiences.”
Travelers arriving from international destinations — such as the Dominican Republic, Jamaica, and Mexico — will need to take a free shuttle from the International Arrivals Terminal to the Main Terminal to retrieve their coats.
Summary
The temperature in Milwaukee is ten degrees Fahrenheit at the time this article was written. Brr.
One traditional option for passengers who do not want to carry their coats while traveling to a warmer destination is storing them in a locker; and another option is to leave the belongings with a vendor who offers the service of storing luggage — but not all airports have these services; and they can cost more than the maximum limit of ten dollars for the coat check service offered by Milwaukee Mitchell International Airport.
If this service were available to me, I likely would not use it. I do not like wearing a coat while I am in a car; and I tend to be hot blooded, so I can take the cold weather rather well in short spurts — but this coat check service could be a convenient service at a reasonable cost for families and other passengers who would benefit from it.
Photograph ©2017 by Brian Cohen.
