Airport officials reminding travelers to plan ahead

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ) -

Airport officials are reminding travelers to plan ahead through the holiday season to make sure they board their flights on time.

"Historically Christmas and New Year's isn't quite as busy as maybe Thanksgiving," said Mark Howell with TSA. "But airports will still see more traffic than usual."

Howell said travelers should get to the airport at least two hours before their scheduled departure to get through security and to their gate. He said it's a good idea to factor in time to find parking at the airport as well because parking lots can fill up quickly.

"Make sure your bags are good to go through the security checkpoints as well," Howell said. "No pocket knives, no large liquids, nothing that could slow down that process."

Howell said another popular item in carry-on luggage around the holidays is wrapped gifts. Those can sound the alarm for extra screening too.

"The best thing to do is wait until you get to your destination to wrap those gifts," Howell said. "A lot of times those will sound an alarm then security has to tear into those for an extra security screening."