37 Photos That Prove Travelling During The Christmas Rush Is Really Pleasant And Not At All Nightmarish

'Tis the season for bad traffic (fa-la-la-la-la la-la-la-la).

1934: Croydon Airport, London

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Passengers wait as the Imperial Airways aircraft headed for Brisbane, Australia is towed onto the runway.

1947: LaGuardia Airport, New York

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Military wives travelling with their babies arrive at LaGuardia Airport.

1954: Lockheed Airport, Burbank

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People line up to buy last-minute plane tickets on December 24.

1961: Heathrow Airport, London

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A typical December day.

1962: Gatwick Airport, London

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These travellers were delayed due to a fog.

1968: Logan International Airport, Boston

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Passengers at the American Airlines baggage claim.

1969: Logan International Airport, Boston

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Travellers embarking using the stairs of Pan Am's new Boeing 747.

1973: Berlin Tempelhof Airport

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Dense fog blanketed the airport on Christmas Day 1973, causing flight delays and cancellations.

1975: Logan International Airport, Boston

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Lines at the check-in counter.

1977: Gatwick Airport, London

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People resting on airport benches as they wait to board the Laker Airways Skytrain.

1978: O'Hare International Airport, Chicago

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Crowds at the United Airlines Terminal.

1982: Stapleton International Airport, Denver

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Passengers surrounded by luggage waiting for the airport to reopen on Christmas Day.

1987: Pearson International Airport, Toronto

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Delays caused by mechanical problems left Viasa Airlines passengers waiting for more than two days before the aircraft was replaced.

1988: Pearson International Airport, Toronto

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Travellers enduring long lines to check bags.

1989: Frankfurt am Main Airport

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Passengers scramble in front of a counter of a Turkish charter airline.

1990: Pearson International Airport, Toronto

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A flight from Pearson Airport to Fort Lauderdale was delayed for 12 hours.

1996: Vancouver International Airport

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Rows of lost luggage waiting to be claimed after hundreds of delayed and cancelled flights.

1997: Heathrow Airport, London

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Traffic congestion on the M4 motorway heading for Heathrow.

1998: Ninoy Aquino International Airport, Manila

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A woman struggling with her luggage as she clears customs.

2000: Ninoy Aquino International Airport, Manila

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Arriving passengers buying last-minute gifts at a duty free.

2001: Oakland International Airport

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Check-in took up to three hours, causing many missed flights due to the long waits.

2002: Stansted Airport, London

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Passengers await departure.

2003: Haneda Airport, Tokyo

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Crowds at a security check.

2004: Ninoy Aquino International Airport, Manila

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Some of the millions of overseas Filipino workers and foreigners arriving in Manila for Christmas.

2004: Cincinnati/Northern Kentucky International Airport

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A winter storm backed up flights for several days.

2005: Madrid Barajas Airport, Madrid

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A majority of flights from Madrid headed for South America were fully booked during the Christmas Rush of 2005.

2006: Denver International Airport

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Frustrated passengers negotiate for available seats with gate agents after several flights were cancelled due to two days of snow.

2008: San Francisco International Airport

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Some of the 63.9 million estimated US travellers heading home for the holidays waiting in line to clear security checks.

2009: Charles de Gaulle Airport, Paris

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Heavy snow disruptions caused 30% of flights to be cancelled on December 18, 2009. Some grounded passengers opted to stay in the airport.

2010: Schiphol Airport, Amsterdam

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Around 3,000 people were stranded and forced to stay the night after heavy snows in Western Europe.

2011: Dulles International Airport, Virginia

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US Customs and Border Protection officers process international air travellers through a secondary inspection.

2013: Gatwick Airport, London

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Flights were delayed and cancelled as the UK was hit by severe weather, causing flooding, power cuts and damage to transport systems.

2014: Dulles International Airport, Virginia

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An exasperated passenger waiting in line to check-in.

2015: Reagan National Airport, Virginia

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Travellers waiting to clear security.

2015: LaGuardia Airport, New York

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Yellow taxi cabs waiting for fares.

2016: O'Hare International Airport, Chicago

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Travellers at the TSA security line at one of the busiest hubs in the US.

2018: Sydney International Airport

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Lines of passengers waiting to check-in.