Inside Burbank Airport’s $1.3 Billion New Terminal: An Exclusive Tour
PYNN’d News Exclusive | Fairytale written by Pynnderella
My glass slipper may be off, but my Pynn is always down... now, let's get into it.
I Got an Exclusive Look Inside Burbank Airport’s $1.3 Billion New Terminal and Took My Questions Straight to the Tarmac
BURBANK, Calif. — LAX, don't take this personally, but some of us have been loyal to Hollywood Burbank Airport for a reason. The convenience, the smaller-airport feel and the ability to get through the travel experience without feeling like you've entered a city within a city have made Burbank a favorite for plenty of Southern California travelers. So when I received an exclusive tour of its brand-new terminal with Tyron Hampton, president of the Burbank-Glendale-Pasadena Airport Authority, and his office, I had questions. I wanted to see what was changing, what travelers could look forward to, and whether this airport could grow without losing the personality that made so many of us love it in the first place.
The tour gave PYNN’d News access while construction was still underway. There were unfinished areas and work continuing around us, offering a look at the terminal before the final touches were complete and the traveling public could experience the finished space. That behind-the-scenes access made the visit particularly interesting: we were seeing the vision take shape rather than simply walking through a polished building after opening day.
The project, known as Elevate BUR, represents an investment of approximately $1.3 billion in a new, 355,000-square-foot passenger terminal. It replaces the airport's aging terminal complex, whose original facilities date back to 1930.
The new building retains the airport's 14 gates while providing substantially more room for ticketing, security screening, passenger waiting areas, baggage handling and other airport operations. The replacement was driven in part by federal aviation safety requirements involving the distance between terminal buildings and runways, with seismic safety and accessibility also built into the project. The City of Burbank's project overview details the safety and accessibility requirements behind the development.
And yes, the bathrooms deserve their own moment. One of the details that caught my attention was the luxury feel of the new restrooms. They look and feel considerably more contemporary than what travelers have been used to at the old facility, fitting the overall design direction of the new terminal. Airports may not be everyone's favorite place to spend time, but thoughtful amenities make a difference when you're arriving early, waiting on a flight or coming home after a long trip. The new space brings a more polished passenger experience to an airport that has traditionally won people over with convenience rather than grand scale.
The shopping and dining plans add another layer. The terminal's retail lineup includes MAC & Jo Malone, along with other shops carrying travel essentials, gifts and specialty items. Food and beverage options include Jones Coffee, Starbucks, Guy Fieri's Flavortown, Border Grill, Jet Tila's Asian Table and other concepts, with a mix of familiar names and local operators. A bookstore and café-style stops bring the kind of browsing and coffee break options travelers appreciate before boarding. The airport's official dining and shopping directory lists its current concessions and locations.
For me, seeing those amenities during construction was part of the fun. You could look around and imagine how the building would feel once everything was finished, staffed and operating. The project was clearly designed to give passengers more breathing room and more choices, while maintaining the same 14-gate footprint that keeps Burbank recognizable to its regular travelers.
But I didn't come on this tour just to admire the finishes. I wanted to talk about what a bigger airport means for the people who live around it, too.
I asked Hampton if the new terminal would ruin the sweet little honeycomb hideout that Burbank Airport has become for those of us who find LAX overly crowded. His answer spoke directly to the balance at the center of the project. He said the airport is now so beautiful that they don't want it to remain a hideout; they want more people to come and experience it, while still being treated with respect and preserving its personality through hospitality.
That answer stayed with me because it gets to the real question behind a major upgrade. A new terminal can bring modern design, improved systems and more comfortable spaces, but the experience people remember often comes down to how they are treated. Burbank has built a reputation among travelers who value an airport that feels manageable and personal. Growing its appeal without turning that atmosphere into a casualty of expansion is a meaningful challenge.
I also brought up the noise complaints that have come from neighboring residents over the years. Aircraft noise has long been a community issue around Hollywood Burbank Airport, and the airport has documented its efforts to reduce noise impacts through quieter aircraft, noise rules and residential sound-insulation programs. During our conversation, Hampton discussed how newer, quieter aircraft factor into the airport's future and the potential to accommodate larger aircraft. Aircraft capacity can affect how many passengers travel on a flight, although the number of seats and tickets available depends on the aircraft and airline configuration. The airport's noise-monitoring information provides further context on the ongoing effort to address noise impacts.
That conversation was important because the airport's neighbors are part of the story, even when the focus is on a beautiful new building. The goal is to make travel better while continuing to take community concerns seriously. Modernizing the terminal addresses long-standing safety requirements, and quieter aircraft can help reduce noise impacts, but the relationship between an airport and the surrounding neighborhoods remains something that requires ongoing attention.
For the interview, I asked Hampton to meet me out on the tarmac. We took the conversation there, with the airfield around us, instead of keeping it inside the terminal. It felt like the right setting for a discussion about the future of an airport: you could see the operation beyond the building and talk about what the changes would mean for the people flying in and out of it. That was one of my favorite parts of the visit, getting to ask the questions that mattered to me in a setting that made the conversation feel immediate.
Hollywood Burbank Airport officially opened the new terminal to passengers on October 13, 2026, marking a major milestone for a project years in the making. Travelers now have a larger facility with modernized screening, more spacious passenger areas, new dining and retail options, and a terminal designed to meet current safety standards. The airport continues to operate with 14 gates, preserving a familiar part of the experience even as the building itself changes.
I left the tour thinking about that balance: the beautiful bathrooms, the shops and coffee stops, the improved safety design, the construction still happening around us during our visit, and my conversation with Hampton on the tarmac. Burbank has a chance to welcome more travelers without losing the thoughtful hospitality that made it a favorite in the first place. As someone who has happily chosen it over the LAX experience more than once, I’ll be watching to see how that promise plays out.
The culture moves quick, but my Pyn is quicker.
Pynnderella, The Fairytale Connoisseur
