Flying private from New York to Florida: which airport should you use?

Most people flying private from New York to Florida think about the destination city and let the operator pick the airport. That works for most of the year. In winter, and especially in early 2027, the airport is worth choosing yourself. Southeast Florida has seven airports for business jets within about 75 miles of each other, and they differ in the hours they keep, the jets they accept and the restrictions that can close them.

The method is simple. Start with the airport nearest where you are staying, then check three things: the runway fits the aircraft, customs is open if the trip continues abroad, and nothing closes the airport that week.

The short version

• Palm Beach has a runway closure ahead. The FAA’s construction report lists DJT’s 10,001-foot main runway as closed from February 1 to July 31, 2027. Flights move to a 6,931-foot runway, with possible delays, right through the season.
• Presidential TFRs restrict Palm Beach. When the President is in residence, private jets into DJT must come through a TSA screening gateway. Teterboro and Westchester are both gateways, but you must register 24 hours ahead.
• Miami usually means Opa-locka. Miami International needs prior permission three hours before arrival and turns away wingspans over 78 feet. Opa-locka is 30 minutes from Miami Beach.
• Some limits are absolute. Naples is closed to dual-gear aircraft over 75,000 lb, and Key West’s FAA data says no operations from 11 pm to 7 am.
• Customs hours vary widely. From 24 hours at Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood to Thursday to Monday only at Boca Raton. That matters only if the trip continues abroad.

Which Florida airport is closest to where I’m going?

For most trips the answer is one of six:

• Palm Beach and West Palm Beach: DJT, the former PBI, renamed and recoded in 2026.
• Boca Raton and Delray Beach: Boca Raton (BCT).
• Fort Lauderdale: Fort Lauderdale Executive (FXE), or the airline airport, Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood (FLL).
• Miami Beach and Aventura: Miami-Opa Locka Executive (OPF). Miami-Dade County puts it 30 minutes from Miami Beach and 35 from downtown.
• Naples: Naples Municipal (APF), about four miles from Fifth Avenue South.
• Orlando: Orlando Executive (ORL) for downtown and Winter Park, and Orlando Sanford (SFB) or Orlando International (MCO) for the north side and the parks.

Further up the Treasure Coast, Stuart (SUA) serves Jupiter Island and Vero Beach (VRB) serves Vero. On the Gulf side, Sarasota Bradenton (SRQ) serves Sarasota. The map and table below compare all fifteen.

What is happening to the Palm Beach runway?

The main runway at DJT is being rebuilt, and the FAA’s Q2 2026 construction outlook sets out three phases:

Phase	Dates	What closes
1	September 1, 2026 to January 31, 2027	Runways 10L/28R and 14/32 closed Monday to Thursday nights, 11 pm to 6 am. The FAA notes the field is “effectively closed” to business jets during those hours.
2	February 1 to July 31, 2027	Runway 10L/28R, the 10,001-foot main runway, closed continuously. Operations move to 14/32, 6,931 feet, with “departure and arrival delays possible”.
3	August 1 to September 30, 2027	Night closures again, Monday to Thursday, 11 pm to 6 am.

The report says its dates are “not for operational use” and can change, and local news has reported the first phase starting in October rather than September. Check the current notices for your dates.

What it means for you: the operator has to confirm that your aircraft can use the 6,931-foot runway at its planned weight, and arrivals may be slower at the busiest times. For a Palm Beach trip between February and July 2027, Boca Raton, about 21 nautical miles south, is the alternative to ask about.

How do presidential TFRs affect a private flight to Palm Beach?

They close DJT to most private flights unless the aircraft has been screened at a gateway airport. When the President is in Palm Beach, the FAA sets a temporary flight restriction with a 10-nautical-mile inner ring and a 30-nautical-mile outer ring, from the surface to 17,999 feet. The FAA’s pilot brief for the 2025 to 2026 season sets the rules for private jets:

1. Arrive from a gateway. Inbound screening is at Westchester (HPN), Teterboro (TEB), Washington Dulles (IAD), Orlando (MCO) and Fort Lauderdale (FLL), with no stop on the way.
2. Register 24 hours ahead. The operator registers with TSA at least 24 hours before departure, and TSA screens between 8 am and 5 pm local time.
3. Depart from a gateway terminal. Departures are screened at the DJT FBOs.

For a New York client, that is less trouble than it sounds, because the flight leaves from a gateway anyway. The practical limits are the 24-hour registration and the screening hours. A late-evening departure from Teterboro may not fit, and a same-day booking will not.

The county’s figures show the effect on the airport: 630 operations on an ordinary day in March 2025, against 338 on a day the President was in residence. In September 2026 the FAA also proposed permanent special air traffic rules for the airspace around DJT. It was a proposal when this page was published.

Should I fly into Miami International?

Usually not. Miami International accepts private jets, but its general aviation ramp needs prior permission three hours before every arrival, has a single FBO, and bars aircraft with a wingspan over 78 feet. Opa-locka has an 8,002-foot runway and five FBOs listed in the FAA data, and Miami-Dade says it charges no landing fees. It is where most Miami trips go. Our Teterboro to Miami guide has the detail. The G20 leaders’ summit meets at Trump National Doral, 3.2 nautical miles from Miami International, on December 14 and 15, 2026; what private jets should expect that week.

Which airports have limits that rule out a jet?

Three on this list have limits that can rule out a particular aircraft or time:

• Naples (APF): closed to aircraft over 75,000 lb maximum gross weight with dual-wheel landing gear, which rules out the largest business jets.
• Key West (EYW): the FAA data says “NO OPS 2300-0700”, and only 4,801 feet of runway is available for landing. Customs is closed on Sundays.
• Miami International: the 78-foot wingspan limit on the general aviation ramp, above.

Two more have weight limits that need prior permission: Fort Lauderdale Executive and Stuart for aircraft heavier than the runway is rated for, and Orlando Executive for aircraft over 100,000 lb.

Does it matter which airport has customs?

Only if the trip continues abroad. A flight from New York to Florida is domestic. But many Florida trips end with a hop to the Bahamas or the Caribbean, and the flight back into the US must land where CBP is open. The hours differ more than people expect:

• Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood (FLL): the general aviation facility is open 24 hours.
• Fort Lauderdale Executive (FXE): 8 am to 11:30 pm. The customs ramp is closed to arriving aircraft from midnight to 8 am.
• Palm Beach (DJT): 9 am to 7 pm, and CBP needs at least four hours’ notice before departure from the foreign airport.
• Boca Raton (BCT): Thursday to Monday only, 10:30 am to 6:30 pm.
• Key West (EYW): 8 am to 8 pm, Monday to Saturday.

Flying private internationally explains the eAPIS manifest and what happens on arrival.

How Jake works

Jake works out the arrival airport with each client directly, starting from where you are staying and what makes the trip easiest door to door, and names it in the quote with the reason. Most of the aircraft used are US-based, though that is a pattern rather than a rule.

Sources

• FAA, Q2 2026 Airport Construction Impact Report, PBI, page 89.
• FAA, proposed special air traffic rules near DJT, 91 FR 56380, September 2, 2026; 2025 to 2026 PBI POTUS pilot brief; Palm Beach County Department of Airports, TFR briefing, November 6, 2025.
• CBP general aviation fact sheets: Palm Beach, Fort Lauderdale Executive, Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood.
• Boca Raton Airport Authority, noise procedures and customs; Miami-Dade Aviation Department, Opa-locka.
• FAA Chart Supplement data via AirNav, effective October 29, 2026, for each airport’s runways and remarks, for example KDJT, KMIA, KAPF and KEYW.
• Flight times and prices: our Palm Beach, Miami and Naples route guides.