Flights to Savannah/Hilton Head International Airport (SAV)
SAV is 10 miles northwest of downtown Savannah with service from Delta, American, Southwest, United, and Allegiant. FareOptic compares all carriers to find the cheapest fare for your Savannah trip.
Flights to Savannah (SAV)
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Why Visit Savannah?
America's most intact colonial city plan, SCAD's creative transformation, live oaks and Bonaventure, and Tybee Island's Georgia coast seafood
Savannah's 22 Historic Squares -- The Most Intact Example of Colonial American Urban Planning in the United States
James Oglethorpe's 1733 Grid Plan, 2.5 Square Miles of National Historic Landmark District, and the Live Oaks with Spanish Moss That Define Southern AtmosphereSavannah's historic district (2.2 square miles, designated a National Historic Landmark District in 1966, containing 22 of the original 24 squares planned by General James Oglethorpe in 1733) is the most intact example of colonial American city planning in the United States and one of the finest examples of 18th-century urban design in the Western Hemisphere. Oglethorpe's plan (developed before the founding of the Georgia colony) was revolutionary: a modular grid in which each ward contained a central square surrounded by lots for civic buildings (churches, schools) and residential lots, with the squares serving as community gathering places, militia drill grounds, and market areas. The plan allowed the city to grow by adding new wards (each with its own square) as population expanded -- 24 wards with 24 squares were eventually built (22 survive today; two were destroyed for road and building construction in the 20th century). The squares today are shaded by massive live oak trees draped with Spanish moss -- a combination that produces the most atmospheric urban streetscape in the American South and is Savannah's defining visual identity.
The Spanish Moss of Savannah -- What It Is, Whether It's Actually Harmful to the Trees, and Why It's Not Spanish and Not Moss
Spanish moss (Tillandsia usneoides) is neither Spanish nor moss -- it's an epiphytic bromeliad (in the pineapple family, Bromeliaceae) native to the Americas from the US Southeast to Argentina. It grows on the surfaces of live oak branches by absorbing water and nutrients from the air and rain (not from the host tree), anchoring itself with tiny root-like holdfasts that do not penetrate the bark or extract nutrients from the tree. The belief that Spanish moss kills trees is a persistent but inaccurate folk understanding: Spanish moss does not damage healthy trees. It can become heavy enough on weakened or dying trees to contribute to branch failure, but this is a symptom of tree stress, not its cause. The name 'Spanish moss' reflects 18th-century French-Spanish colonial rivalry in the Gulf Coast: French settlers initially called it 'Spanish beard' (barbe espagnol) as a derogatory term for their Spanish rivals; Spanish settlers responded by calling it 'French hair' (cabello francés). The French name stuck in English as 'Spanish moss.' It grows throughout the Southeast US wherever live oaks, bald cypresses, and other suitable host trees provide branch surface area in humid climates -- Savannah's combination of live oaks and coastal humidity makes it one of the most dramatic Spanish moss landscapes in the US.
SCAD -- Savannah College of Art and Design and the Creative Economy That Transformed Savannah After 1978
14,000 Students, 70+ Historic Buildings Restored by One University, and the Art School That Became Savannah's Largest EmployerSavannah College of Art and Design (SCAD, founded 1978 by Richard Rowan and Paula Wallace, enrolled 14,000+ students from 100+ countries) is simultaneously Savannah's largest employer, its most significant historic preservation force, and the primary driver of the city's creative economy and cultural scene. SCAD's founding story is inseparable from Savannah's urban revitalization: when SCAD was established in 1978, Savannah's historic district was severely dilapidated -- the 2.5 square miles of antebellum and Victorian architecture that define the city's tourism appeal today were largely abandoned, deteriorating, and in some cases scheduled for demolition. SCAD purchased derelict historic buildings (a Romanesque Revival armory, a Beaux-Arts railroad depot, a Gothic Revival church, warehouses, hotels) and restored them as academic buildings -- spending approximately $1 billion on historic restoration since 1978. The university now occupies 70+ historic buildings in the Savannah Historic District, making it the largest institutional historic preservationist in Georgia. SCAD's cultural impact: the SCAD Museum of Art (in the restored 1853 Central of Georgia Railroad depot, one of the finest surviving antebellum railroad structures in the US), the SCAD Savannah Film Festival (one of the top 10 college film festivals in the US, October), and the concentration of SCAD-trained designers, filmmakers, and artists who have remained in Savannah after graduation.
How SCAD Changed Savannah -- The Economic and Physical Transformation of a Declining Port City Into a Creative Tourism Destination Over 45 Years
Savannah in 1978 was a city in post-industrial decline: the cotton trade that made it the wealthiest city in antebellum Georgia had collapsed; the port had been mechanized and required far less labor; the historic district had been depopulated by white flight and urban renewal (which destroyed some historic fabric, though less than in other Southern cities). Tourism was minimal -- the historic district's architecture was recognized by preservationists but largely unknown to the general public. SCAD's restoration of historic buildings began bringing student populations and associated retail and restaurant demand into the historic district neighborhoods. The 1994 publication of 'Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil' by John Berendt (which described Savannah's idiosyncratic social world and used Bonaventure Cemetery and Savannah's squares as its setting) became a New York Times bestseller for 216 weeks and drove an enormous increase in literary tourism. The combination of SCAD's creative economy, the 'Midnight' book tourism, and Savannah's intrinsic architectural appeal created the modern tourism industry: approximately 15 million visitors annually today, with tourism the city's primary economic driver. Direct flights to SAV from New York and Boston (established by Delta and JetBlue in the 2000s-2010s) enabled the destination to draw high-value Northeast tourists who might otherwise not have reached the city.
Bonaventure Cemetery -- The Most Beautiful and Most Literarily Significant Cemetery in the American South
100 Acres of Live Oaks Over the Wilmington River, John Muir's 1867 Camp, and the Setting That Made 'Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil' a Literary PhenomenonBonaventure Cemetery (100 acres on a bluff over the Wilmington River, 3 miles east of downtown Savannah, established 1846 on the grounds of the former Bonaventure Plantation) is consistently ranked among the most beautiful cemeteries in the United States -- a landscape of massive live oaks draped with Spanish moss forming a canopy over Victorian-era mausoleums, obelisks, and statuary above the tidal marshes of the Wilmington River. The cemetery's literary significance: naturalist John Muir camped here in October 1867 during his 1,000-mile walk from Indiana to the Gulf of Mexico (recounted in his posthumously published 'A Thousand-Mile Walk to the Gulf') and wrote ecstatically about the cemetery's landscape as one of the most beautiful places he had encountered. More recently, John Berendt's 1994 book 'Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil' used Bonaventure as a central setting -- the famous photograph of the 'Bird Girl' statue (a 1936 sculpture by Sylvia Shaw Judson that appeared on the book's cover) was taken in Bonaventure. The original Bird Girl was removed to the Telfair Museum of Art after the book's publication drove such intense visitor attention that the family requested its relocation.
John Muir's 1867 Savannah -- What the Father of the National Parks System Found in Bonaventure Cemetery and Why He Stayed 5 Days Among the Dead
John Muir arrived in Savannah in October 1867, nearly penniless and seriously ill with malaria contracted in Florida (the malaria had forced him to abandon his planned walk to the Gulf ahead of schedule). With no money for a hotel and friends not having received his forwarded mail and funds, Muir spent five days sleeping in Bonaventure Cemetery, sustained by bread bought with his last coins and the cemetery's fresh water. Far from being a grim experience, Muir's five days in Bonaventure became one of the most rhapsodic passages in his writings: he described the live oak canopy, the Spanish moss, the mockingbirds, and the tidal river as a synthesis of wild nature and human art that transcended either alone. The experience shaped his thinking about the relationship between death and nature -- the cemetery's integration of human graves into a living ecosystem prefigured his later arguments for wilderness preservation as a human and spiritual need. The Muir connection is not well-publicized in mainstream Savannah tourism but is meaningful to naturalists and conservation historians: a marker near the cemetery's Muir tree identifies his approximate camping location.
Tybee Island -- Savannah's Beach, 18 Miles East, and the Most Accessible Atlantic Coast Beach in the Deep South
The Georgia Coast's Premier Beach Town, a 19th-Century Lighthouse, and the Freshest Shrimp and Crab in the SoutheastTybee Island (population 3,000 permanent residents, 18 miles east of downtown Savannah via the Islands Expressway and US-80) is Savannah's beach destination and the closest Atlantic Coast beach to the city. Unlike Florida's Gulf Coast beaches (white quartz sand, clear emerald water), Tybee's beach reflects its Georgia coast location: golden-tan sand (a mix of quartz and shell fragments), warmer and slightly more turbid Atlantic water (Atlantic coastal current bringing nutrients and sediment), and an ecosystem defined by maritime forest, salt marshes, and tidal creeks. Tybee's beach is 3 miles long; the North Beach area (near the 1867 lighthouse) is the quieter section; the South Beach (near Tybrisa Street) has the island's restaurants, bars, and vacation rental concentration. The Tybee Island Light Station (the lighthouse and the 1812 keeper's cottage -- some of the oldest structures in Georgia) is open for climbing (145 steps, panoramic ocean and marsh views). The Back River beach (west side of the island, on the Back River inlet) is the calmer swimming option at low tide.
Georgia's Gray Shrimp and Why Tybee Island's Seafood Is Different from Florida's Gulf Seafood
Tybee Island and the Georgia coast are the center of the Georgia gray shrimp (Litopenaeus setiferus, also called white shrimp) fishery -- one of the most productive and historically significant shrimp fisheries in the Southeast United States. Georgia gray shrimp are caught in the coastal marshes, tidal rivers, and nearshore Atlantic waters of the Georgia Bight (the concave section of the Atlantic coast between Cape Hatteras and Cape Canaveral, where Georgia's complex tidal marsh system provides exceptional shrimp habitat). Tybee Island's seafood restaurants and the Savannah waterfront serve fresh Georgia gray shrimp typically within hours of harvest -- a notable difference from shrimp consumed inland, which is usually frozen and frequently imported from Southeast Asia. The shrimp and grits dish (a Low Country staple that originated in coastal South Carolina and Georgia) served in Savannah uses fresh Georgia shrimp when in season (May-December peak). Georgia blue crab (Callinectes sapidus) is the other iconic local seafood -- steamed whole crabs from the Georgia coast's tidal creek traps are a different culinary experience from the Dungeness crab of the Pacific Coast or the blue crab of the Chesapeake Bay, reflecting different saltwater salinity and temperature conditions.
How to Find Cheap Flights to Savannah
Spring (March-May) Is Savannah's Peak Season -- St. Patrick's Day Week Books Out Completely
Savannah hosts one of the largest St. Patrick's Day celebrations in the United States (second only to New York City by some measures, with 500,000+ attendees across the week of March 17). Hotel and flight prices for St. Patrick's Day week are extreme -- book 4-6 months ahead or avoid the week entirely. March-May generally is Savannah's best weather and peak tourist season; book SAV flights 6-10 weeks ahead for spring.
October and November Are Excellent Value Windows with Near-Perfect Weather
October-November brings Savannah's ideal weather (70-80°F/21-27°C, low humidity, sunny) with significantly smaller crowds than spring and lower prices. The SCAD Savannah Film Festival (October) adds cultural programming. Tybee Island is still swimmable through October (Atlantic water 70-75°F). Book 4-6 weeks ahead for fall travel.
SAV Is the Gateway to the ACE Basin, Beaufort SC, and the Sea Islands -- Rent a Car for the Region
Savannah's airport serves as the gateway to one of the most ecologically rich coastal regions in the US: the ACE Basin (Ashepoo-Combahee-Edisto Rivers, a 350,000-acre protected watershed in South Carolina), Beaufort SC (30 miles north, antebellum plantation architecture), Hilton Head Island (40 miles north), and the Georgia barrier islands (Cumberland Island National Seashore, accessible by ferry from St. Marys, 60 miles south). A rental car enables exploration far beyond the historic district.
Savannah Is Walkable -- The Historic District Requires No Car for the Core Experience
Downtown Savannah's 22 squares, River Street, Forsyth Park, City Market, and SCAD's buildings are all within walking distance (the historic district is about 1 mile north-south, 1.5 miles east-west). Tybee Island (18 miles) requires a car or rideshare. For a purely historic-district-focused visit, arriving by air at SAV and using Uber/Lyft plus walking is entirely practical without a rental car.
Airlines Flying to Savannah (SAV)
Delta Air Lines
ATL Hub Nonstop to SAV -- Delta's Dominant Savannah Service and the Fastest Connection to the World's Busiest HubDelta Air Lines is the primary carrier at Savannah/Hilton Head International Airport (SAV), operating ATL-SAV nonstop service with regional jets (typically CRJ-200/900 or ERJ-175). The ATL-SAV flight is under 1 hour -- making Savannah a convenient connection point for Delta passengers arriving on international flights at Atlanta. Delta also operates nonstop seasonal service from JFK, BOS, and LAX during peak travel periods. SkyMiles redemptions for SAV are among the lowest-cost domestic award options from the East Coast.
Key Routes
ATL to SAV (55m nonstop; JFK to SAV (2h 10m nonstop, seasonal; BOS to SAV (2h 30m nonstop, seasonal; LAX to SAV (5h nonstop, seasonal; MCO to SAV (1h 10m nonstop
American Airlines
CLT, DFW, and ORD Hub Connections to SAV -- American's Savannah Service for Mid-Atlantic, Southwest, and Midwest TravelersAmerican Airlines connects Savannah via its Charlotte (CLT), Dallas/Fort Worth (DFW), and Chicago O'Hare (ORD) hubs. CLT-SAV is the primary American route -- American Eagle regional jets provide frequent daily service connecting Savannah to American's transatlantic hub. DFW-SAV serves Texas and the Southwest; ORD-SAV serves the Chicago market and Midwest connections through O'Hare.
Key Routes
CLT to SAV (1h 30m nonstop; DFW to SAV (2h 40m nonstop; ORD to SAV (2h 20m nonstop; PHL to SAV (2h nonstop; MIA to SAV (1h 30m nonstop
Southwest Airlines
DEN, LAS, BWI, and MDW Connections to SAV -- Southwest's Low-Cost Savannah Service for Midwest and Mountain West TravelersSouthwest Airlines operates nonstop service from Denver (DEN), Las Vegas (LAS), Baltimore (BWI), Chicago Midway (MDW), and Nashville (BNA) to Savannah, with connections to the broader Southwest network. Southwest's entry into SAV has driven overall price competition on Savannah routes. The no-change-fee policy is particularly valuable for travelers booking Savannah vacations months in advance.
Key Routes
DEN to SAV (3h 30m nonstop; LAS to SAV (4h nonstop; BWI to SAV (2h 10m nonstop; MDW to SAV (2h 15m nonstop; BNA to SAV (1h 20m nonstop
United Airlines
EWR and IAD Hub Connections to SAV -- United's Savannah Service for New York and Washington DC TravelersUnited Airlines connects Savannah via Newark (EWR) and Washington Dulles (IAD), providing New York and Washington DC area access to Savannah. EWR-SAV is important for New York travelers who find SAV fares via United competitive with JFK-SAV or LGA-SAV options on Delta or American. United Express regional jets handle SAV flying.
Key Routes
EWR to SAV (2h 15m nonstop; IAD to SAV (1h 55m nonstop; ORD to SAV (via EWR or direct; DEN to SAV (via EWR or ORD
Things to Do in Savannah
Essential Info for Your Savannah Trip
State
Georgia
Airport
SAV -- Savannah/Hilton Head International (10 miles northwest of downtown)
Currency
USD -- US Dollar
Time Zone
EST (UTC-5) / EDT (UTC-4) in summer
St. Patrick's Day
One of the largest in the US. Week of March 17 -- hotel prices 3-5x normal. Book 4-6 months ahead or avoid.
Walkability
Historic district is fully walkable. Tybee Island (18 miles), Bonaventure Cemetery (3 miles) require car or rideshare.
Humidity
High in summer (July-August). Best weather October-May. Bring insect repellent for marsh/cemetery visits.
Emergency Number
911
Most Popular Airlines
Best Airlines for Domestic & International Routes
Frequently Asked Questions on Flights to Savannah
Everything you need to know about booking cheap flights to Savannah/Hilton Head International Airport (SAV)
What airport serves Savannah, Georgia?
Savannah/Hilton Head International Airport (SAV) is 10 miles northwest of downtown Savannah. Delta, American, Southwest, United, and Allegiant serve SAV. Delta's ATL connection is under 1 hour and provides the most frequent service. The airport is convenient -- 15-20 minutes from the historic district by car or rideshare.
What is Savannah known for?
Savannah is known for: (1) 22 historic squares in the most intact colonial American urban plan in the US; (2) SCAD (which restored 70+ historic buildings and drives the creative economy); (3) Bonaventure Cemetery (live oak and Spanish moss landscape, John Muir's 1867 camp, 'Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil' setting); (4) St. Patrick's Day (one of the largest US celebrations); and (5) Low Country cuisine, especially fresh Georgia gray shrimp and shrimp-and-grits.
When is the best time to visit Savannah?
Best overall: October-November (70-80°F, low humidity, SCAD Film Festival, fall foliage in the squares, Tybee Island swimmable through October). Spring (March-May) is the most popular but most expensive and crowded, especially around St. Patrick's Day (March 17 week -- avoid unless you want the festival). Avoid: July-August (90-95°F/32-35°C with high humidity, feels very hot). Winter (December-February) is mild (55-65°F/13-18°C) and quiet -- a peaceful off-season option.
Do I need a car in Savannah?
Not for the historic district -- downtown Savannah's 22 squares, River Street, Forsyth Park, and most restaurants are walkable. A car or rideshare is needed for Tybee Island (18 miles east), Bonaventure Cemetery (3 miles east of downtown), SAV airport (10 miles northwest), and day trips to Hilton Head, Beaufort SC, or Cumberland Island. Savannah has a free downtown shuttle (DOT) connecting the historic district to River Street and City Market.
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