Savannah Airport (SAV): Flying In for Hilton Head

Island Head Transportation meets flights at the Savannah airport and drives you to your rental on Hilton Head, and takes you back for your flight home; Silver Oak runs shuttles too. Every other way to make the trip, from a rental car to Uber, is compared on Savannah airport to Hilton Head.

Despite the name, the Savannah/Hilton Head International Airport is in Georgia, on the west side of Savannah where I-95 meets Airways Avenue. It took the island’s name because so many of its passengers are going there. From the terminal it is about 39 miles to the bridges onto Hilton Head, 50 minutes without traffic, and about 48 miles and an hour and ten minutes to Coligny and the beaches at the south end.

Most drivers take I-95 north into South Carolina to exit 8, then US 278 east through Bluffton and over the bridges. Summer Saturdays, when most vacation rentals change over, are the slow time to arrive. Hilton Head also has its own small airport, on the island: see Hilton Head airport, and the closest airport to Hilton Head for how the two compare. Directions to Savannah/Hilton Head International Airport from the island are the same in reverse: US 278 west to I-95, south to exit 104, and follow the signs on Airways Avenue.

Nine airlines fly nonstop into Savannah, three times as many as fly to the island’s airport, which is why it usually has more choice of times and fares. Seasonal routes mostly run from spring to fall; check the airline for the dates. City-by-city options, including flights into the island airport, are on flights to Hilton Head.

Savannah airport parking is $2 an hour in every lot, with the daily rates above. Islanders flying out for a week usually take the $7 surface lots; the terminal garage is the one to pick in the rain or with small children. Meeting someone? Wait free in the cell phone lot until they have their bags, then pull up at the curb. Parts of the garages close for maintenance from time to time, so check the airport’s parking page before you leave home.

Arrivals come down to baggage claim on the lower level. The rental car counters are in baggage claim too, and the cars are in the covered garage next to the terminal. Uber and Lyft pick up at the north entrance of baggage claim, and taxis wait on the lower level outside it. Live arrivals and departures are on the airport’s flight status page; when several flights land together, bags can take a while, so a pre-booked driver will usually track your flight.

For departures, allow the full hour from Hilton Head plus your airline’s check-in time, and more on a summer Saturday or a weekday evening, when the bridges off the island back up.

There is not much to a Savannah airport map: one terminal, with ticketing upstairs, baggage claim and the rental cars below, and a single concourse beyond security laid out like a Savannah town square, with a clock, benches and rocking chairs. It is a short walk from the curb to any gate, and security has PreCheck and CLEAR lanes. The food is mostly local, Leopold’s Ice Cream among it, though most of it closes early, which matters on a late delay.

The Savannah airport code is SAV (ICAO KSAV). It is the same airport whether a booking site calls it Savannah, Savannah/Hilton Head or Savannah International. The island’s own airport is HHH, a different place 45 miles away, so check the code before you book.