Holiday travel was made worse than usual as thousands to flights were grounded due to severe weather conditions and flight crews calling out sick due to the surge of COVID-19.

Stacey Sunday, Director of Communications at Reno-Tahoe International Airport suggests travelers "make sure their cellphone is charged so that you are getting airline alerts in case anything changes.  I recommend you bring snacks just in case lines are long and you're getting hungry," she says

Despite the delays, some people were able to make it to their destination.  "For me to be able to be here to share that with them. It's the best Christmas gift that I could get to," Mary Beth Wetzel, says. 

Nearly 2,000 of the 5,000 affected flights were in the US.