Economy Lot Parking

Week-long trip, under $12 a day

Economy Lot Parking at TYS (Lots C and G) targets the people trying to keep parking under control on 7–10 day trips, with a flat $11 per day rate. Both lots sit in the on-airport system for the Main Terminal, so you’re not dealing with an off-site vendor or extra stops.

The meter runs at $1 per 20 minutes up to the same $11 daily max, so short stays of 1–3 hours don’t get wildly expensive. If you’re dropping someone for a 2–3 hour delay-risky departure, this usually pencils out better than circling the terminal curb.

Shuttles run on a 24/7 schedule every 15 minutes from both Economy Lot C and Economy Lot G to the Main Terminal entrance. Figure 5–7 minutes of ride time plus the posted 15-minute headway, so build in a 15–20 minute buffer on top of your normal TSA timing.

Both lots are uncovered and fully open-air, so in July heat or a January freeze your car gets the full Knoxville weather treatment. If hail is in the forecast and you care about paint more than price, this is where you start looking at closer covered options instead of the $11 economy tier.

Meta-review sites aggregate over 4,000 user ratings and land the on-airport economy option around 4.4★, with frequent flyers calling it the “clear best choice” on cost while still being close enough that the shuttle doesn’t feel like a separate trip.

Economy Lot G sometimes shows as “Closed” on the official parking map, which pushes everyone into Lot C. Around Thanksgiving, Christmas, and UT home game weekends, people report crowding and limited spaces, so have a backup in mind if you’re rolling in after 10 p.m.

Regulars at TYS usually default to these economy lots for anything longer than a 2–3 day weekend, then just pad their schedule by one extra shuttle cycle. Practical move: check the airport’s parking status page before you leave; if G is closed and you’re hitting peak time, leave the house 20 minutes earlier than usual.