Yes, you can smoke at Boise Airport (BOI) outdoors, on the sidewalks and parking areas around the terminal, well clear of the entrance doors. The terminal building itself is smoke-free from ticketing through to the gates, so a departing smoker steps outside first and clears the TSA checkpoint afterwards. BOI is a compact, single-terminal airport, which makes that round trip far quicker than it would be at a big connecting hub.
How Boise Airport Is Laid Out
BOI has one terminal building with two working concourses, B and C, both fed by the same central hall that holds ticketing, the TSA checkpoint and baggage claim. Departures sit on the second floor and arrivals, baggage claim and ground transportation on the first, with airport administration and lost and found on the third. A third concourse, Concourse A, is under construction: the Boise City Council approved a construction-manager contract in August 2025 for a programme running through 2029 that includes Concourse A with up to 10 new gates, a new baggage-handling system and two phases of improvements to the existing terminal.
Eight airlines serve Boise — Alaska, Allegiant, American, Delta, Frontier, Southwest, Sun Country and United — and the airport handled 5.2 million passengers in 2025, up from just under 4.99 million the year before. It is a busy regional airport rather than a sprawling hub, and the whole terminal is walkable end to end in a few minutes.
Where to Smoke Outside the Terminal
Smoking at BOI is an outdoor activity. The airport’s own Rules and Regulations permit smoking only in designated areas, and with the terminal interior smoke-free, that means the ground outside the building. Boise’s city code bars smoking within 20 feet of the entrances of buildings owned or managed by the City, and the airport terminal is a City of Boise facility — so walk clear of the doors before you light up rather than standing at the entrance.
The practical spots are the stretches of curb away from the terminal entrances on both the arrivals and departures levels, and the open walkways over by the parking garages. The airport does not publish a map of marked smoking spots, so the safe approach is simple: get well away from the doors, keep out of the way of the crowds at the curb, and use a proper receptacle for the butt.
Boise sits at about 2,700 feet on the edge of the high desert. Summer afternoons are hot and dry and make an outdoor cigarette pleasant; winter mornings drop below freezing with snow on the ground, and none of the outdoor areas is sheltered, so dress for it.
Concourse B
Smoking: Outdoors only — exit the terminal and move clear of the entrances. After security: The gates are smoke-free; every smoking spot is landside.
Concourse B holds most of the airport’s post-security food and shopping: the Idaho Tap House, Sawtooth Essentials, The Shop@Treasure Valley, Up and Away Fueled by Flying M Coffee, Wendy’s and a 24-hour Travel@Ease vending wall. The walk back to the central hall and out to the curb takes about five minutes at a normal pace.
Concourse C
Smoking: Outdoors only — exit the terminal and move clear of the entrances. After security: The gates are smoke-free; every smoking spot is landside.
Concourse C is the smaller wing, with the Boise Depot news and gift shop, Turas Flights & Bites for Idaho wine and Basque small plates, Form + Function coffee and a 24-hour hot-food vending machine. Both concourses funnel back to the same exits, so it makes no difference to a smoker which one your flight leaves from.
After Security
Every place you can smoke at BOI is before the TSA checkpoint. To smoke once you are airside, you have to leave the secure area entirely, step outside, and screen back in. The terminal is small enough that the walk itself barely registers — budget 25 to 35 minutes for the whole round trip and you will be back at the gate with time in hand.
There is one pre-security option worth knowing about if you want to combine a drink with a cigarette break: Treefort Outpost, on the landside part of the terminal, serves food and drink before the checkpoint, so you can eat, step out for a smoke, and only then commit to security.
If Boise is one leg of a longer itinerary through Salt Lake City or Denver, our guide to smoking during layovers covers how to judge whether a connection leaves you enough room to get outside and back, and the Salt Lake City airport page covers the rules at the far end.
E-Cigarettes and Vaping
Vaping and e-cigarettes follow the same rules as cigarettes at BOI: outdoors, away from the terminal entrances, never inside the building or at the gates. TSA allows vape devices and spare batteries in carry-on baggage only — they cannot travel in a checked bag — and using one on board an aircraft is prohibited by federal rule.
Summary
| Area | Smoking | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Terminal interior | No | Smoke-free from ticketing to the gates |
| Concourse B | No | No smoking room; exit and re-clear security |
| Concourse C | No | No smoking room; exit and re-clear security |
| Outside the terminal | Yes | Ground-level curbs and parking areas, clear of the entrance doors |
| Restaurants and bars | No | All indoor areas smoke-free |
| Vaping / e-cigarettes | Outdoor only | Same rules as cigarettes |
For USA airport smoking rules, state vape rules, lighter rules at TSA, and other federal/state info, see our USA smoking guide.