More Tips on How To Travel Without Loosing Your Mind
Vero’s posted some great tips on how to travel; I assume as the UK to USA flights for SXSW (yes that gig again) starts to prey on her mind, as it may well do on others. I’ve had a post here for a long time on surviving long-haul flights, but let me add some more tips on how to get through your flight (by lifting Vero’s categories).
Before You Fly
Register for your airline’s frequent flyer program, and check if they have a fast-track qualification program for their status levels.
Log onto the airline website, and consult Seatguru to get the seats in Cattle Class with the best legroom and facilities.
Servisair runs a number of lounges at airports, so for under £20 you can get a comfy seat and open bar before you fly.
Buy a really good set of headphones. This close to SXSW may I suggest a pair from Ultimate Ears? The Metro Fi 150 at £27, with £6 next day delivery from iHeadphones would be a good place to start.
Load up an iPod, PSP or other little media device with some films, TV shows and decent music.
Tie a bit of coloured ribbon on your suitcase to help you spot it on the luggage belt.
During The Flight
Make sure you have your passport, mobile phone, some cash, and a pencil and paper in your pockets during take-off and landing. If (big if) your plane crashes, you‘ll need these
Keep hydrated, a bottle of water from the drinks machine in the departure lounge is a good idea.
Take the occasional walk around the plane if you can to stretch your legs.
Be nice to the air stewardesses. If you;re nice to them, there’s every chance they’ll be nice to you.
After The Flight
Get out and leg it to Customs and Immigration. There’s a lot of people on your plane, and not as many officers as you would hope.
I still like to travel with everything in carry-on, which means no waiting in the luggage claim halls and you can head straight out for your connection. You can do a split here, and have the luggage in the hold for the transatlantic, and ignore re-checking it for the domestic leg. Your call!
If you can, grab some more water for any connecting flight and some carbs if possible.
The tip to leg it to Customs and Immigration is very much dependent on your arrival airport – I have come in to Washington to find only two desks open. However if you know your airport is properly staffed, and you’ve got hold baggage, then take it easy.
Last time over we flew into Calgary, and as we were traveling with our infant daughter we waited until pretty well last to get off the plane. An unhurried walk from the plane, a bit of a queue at immigration, but we got through to find all the mugs who’d rushed through standing around waiting for their baggage to appear.
Being in the frequent flyer scheme for BMI we’d been given priority luggage tags for the Air Canada flight and our baggage was pretty well first out, so despite all the rushing to beat the queues, we got out of the aiport first.
As I said, very dependent on the airport – it works in Calgary who generally have the majority of their immigration desks open.