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Air Travel Tips & Advice

Travel Tips: Accommodations | Air | Auto | Cruise | Health | International | Kids | Pets | Security | Travel Light
Travel by air may be the fast and easy way to get from point A to point B, but at the same time can be the most stressful. We would like to share some of our travel advice from past experience as well as a collection of tips from other travel friends.

Making Airline Reservations

- Verify the exact spelling on your ticket will match that of your gov't issue photo ID.
- Make Reservations as early as possible to receive the best price and seating assignments.
- Be sure to have all the proper documentation such as Passports and Visas before your trip.
- Be Flexible with your dates to reserve a ticket during low peak travel (usually mid week).
- Make sure you are healthy to fly - See Health Travel Tips.
- Try and book non stop flights to avoid possible flight delays or save travel time during your trip.
- Use the experience of a Professional Travel Agent.

Seat Selection

- Assign your seats ASAP. If you wait your preferred seats may not be available.
- An aisle seat allows easy access to the bathroom, ability to move about the cabin and more leg room.
- Bulkhead or exit row seats allow for extra legroom, but some exit row seats do not recline, and some bulkhead seats have armrests that can't be raised.
- Avoid the last row of the plane. Seats may not recline, and they're often located right near the lavatories where both noise and odor could be an issue.
- Seats near the rear of the plane may be noisier due to the planes' engines and the galley. The positive side is you're more likely to have a couple seats to yourself and extra space could make up for the noise.
- Get help!. Check out SeatGuru.com, which offers seating charts for nearly every plane on every airline.
- Airlines may change your seating and flight times without your knowledge, so check your reservation on a regular basis.

Carry-on Luggage

- We recommend a carry on for your flight with enough essentials to get you through a day or two in case of the unexpected.
- Remember enough clothing items to get you through a day or two in case your luggage does gets lost.
- Pack a sweater or jacket in your carry on to keep warm on the flight. Remember the weather when you board the plane could be drastically different from the weather when you disembark the plane.
- Many airlines now take only credit cards as payment for food, alcohol, entertainment and even Wi-Fi. Try to bring along a credit card for the airline you are flying and when making the purchase, receive bonus points.
- Bring along your personal earphones to save purchasing one on the flight and charge electronic devices before leaving so you can watch movies, play games or listen to music.
- Use a simple backpack that fits under your seat for easy storage and access. The backpack can double for carrying items for a land excursion you might have planned at your destination.
- It is also a good idea to have foreign currency if traveling internationally. Exchange rates tend to be high at the airports and some locations charge extra if you pay in a different currency.
- Snacks might not be offered, and meals rarely are, so bring something to eat. If traveling abroad, be aware of items like produce and meats that won't be allowed into your destination.
- Things to keep in your carry-on include prescription medications (in original packaging), nasal sprays, moisturizers and lip balm. Follow the Transportation Security Administration's 3-1-1 rule.
- All travel documentation including but not limited to passports, airline tickets, cruise boarding passes and your gov't issued photo ID.

Frequent Flyers

- Set up a mileage program as soon as you can to start to aquire all the rewards.
- We recommmend starting with an application for a airline award credit card. Once you have your card, have all purchases placed on the card.

Things to do before Boarding

- Re-confirm their flights with the airlines directly, at least 72 hours before departure.
- The purchase of optional travel insurance is strongly recommended.
- Check-in with the airlines is recommended at least 3-4 hours prior to departure for international travel.
- Check-in with the airlines is recommended at least 2 hours prior to departure for domestic USA travel.
- 24 hours before departure check in online to print your boarding pass.
- Checking in on line will let you know if your flight has been delayed or is on schedule.
- Checking your checked luggage online may be less expensive than at the airline ticket counter.
- Know airport security regulations. Visit our Travel Links page for links to gov't travel websites.
- Do not pack valuables, flammable material or travel documents in checked luggage. Place your name and address inside the luggage.
- Mark your checked luggage with some creativity to make it easier to find at the luggage carousel.

Things to do during Flight

- Cabin air is dry. Ask for noncarbonated beverages from the flight attendant.
- Bring a pack of gum or lozenges to head off ear popping during takeoff and landing.
- Bring along magazines or a book to help pass the time.


We hope these tips were helpful and we welome any suggestions you may have to help make air travel less stressful.