So, you have already booked a cheap flight and you are on your way to a long hard earned vacation. Unless you are traveling via land or sea, your travel really starts on your way to the airport. As much as I love my home, the airport in my country really sucks big time so I have to make the best out of it. It has gotten better over the years but it pales in comparison to world class airports. Though, that does not mean that I start my trip with a downer.
So, here are my 7 tips that I have learned through out the years that made my airport experience hassle-free.
1. Online Check-in
I cannot stress this enough but I still have friends who haven’t tried online check-in yet. It’s either they do not care until the last minute or they are afraid of the online check-in experience. If you are still lining up to get your boarding pass, you are basically wasting precious time. Almost all airlines have online check-in facilities and even low-cost carriers have this service. I am pretty sure as well that almost everyone who flies have access to internet so there’s no reason not to do online check-in. In fact, you don’t even have to print it most of the time. Just do the online check-in on your phone for your return trip and show the screenshot or give your passport to the check-in counter. The airlines will allocate a line for online check-in or bag drops so you don’t have to line up.
Time saved: 15-30 minutes
2. Avoid Check-in baggage
If you can avoid checking in a luggage (particularly for short trips), opt not to check-in your bags. While this will have its disadvantages, waiting for your bag in the carousel and risk losing your bags is not worth it. To note though, there are limits to this tip. If your trip is more than 3 days, feel free to check-in your big luggage but if you are on a weekend trip, pack light and hand-carry your baggage. I have seen expensive luggages, advertised as almost indestructible, that suffered some significant damages because of the airport handling of the check-in baggage. In addition, it makes traveling to your destination easier with a light luggage. In fact, I haven’t checked-in a bag for my last five flights and it cuts my airport time significantly.
BUT, if you opt not to check-in your baggage, do not overload your carry on baggage. Make sure that you use an approved carry-on sized luggage (especially if you are flying on budget airlines such as Ryanair) and keep the luggage light. If you cannot keep it light, just check it in. I have seen a lot of carry-on baggage disasters over the years and, to be honest, it’s quite rude to fill up the cabin space with big carry-ons or multiple carry-on luggages. Remember to Pack Smarter!
Time saved: 30 minutes
3. Get (cheap) Lounge Access
If you are planning to travel at least four times a year, research for the easiest way to get lounge access. Your airport experience will elevate significantly when you can access a lounge. Almost all international airports have them and some domestic airport also have lounges. Airport lounges are basically value-added service to travelers with free food and comfortable chairs. Comfortable chairs is more than enough reason to go for a lounge access. The average rate for lounge is around $27 but you don’t have to pay the full rate. There are a number of ways to get lounge access.
Credit card benefits. In the Philippines, there are around 7 credit cards that has lounge access benefits. Citibank PremierMiles will allow you access to all lounges in Manila airports for 1 reward point. This goes the same with UnionBank Platinum, Security Bank Diners, BDO AMEX Platinum, etc. Some credit cards will provide Priority Pass membership. However, this doesn’t come for free. For PremierMiles, the annual fee is Php 5,000 a year on your second year. You can cancel the card though if you don’t like to pay the annual fee.
Lounge access membership such as Priority Pass. This is more expensive compared to the first option but it will provide you with more flexibility in lounge access. Go for this one if you think you will be traveling a lot (at least 6 times a year).
Get an elite status. If you travel a lot (around 40k miles a year), make sure that you enroll in an airline miles program. This sounds basic for experienced travelers but I have worked with some colleagues who traveled a lot and never enrolled in an airline. One colleague of mine have traveled more than 60k miles in a year without enrolling to one. Even if you don’t travel a lot, you can still enroll. In any case, it’s free to enroll. Some airline programs are tied with other partner programs such as Star Alliance and OneWorld. These partner programs usually allows lounge access on a certain elite status (Star Alliance Gold, OneWorld Emerald, etc).
Last option is to pay lounge access. This is somewhat your worst case option and only go for this one if you are stuck in the airport for more than 4 hours.
Again, I cannot express how thankful I am to lounge access. This will really make your airport experience hassle-free. More than that, it can make your airport trip less expensive by not buying food in the airport and just munch on free lounge food and drinks.
4. Perfect your timing
Don’t be late nor be too early. Always compute the amount of time to get to the airport and the time to go from check-in desk to your gate. I had an experience before when my wife’s sister and her family arrived on the very last minute. We have already boarded and they are still clearing the immigration counters. Good thing that they did online check-in so they weren’t bumped off but they had to run to reach the gates. The amount of stress waiting for them and the amount of hassle they experienced made for a good story albeit a very stressful experience. If I have flexibility in my trip, I try to choose off-peak hours such as midnight travel to avoid traffic going to the airport (again, I am from Manila and traffic is a way of life). On the other hand, do not overestimate and arrive too early in the airport. Waiting in the airport (except if you have lounge access) can be tiring and expensive. In addition, some airlines close their check-in counters and you have to wait for it to open.
5. Make your immigration and security clearance / x-ray machine experience smooth
As much as possible, do not wear too much jewelry and unnecessary clothing for one reason – security clearance. Try to wear slip-on shoes (but please, no slippers except if you are going for a beach trip) and if possible, limit your jewelry to the bare minimum. You will have to remove these metal jewelry in the security clearance and there’s a chance that you might lose it. I have a friend who left her Rolex in the security clearance area (or got stolen). Also, you can put your watch, belt or jewelry inside your bag before you clear the immigration area. This way, you don’t have to remove anything and ensure that you don’t lose it. Also, make sure that your shoes are easy to slip on and off.
Secondly, invest in a good travel bag. If you are traveling with a laptop (particularly for business travelers), invest in luggage or laptop bag with a quick laptop pocket access. You do not want to delay the security process just because you have to get your laptop inside your luggage. In addition, you can invest in a messenger / sling bag that can store your phones, passports and documents with ease. This will keep your stuff out of your pockets.
Thirdly, pack your liquids in a clear container and ensure that your toiletries are less than 100 ml if you are storing it in your carry on. Also, consume your bottled waters before completing the immigration process. I have never gone through an x-ray screening without seeing someone quickly consuming his water or throwing away completely sealed bottled water. I have seen perfumes thrown out in the garbage bin and people pleading the airport security not to throw their toiletries and perfume away. In fact, I have seen someone throw away a completely closed big bottle of lotion (the 1L kind).
Lastly, if your destination will require arrival cards, ask your cabin attendant for a copy of the arrival cards and fill it out before reaching the immigration gates. Similarly, if you are required to fill out departure cards, make sure to complete it before you reach the immigration gates. You can partially fill it out while you are in the check-in counters. Also, memorize your passport details. This will make your filling out experience easier. There’s not too much details to memorize anyway. In addition, make sure your necessary documentation is ready whenever the immigration officer asks (ie. hotel reservation, return flight, etc).
6. Book the last section if you want to go in the airplane first or the first section if you want to go out first
For the regular travelers without elite status and traveling on economy class, one of the worst experience is embarkation. This is where decent looking people go savage trying to get in the plane quickly. Most airline companies board the last section of the plane first. However, some budget airlines will board the last section of the airplane last (for some reason, the last section is reserved for the cheapest ticket for some airlines). General rule is, if it’s not a low cost carrier, the last section will board first. The rationale behind it is that people will not crowd in the seats while others are trying to get in the plane. This is more of a preference though. If you are ok to wait for everyone to board in, you can book the first section so that you can go out first.
7. Do a quick research on your airport destination
Most of the world class airports have a lot of amenities that most people don’t know. For example, Changi airport has a movie theatre where you can watch movie for free. It also has a number of gardens that you can visit. Dubai international have complementary showers in gates A – C. Also, you can easily traverse an airport that you have been to if you have researched the layout before hand. If you wish to shop, you can research the duty free shopping stores even before arriving the airport. You will be surprised on what your airport of destination can provide.
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