Air travel has been chaotic in Summer 2022. The news is full of stories about flight cancellations, delays, lost luggage, short-staffed airports, long lines, strikes, rising prices, and more. Martin Jones, CEO of Airport Parking Reservations, said that travel in summer will undoubtedly be challenging.
But that does not mean you won’t be able to relax on the beach you’ve been dreaming about or tick off a city tour from your bucket list. The key is to prepare for everything. There are still steps travelers can take to ease some stress on flights, even if many of the worst aspects are beyond their control. Here are two tips from Jones and other experts for making air travel less miserable.
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Get To The Airport Early
Goose Insurance co-founder and chief growth officer Omar Kaywan advised giving yourself plenty of time at the airport. Make sure you arrive three hours early. Airport security lines are not uncommon these days. You will feel less stressed if you build in extra buffer time. Kaywan added, “Prepare for security screening.”
Avoid belts, heavy shoes, and liquids over 100ml. You and other travelers will benefit from this. Consider TSA PreCheck or Clear for expedited airport security. Members can skip several screening steps.
Get TheAirline’s App.
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Be the first to know about any changes to your flight by downloading your airline’s app and enabling notifications, advised Brian Kelly, founder of The Points Guy. In case of a flight cancellation or delay, you can rebook on the app and avoid waiting in long lines at customer service desks.
It also shows if the plane’s previous flights were on time 24 hours before departure. You can also watch it on websites like FlightAware and Flightradar.