Managing Airport Travel with Ease

July's another 5 Wednesday month which means it's time for tips & tricks! This month it seems a great time to talk about navigating airport travel in general, especially with the recent Crowdstrike outage issues we've seen. 

Tip #1 - Pack Carryons Only

Even though many airlines allow you a free checked bag for international travel, I recommend always packing carryons only (if possible). Having your luggage at your own fingertips makes it easy to pivot if you need to due to delays, cancellations, or needing to fly other airlines even. In the case of needing to switch airlines, let me tell you: it is a pain to try to retrieve your checked luggage from the original flight!

Tip #2 - Buy Travel Insurance

Normally I recommend travel insurance more for the medical coverage it provides, but in case of delays or cancellations, it is a handy thing to have. Many airlines will provide hotel vouchers and food, but having travel insurance will assist you past that - whether it is in recouping money lost due to the delay (prepaid hotels, activities, etc.) or in assistance to get you where you need to go faster.

Tip #3 - Work with Gate Agents

While I am always here to assist if issues arise, for flight delays and cancellations it is best to first go to the gate agent for assistance. This is because once you've checked in for a flight, the gate agents are the people best suited to give you quick assistance. Once you've got yourself sorted with them, give me a call so that I can assist with the rest of your trip (changing transfers, updating hotels for check in time, etc.).

Tip #4 - Have Extra $$ Available

Anytime you travel, it is a good idea to have $500-1000/person of emergency funds available. Chances are you won't need to utilize it, but in case you do need to pay for a hotel or need to pay for another flight to get you where you need to be, this is a good rule of thumb. You don't necessarily need to bring it with, but just don't be in a situation where if you need more money, it's not available.

Hopefully you weren't too badly affected by the Crowdstrike issues, and hopefully companies will diversify what they use for IT security so we don't have such massive issues when a software update goes horribly wrong in the future!