Here are the top 10 flying tips from readers to make your next flight easier for everyone involved!
WHN TIP – Follow Instructions: Every airport has different rules. Follow the instructions from airport personnel when going through security.
Airport Security
If you’re not TSA pre-check, remember these tips:
- Three Ounces
No containers over three ounces. Carry-on liquids and gels go in plastic bags; place them in plastic bins. - Laptops
If you have a laptop, put it in a plastic bin. - Shoes, belts, pockets
Remove your shoes, belt and empty your pockets. Put them in plastic bins. - Boarding Pass
Keep your boarding pass with you to show at security, then place inside your carry-on. You can’t keep it in your pocket when you go through screening.
Security procedures can vary from one airport to the next. Always follow the instructions you are given by TSA personnel. Read Insider’s Guide to Airport Security and Trip Savvy’s Get Ready to Go Through Airport Security for additional reader and expert tips.
Inside the Airport
Here are some helpful tips from readers, authors and experts who travel all the time –
- Move to the right. “Stand to the right on the moving walkways if you are not moving,” says Paula, a million-mile frequent flyer from Scotts Valley, CA. “Do not stop short without looking behind you if you are walking through the airport. It is important to realize others in the airport might be trying to make a plane or connection.”
- Only watch your luggage. “Never offer to watch someone else’s luggage, and don’t ask anyone else to watch yours,” says Sue Fox, etiquette travel expert and author of Etiquette for Dummies and Business Etiquette for Dummies. “Doing so not only puts you in an awkward situation but also involves a big security risk. Always keep your bags with you, and never carry anything onto the plane for someone else.”
- Picking up luggage? Stand back from the baggage carousel or allow plenty of room so others can remove their bags.
WHN TIP – Keep It Down: Keep your voice down in the airport and on the plane. You might be off for a wild weekend with your buddies but someone else may be working or trying to get some shuteye.
In the Air
- Be polite. You don’t have to carry on an animated conversation, but acknowledge others.
- Respect personal space. “This can be physical (squabbles over the armrest come to mind) or more remote – staring, being intrusive, that kind of thing,” says Rita, New York, NY.
- Be clean. “For the consideration of those around you, if you’re on a long flight and you must remove your jacket and shoes, be sure that you have on clean clothes and deodorant and have clean socks with you,” says Fox. “Sitting next to a passenger with body odor or stinky feet isn’t too pleasant.”
WHN Reader TIP – Stop Pulling on My Chair! “Don’t get up from your seat by pulling on the seat in front of you. Consideration of others is most important in such an enclosed space.” Paula, Scotts Valley, CA
Photo Credit: Jordan Sanchez