November 20, 2007
US airlines prepare for the busy Thanksgiving travel period
Thanksgiving is just around the corner and that means not only turkey, pumpkin pie and all the trimmings - but also extra travel headaches. Airlines estimate that around 90 million Americans will travel by air this Thanksgiving – and it may seem as though most of them are at the same airport as you! US Airways even anticipates that around 60% of its flights will be late – if they know that already, perhaps they could start to reschedule them now? The Wednesday and Friday before and after Thanksgiving Day are usually the busiest travel days. The government is trying to help by allocating extra airspace, as this site reported a couple of days ago.
If you are flying somewhere over the holidays, here are some tips:
Arrive early – at least 90 minutes if you are traveling within the US, and at least 2 hours before if you are traveling overseas. Take advantage of such things as self service check in, on-line check in, pre-printed boarding passes and flight delay notification. Reconfirm your flight with your airline and make sure that they can reach you at your destination in case of delays.
Pack lightly – if you are only going for a couple of days, you can probably manage with just a carry-on bag. The airline cant lose your bags if you don’t check any! You are also allowed to carry on a personal item such as a laptop or purse, but the restrictions on taking only certain amounts of liquids on board are still in place.
If you do have to check your bags, make sure your name and address is clearly marked inside the bag as well as outside. This way, if your luggage is mislaid, it’s a little bit easier for the airline to reunite you with it in a timely manner. And try to make sure that the ticket agent who checks you in puts the right 3-letter airport code on your checked bag – you don’t want your luggage going to SCL (Santiago, Chile) instead of SLC! (Salt Lake City)
Leave your gifts unwrapped, even if you have them inside your checked bags. The TSA may unwrap all your gifts, delaying you at security. Airlines suggest taking wrapping paper etc with you and wrapping everything up when you arrive.
And if you are traveling by car over Thanksgiving, expect to encounter almost as many crowds on the roads. But you may encounter some seasonal generosity – on Wednesday the coffee company Maxwell House will pay the cost of the toll for drivers at 8 big American cities as well as paying the fare at select New York subway stations.
However you are traveling this week, happy Thanksgiving!
Guest entry by Mancunian
Posted by James Trotta at November 20, 2007 11:43 AM | TrackBack