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Recently one of my friends commented that basically all of the Snapchats that I send are out plane windows. While this isn’t entirely true (I do send tons of Dex, my dog, as well), I am constantly on a plane. Not surprisingly, my social media reflects this. So far in 2019, I have flown more than 130 times. As we gear up for summer travel, here are some flight tips from a frequent flyer to make your next airport experience go more smoothly.

Beware of extra fees

When booking flights, it may appear cheaper to fly a budget airline or to choose a “basic economy fare”. However, in choosing one of these options, you may not be able to bring a carry on item, choose your seats in advance, sit with your family (even if you booked the tickets together), or be eligible for upgrades. In some instances, you can do all of these things by paying extra, but in others, you may not be able to even if you offer to pay.

When you book your tickets online, know if you plan to check a bag or carry on and decide then if choosing your seat will be important. In addition, most airlines (with the exception of Southwest) charge for checking a bag unless you have airline status or you have one of the airline credit cards. For example, I have the Platinum Delta Skymiles card by American Express which allows for a free checked bag.

TSA Pre-Check can save you time and hassle

If you are going to be flying a few times per year, consider signing up for TSA Pre-Check. The cost is $85 and it is good for 5 years. This allows you to not have to remove electronic devices from your bag, keep your shoes on, and leave your 3-1-1 liquids in your bag as well.

Not surprisingly, this usually makes things go a lot faster in line as people aren’t having to take their stuff out. The TSA reported in January that the average wait time for TSA Pre-Check was 5 minutes.

If you do any ex-US travel, you should sign up for Global Entry instead. The cost is $100. This is good for 5 years as well and includes TSA pre-check. Global Entry expedites travel coming back into the US from other countries. This spares you hours in the customs lines. Totally worth it.

Some credit cards offer TSA Pre-Check and/or Global Entry as a perk. Check to see if yours does and take advantage of getting this for free.

Invest in quality luggage

The first year I traveled for work, I just used whatever luggage I had laying around the house. It seemed to be functional enough, and after all it’s just going to get beat up in transit. However, I couldn’t have been more wrong. There is NOTHING fun about lugging a bag through an airport when you are in a hurry and it’s bulky or won’t roll correctly.

A few important tips before you pick our your luggage. If you are carrying on, each airline has slightly different baggage size allowances. If you aren’t planning to be consistent with your airline choice, it’s best to get a smaller/international size carry on. My favorite is the Travelpro Spinner. I even wrote a blog post about it since I liked it so much. You can order on Amazon and not break the bank.

ALWAYS sign up for the frequent flyer program

This one might sound intuitive, but one of the most important flight tips from a frequent flyer is to sign up for the frequent flyer program offered by the airline that you are flying. Frequent flyer miles get you free flights, which is obviously a great thing!

Signing up is important even if you don’t think you will be flying this airline again anytime soon. Most frequent flyer programs allow at least 2 years before your points or miles would expire. Additionally, having the credit card for the airline or finding other non-flight ways to get miles will help keep your miles balance active.

If you are delayed or canceled, you may be entitled to compensation

There’s a saying “time to spare, go by air” which nicely reminds us that flight delays and cancellations happen. If this unfortunately happens to you, make sure you find out the reason for the delay/cancellation. If the delay or cancellation is due to maintenance, you will likely be eligible for compensation from the airline. Keep track of the flight details and time you were delayed to get to your destination. After the trip is completed, you can use the customer service contact online to write in a complaint. When you write in, be nice, describe what happened, ask for compensation.

If your flight delay is due to weather, unfortunately you will likely not obtain any compensation. You can always ask, but most of the time the airlines will not provide this.

Hopefully these flight tips from a frequent flyer will help you navigate your next air travel trip with ease. Do you have any additional flight tips that you find helpful? Let me know in the comments?

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