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3 airport preparations for easier travel

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(© Hanoi Photography – stock.adobe.com)

There is no doubt about the fact that planes are one of the most efficient ways to travel. For that matter, depending on where you are heading, it might be the only way to travel. However, it is no great secret that there are very few people out there who actually enjoy being at the airport.

Long lines and big crowds of impatient and often exhausted travelers can make the airport one of the more stressful places to be. Such an outlook doesn’t seem to make for a very delightful start to your vacation or business trip.

With the right planning, though, the airport doesn’t have to be all that bad. Moreover, making sure that you are prepared to handle any unexpected and unavoidable delays in your travel plans will help you accept such occurrences should they arise. Here are three preparations to make before heading out to the airport in order to ensure easier travel for you and anyone you are traveling with.

1. Book a Parking Spot

When driving yourself to the airport, you might think that you will be just fine driving up and using the parking lots provided by the airport. Unfortunately, such parking can be unreliable and extremely expensive to boot. Instead of wasting your time driving around searching for a spot that is overpriced, do yourself a favor and book a parking spot ahead of time online at Parkon.com. This way, you can simply drive up, pull into your spot, and take a quick shuttle ride right to your terminal entrance.

2. Only Bring Carry-On Luggage

The process of packing checked bags for your trip can be a tricky one. You try to cram as much as possible into your suitcase only to arrive at the airport to find, after standing in a long line, that your bag is overweight. You are then forced to unpack and rearrange your belongings as best as you can in order to meet the weight requirements. Even if your baggage is within the weight limits, you still have to pay a fairly heft cost to bring checked baggage along.

Skip the hassle altogether and only bring carry-on luggage. You might think that it is impossible to fit all that you will need in smaller luggage, but you would be surprised just how many items you can fit into carry-on luggage. Moreover, this means you won’t have to lug around multiple heavy bags once you finally reach your destination.

3. Check in Ahead of Time

Upon entering the airport, most travelers will head straight to the long line that leads to the check-in counter. While this was once the only option for those who chose air travel, these days there is another way. Most airlines have a feature on their mobile app that allows you to check in for your flights online.

You can typically do this up to 24 hours before your flight is scheduled to depart. Your boarding pass will be saved right to your phone so that you and your carry-on luggage can simply head straight to the security line.

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