inFLIGHTout Travel Tip: Label Your Laptop Computer

By Mike Grasso

The airport is an interesting place where emotions often run high: sadness for departure, joy of arrival and panic for tight connections, to name a few. Something just happens at airports that can sometimes mentally throw us off. And the security checkpoints certainly don't provide any relief. At the intersection of these emotions is the possibility that we forget even the simplest things...such as remember to retrieve all your personal items from the scanning machine! Countless times I've watched passengers, usually in a dazed and confused look (probably having just finished waiting in a long security line) confidently grabbing their shoes and personal belongings then marching off from the checkpoint, but forgetting their laptop computer which was placed in a separate bin. Ouch!

So... here's the tip: Place a temporary label across the top of the computer with your name and phone number. This way if you accidentally leave it behind, those honest folks at TSA can page or call you while you're still at the airport.

The Safety and Cleanliness of Your Hotel Room

By Mike Grasso

In the past, I have reported on bed bugs and other critters sometimes found in hotel rooms. I also re-posted a video piece where undercover video captured some of the unsanitary practices hotel maids engage in. Luckily, these unfortunate situations are more often the exception than the rule. But even at mid and high-end hotels with a good housekeeping and maintenance staff on hand, there remain a few potential safety and cleanliness issues that you the guest should be aware of. I've posted six pictures below, can you find at least one potential "hazard" in each? My responses are outlined below.

1. Sofa: The visible stains on couches are usually spot treated by hotels; deep cleaning of sofa's is infrequent. Therefore, invisible stains such as blood, urine, saliva and semen would not be seen without a black light. Try to keep a barrier (i.e. clothing) between you and the sofa.

2. Phone and clock: Does the phone work? Important to check in the event an emergency were to strike. Be sure the time is correct, particularly if you are relying on this as an alarm clock.

3. Coffee maker and cups: Ceramic coffee mugs are a nice touch at hotels, but have been identified as items insufficiently or improperly cleaned by cleaning staff. The video that previously aired caught maids simply rinsing out cups (not washing), while other maids were observed them spraying them out with glass cleaner! Lesson here: Be sure you personally wash your coffee mug.

4. Bed: One of the first activities I do once checking into my room is to pull the comforter off completely. Never (not even once) have I observed comforters being removed from rooms for cleaning. Yet these can be the primary source of undesirable filth, stains and bacteria from countless previous guests.

5. Carpet: While hotels do deep clean their carpets periodically, they tend to accumulate mold, bacteria and fungus in between cleans as a result of dirt and spills. Vacuuming alone won't do the trick. So again, best to add a barrier (socks or slippers) between the carpet and your skin.

6. Window: Some things I consider are whether it will properly open in an emergency. Does it lock properly? (Note in the picture this is a room at ground level). If I open with window, is there a screen to protect from mosquito's or other insects entering?

How to Add Pages to Your Passport

By Mike Grasso

Frequent international traveler? Running out of room in your passport for all those Visa's? Easy fix. Simply mail your passport to the U.S. State Department and request extra pages be added. How much might you expect to pay for such as service? $20? $40? Actually...it's a FREE service from our federal government. Even the postage to ship it back to you is FREE. It gets better: The turnaround time to process extra pages may take several weeks according to the application, but my recent experience had the passport back in my hands in under 2 weeks. Now that is our government in action!

So if you are running out of space in your passport, now may be the time to send it in for some extra pages. Click here for more information.

(Even More) Important Items for Your Carry-On

By Mike Grasso

What's inside your carry on bag? You've got light scooby snacks and water (post-security purchase or refilled water bottle) packed - just in case you get stuck on the plane longer than expected. You remembered to pack toiletries - to freshen up during long layovers. And surely you packed a change of clothes - in the event you arrive in a city but your checked bags don't. What else needs to go in the checked back? More essentials! House keys; mobile phone, and important documents such as hotel/car rental information.

Common sense? Yes. But, sometimes travel plays tricks with common sense. For instance, I just returned from a flight where a woman was rerouted to Dallas, instead of Los Angeles, due to a missed connection. She will make it home tonight, but her house keys - which she later realized were stored inside her luggage, will not. Lesson learned: Think through all the important items you might need in your carry-on luggage, both during regular and irregular flight operations, and pack accordingly.

Flight Delayed, When Should I Leave for the Airport?

By Mike Grasso

Anyone who has travelled with any sort of regularity knows flight delays happen. They happen for many reasons; mechanical, operations, customer service issues, and weather - either at the airport, destination airport, or somewhere in between. So when your flight is delayed, a logical question to ask is: "When should I leave for the airport?" Answer: In most cases, you should arrive as if departing during the initially scheduled departure time.

The reason is pretty simple: Delays can un-happen. A last minute plane swap or an alternate flight path during inclement weather are ways to reverse anticipated flight delays. For instance, a flight I was on last year was expected to be nearly two hours late for departure due to building thunderstorms. Suddenly, the airline began paging all passengers in the terminal to immediately board the flight - it was leaving 15 minutes early, to avoid the storms. (Way to go Southwest Airlines!)

Too often of course, when the airline says the flight is delayed... it will be delayed. But occasionally there are instances where they can "fix" the problem and leave on time. Therefore, it is highly recommended you arrive at the airport ready during the initial time of departure - unless of course the airline recommends otherwise.

Strategies on Finding "Free" Award Travel

By Mike Grasso

You've spent months, perhaps even years flying around the country and throughout the world. In return, you've earned yourself a mountain of airline miles. Now it's time to redeem them for "free" award travel. It sounds simple, but rarely is. Consumers, now more than ever, complain the airline frequent flyer programs are limiting availability of "free" seats, forcing customers instead to purchase tickets or fly at inconvenient times. But for the motivated traveler, willing to dedicate time, "free" tickets can still be found. Here are some recommendations:

• If your airline has no award availability, ask them if their alliance partners have any. For instance, if your airline is part of the Star Alliance Network and you want to fly from San Francisco to Frankfurt, check availability on United, U.S. Airways, Continental and Lufthansa. You can even mix and match, such as United to New York-JFK, then Lufthansa onward to Frankfurt. A search for this type of routing and mixed carriers is usually not possible online, therefore you must call your airline to help build you an itinerary.

• Book as far in advance as possible. Many airlines allow award bookings up to 330 days before departure date!

• If at first you don't find award availability, keep on checking. People change their mind and cancel travel plans, which may open up an award seat when you least expect it.

• Be realistic. If you are a family of four and want to redeem tickets on the same flight, your chances are pretty slim. Consider booking two family members on one flight, the other two on a different one. Then, call the airline and ask for the last two family members to be waitlisted on the earlier flight; if seats open up, they can be automatically confirmed - and everyone in the family rides together. Oh Joy!

• Consider First or Business class cabins. People are amazed this is within reach to the masses. The key is to look at your airlines tier system for award travel. For instance, on Delta a "medium" level domestic award ticket in economy costs 40,000 miles, while a "low" level domestic award ticket in First Class can be had for just 5,000 miles more. Although the "low" first class awards are more capacity controlled (harder to find), they are out there, even when coach seats are priced at a premium.

Hopefully these tips are useful and you find a good use for those hard-earned miles.

By the way, the "free" in quotations is intentional. We have long done away with a truly free award ticket. At the very least, most airlines pass on a $10 government fee to customers. Some airlines pass all the taxes, fees and fuel surcharges, which can amount to hundreds of dollars. Nonetheless, it is at least a highly discounted way to travel.

inFLIGHTout Travel Tip: Late Checkout

Standard policy at most hotel states checkout time is usually no later than 12:00 - noon. But, if you find you need an extra hour or two, give a ring to the front desk and ask for a late checkout. Provided the hotel isn't sold out, they may allow a later checkout, upon request - with priority given to guests holding elite status. Also, if at first you are denied a late checkout, stop in at the front desk later and see if they can accommodate your request. Often customers cancel reservations at the last minute and rooms may quickly open up, thereby improving your chances to keep your room for just a bit longer.

Should I Purchase an Air Ticket or Use Frequent Flyer Miles?

By Mike Grasso

"Should I purchase an airline ticket or redeem frequent flyer miles?" How many times I hear this question asked. Unfortunately, there is no single right answer. But let me offer some thoughts:

-If you are booking the trip "last minute" such as within a few weeks of travel: Some airlines may charge up to $100 for redeeming miles last minute.

-If your travel plans might change: Often you are allowed free date/time changes on award travel tickets (but not city or routing changes). Few purchased tickets allow fee-free changes.

-If you are flying to/from smaller regional airports: These fares often, though not always, cost more than through larger cities with more competition. It might make more sense to redeem miles if there is availability.

-If you want to earn banked and/or elite qualifying miles for your flight: Then you should buy your ticket. Typically you don't earn miles on award travel flights.

Then there is the cost factor. This will vary by person. Some people think 25,000 miles (the amount required for a free roundtrip domestic flight) is worth around $300, and will therefore use miles if the cost of a ticket is ~$300 or more. On the other hand, if the family budget is running a little tight this month, maybe redeeming miles makes good sense, regardless the price of the ticket. Again, this is more an individual/situational decision.

inFLIGHTout Travel Tip: Register Your Trip

In light of the unfortunate events in Mumbai and Bangkok fairly recently, it is a good idea to let the State Department know your international travel plans. U.S Embassies located throughout the world can aid you in the event of civil unrest, terrorism or natural disaster. Additionally, U.S Embassies and Consulates can assist if you are a victim of a crime, become ill, or are involved in a car accident.

Registering your trip is voluntary and free.

Click here to read additional information from the U.S State Department and to register.

Recommendations for Sleeping in an Airport

By Mike Grasso

For most travelers, the idea of spending any unnecessary time in an airport makes them cringe. So the thought of sleeping in an airport would probably beyond the possibilities of imagination. That's what I said too, until I discovered a website appropriately titled, "The guide to sleeping in airports." and gave it a shot. On this site, travelers passing through a particular airport can read the stories of past travelers - super troopers if you will, who've scouted out the best spots to cuddle up for a few hours nappie.

Reviews often describe the atmosphere of the airport in the overnight hours, when few, if any, flights are operating. Key themes in the reviews often relate to the frequency of announcements in airport P.A system (think- "this is a security advisory, keep luggage with you at all times) as well as comfort and versatility of sleeping areas (i.e., post-security, away from rift raft coming in off the street, whether armrests move up so you can lay down on a set of seats). My personal experience of sleeping in airports has been pleasant, and never have I had airport personnel question me (yes, even post 9-11), or my sleeping arrangement. Of course if someone did come by, I'd kindly ask them for a pillow. =)

The novelty of sleeping in an airport probably isn't sufficient for most people to try this out. So, why do it in the first place you ask? Experienced airport nappers often cite a long connection - such as 4 or 6 hours, as the principal reason. The hassle of locating a nearby hotel, transportation, and the struggle of waking up early then re-clear security seemed a bit much, when one could simply take a nap next to the boarding gate.

Not all airports are created alike, and there are several to avoid at all costs. Few U.S., airports make the top 10 world list, yielding instead to newer, and spacious airports within Asia and Curious where San Francisco fits on the list? How about checking the ratings of your hometown airport? See all the reviews at sleepinginairports.com.

Hoping for the Best, Preparing for the Worst: Smart Packing for Airline Travel

By Mike Grasso

We've all heard the dreaded stories of planes stuck on the runway for hours at a time, passengers suffering in the cabin lacking some of the basic essentials such as food and water and the pilot refusing to allow people to de-plane. Thankfully, these are rare cases. But there are steps you can take in advance should you find yourself in a similar situation. Many of these suggestions are common sense, and put the bulk of health & safety responsibility back onto you - the passenger. If we have learned anything from these extreme situations, it's that nobody can best take care of you better than YOU.

Bottled Water: You can purchase a bottle post-security, or simply bring an empty bottle through security and refill it at a water fountain before boarding your flight.

Snacks: Energy bars, a cup of trail mix or nuts, or even a sandwich are all great munchies to have handy.

Vitamins/Supplements/Meds: Ensure you have taken your proper dosing before catching your flight, and bring extra in your carry-on bag.

Sanitizing wipes: Bring disposable wipes and wipe down the arm rests, head sets, tray tables, and anywhere else your skin makes contact with the plane. Remember, just because it doesn't appear dirty - doesn't mean bacteria aren't present.

Toiletries: Keep a small toiletry bag with your carry on. Anyone who has ever had their luggage lost by the airline has learned to keep essentials such as a toothbrush and deodorant nearby. The TSA 3-1-1 rule currently allows you to carry personal-care products in 3-ounce containers which are to be placed in a 1-quart resalable bag, 1 bag per person.

Seating and Stretching: The middle seat is bad enough, but if you find yourself stuck for hours on a runway, the middle seat will feel like misery. So, get your seat assignment far in advance, to avoid the middle. Regardless where you sit, be sure to stand, stretch and walk around from time to time.

Entertainment: OK so you've packed everything to ensure "survival", now pack a couple items to ensure you actually have a bit of enjoyment, in an otherwise unbearable situation. Magazines, books, portable gaming devices (think, for the kids), or a deck of cards (nearby passengers would probably love to join in too!) are all fine choices. Ensure portable electronic devices, such as mini DVD players and laptops, are charged-up in advance, to allow for maximum enjoyment.

Tip Regarding "Wear and Tear" on Car Rentals

It's common for car rentals to have minor scratches on the bumper, and perhaps a tiny ding or two on the sides. While many car rental agencies forgive this normal "wear and tear" on a vehicle, do not drive off the rental car lot without the damage documented on your paperwork. Don't let them brush it off as "minor" or "insignificant," and therefore need not be documented. When you return your car, the returning rental car agent may consider the "wear and tear" as something a little more significant, and bill you for damages.

5 Creative Ideas to Saving on Car Rentals

By Mike Grasso

www.inFLIGHTout.com

Sure we've heard the advice to use websites sites as Kayak which search multiple sites at once, enabling you to easily compare car rental prices. Great recommendation, but if you are a bargain shopper (and who doesn't love a great bargain?), it's only a start. Here are five creative tips to ensure you drive off the lot paying some of the lowest car rental rates available:

• Once you locate the appropriate fare and car rental agency, do a web search for discounts that can be applied to your reservation. Literally hundreds of discount codes are available for use, it’s just a matter of finding the right codes. My favorite site for finding these discounts is fatwallet.com. Be mindful of the terms and conditions with discount codes. For example, if you are using a discount code which nets 25% off to Stanford Alumni, you should be prepared to show your credentials.
• Book early and revisit later. Most car rental agencies in the United States do not require prepayment of rentals. So make your reservation early, then revisit as your rental date nears. This allows you to take advantage of any last minute car rental discounts, but also piece of mind knowing if, instead rates happen to spike up, you still have your original reservation.
• Consider Priceline’s, “name your own price” bidding option. When companies have a surplus of cars on their lot, they turn to Priceline to unload these at discounted prices. I’ve easily saved 40% on identical car rental reservations by using this Priceline feature. Drawbacks: You don’t know which car rental agency you are matched with until your bid is accepted. Also, full prepayment is required, and changes are generally not permitted.
• One more place! Check with Hotwire.com – another favorite of mine. Like Priceline, they do not give you the choice of car rental agencies, but they are upfront about the price of the car rental – often heavily discounted. I’ve found $14.99/day rentals at SFO before.
• Finally, just before you click that purchase button, review your itinerary. If you are flying to Seattle, make sure the quoted car rental is for the airport (assuming that’s where you want to pick up), and not a downtown location. Are your dates and pick-up times correct? Are the discount codes being properly applied to your reservation? Sometimes getting so caught up searching so many sites, it’s easy to overlook the small – yet most important details. Resolving issues early on will help ensure a smoother process when you pick up your car later.

inFLIGHTout Travel Tip: Program Airline Phone Numbers

Be sure to program your cell phone the phone numbers of airlines you frequently fly.

In the event your flight has a last minute cancellation or significant delay, you can immediately call the airline for rebooking on alternate flights. Use this method while concurrently waiting to speak with an airport gate agent. If several people are impacted by the cancellation or delay, your wait to speak with a gate agent may be quite long.

inFLIGHTout Travel Tip: Scan Your Passport

When you travel outside the U.S, some people recommend you keep a copy of your passport in a separate location, such as your luggage or wallet. This way, if your passport is ever lost or stolen, you have a copy to provide officials. Great advice!

In addition to a photocopy, consider scanning a copy of your passport and saving into your email box or other online file server. A scanned copy is crisp, clean and colorful, appearing a little more legitimate than a photocopy, particularly important when you need to work with government officials in a foreign country to secure your flight out of the country. Provided you have Internet access, a scanned passport is readily available anywhere you find yourself traveling in the world.

inFLIGHTout Travel Tip: Email Important Documents to Yourself

By Mike Grasso

Even what seems the most solid planning and preparation occasionally fails. Take for example a recent trip to Boston: I had booked a car rental with a reputable agency months in advance and armed myself with a copy my itinerary, evidence of such reservation. Well, through a series of unfortunate inflight mishaps, coffee ended up soiling my paper itinerary, causing it to be unreadable. So, when I showed up at the car rental agency, you guessed it, they for whatever reason, had no reservation on file for me, and I no longer had no proof anything existed either. I was ready to fly back home at this point. 

But, the magic of the Internet and an Internet capable mobile device saved the situation. I simply logged into my email account, scrolled to my "active travel" folder and bada-bing, with a sense of pride and accomplishment, I flashed the reservation to the front desk agent who quickly processed my reservation. 

The lesson: A hard copy of all your travel plans are great (airline, car rental, hotel, tours), but also storing an electronic copy, which can be accessed anywhere you have Internet capability, improves on that. With the e-versions of itineraries, I store them in email folders labelled, "active travel" and "past travel" which helps locate files quickly - such as when standing at the car rental counter in Boston.

What is Back-to-Back Ticketing? (Hint: It’s a No-No)

By Mike Grasso
http://www.inflightout.com/

Did you know there are literally dozens of pages of rules and regulations that apply to your airline ticket? It’s true. For example, check out United Airlines contract of carriage, which contains 47 pages worth! Now that looks like some fun reading. On the plus side, most of us will never need to know about most of those rules. But recently a reader wrote in asking about one such rule termed, “back-to-back” ticketing. Specifically, she wanted to know what happens if she is caught making this creative type of airline ticketing.

Back-to-Back ticketing occurs when two or more tickets are purchased for the purpose of circumventing rules of a particular ticket, such as advance ticketing or Saturday night stay requirements. Here is an example of two tickets purchased for flights between San Francisco and Chicago:

--Ticket 1: San Francisco to Chicago July 7 (Tuesday) (A)
Chicago to San Francisco July 12 (Sunday) (B)
Total cost: $170

--Ticket 2: Chicago to San Francisco July 9 (Thursday) (C)
San Francisco to Chicago July 13 (Monday) (D)
Total cost: $170

Notice a Saturday night stay requirement is met in each of the tickets, thereby ensuring the low airfare. But, if you intention is to actually fly July 7 (Tuesday) and return on July 9 (Thursday), you would not meet the Saturday night stay requirement, and be subject to a much higher airfare – perhaps up to $800.

One workaround is to purchase two tickets, as shown above. Then utilize the July 7th outbound ticket (A) and July 9th return ticket (C), and throwing away (B) and (D). This would meet the Saturday night requirement. Therefore, in this example, purchasing two round-trip tickets is far cheaper than a single round-trip.

Sound easy enough yes? Well bad news – it’s “illegal.” Most airlines spell out in their contract of carriage that this type of ticketing is not allowed. Perpetrators are subject to having their mileage account closed, pay a penalty, or perhaps even get billed for the actual cost of the ticket (the $800 ticket). How will the airline know if you did this? Using your name and mileage account number on the two tickets is a good hint! One workaround is to purchase ticket 1 with one airline, ticket 2 with another. But again, you heard it here, this type of ticketing is not generally allowed. So, proceed at your own risk.

inFLIGHTout Tip: Dealing With Flight Delays and Cancellations

By Mike Grasso

Although there is no scientific methodology to predict if any specific flight in the future will be delayed or cancelled, there are some steps you can take to minimize the impact any such delay or cancellation might have on your travels. 

1. Book flights earlier in the day. Should there be difficulties with your original flight, there will often be other same-day flights to be accommodated on. In contrast, booking on the last flight of the day means any delay or cancellation could mean spending the night at the airport or nearby hotel.

2. Pick nonstop flights. Each added segment or connection increases your odds of encountering a delay, misconnect, or cancellation. 

3. Check the on-time performance of a flight you are considering a purchase on. For example, between San Francisco and Dallas/Ft. Worth, American Airlines offers several daily flights. Flight #566 departing at 2:55 PM has a 55% on-time record, versus Flight #1306 at 7:30 AM has nearly a 100% on-time record. If you are flying on American, connecting in Dallas, which flight would you want to be on? Websites such as flightstats.com can provide on-time performance data.

4. If you are using a connection city, be sure to allow yourself sufficient "padding" time to exit the aircraft and catch your connecting flight. Padding time should include a few extra minutes in the event you arrive late, the time it takes to deplane, walk through the airport and/or different terminal, and arrive at your next flight. 

5. Check the status of the inbound flight. This is a bit more advanced and requires some detective work, but is my all-time favorite. Here's how it works: Determine the gate you are flying out of, then look at the arrivals board at the airport to find out if the inbound/arriving aircraft coming to your gate is scheduled to be late. If the plane coming to pick you is late, there's a good chance your departure will be delayed as well (this is not certain however since occasionally airlines, particularly at hub airports, can swap planes out for severely delayed aircraft). If the information you gathered points to a delayed flight, consider asking the gate agent or customer service rep to rebook or protect you on an alternate flight. 

6. Check the weather of cities you plan on connecting in. Weather in San Francisco bay be Sunny and warm, but in Chicago they could have an impending storm. Ask a gate agent if they can proactively reroute you through a different connecting city. It saves both you and the airline from a potentially messy situation later on. 

inFLIGHTout Travel Tip - Scan Your Passport

When you travel outside the U.S, some people recommend you keep a copy of your passport in a separate location, such as your luggage or wallet. This way, if your passport is ever lost or stolen, you have a copy to provide officials. Instead, or in addition to, consider scanning a copy of your passport and saving into your email box or other online file server. A scanned copy is crisp, clean and colorful, and looks pretty legitimate (although it is still just a copy). Plus, you have a copy of your passport anywhere in the world you may be, provided there is Internet access to retrieve it.

inFLIGHTout Travel Tip: That Empty Water Bottle

By Mike Grasso

OK, I admit this travel tip rests somewhere between a wonderfully smart and miserably cheap traveler. You know those bottles of water they sell at the airport for $3 or $4 a piece? What a ripoff! Bring your own water bottle from home (can’t you buy a CASE of water for $4?). Be sure the bottle is empty as you enter the security checkpoint, but fill it up once you are post-security. Where do you fill up the bottle you ask? I use water fountains, but in-airport restaurants and fast food chains are often willing to refill them for the asking.

Armed with a full water bottle, you are now ready to board your plane. Even though beverage service is often limited in coach class, you will at least have a full (and free) bottle of water with you as you breeze through the skies.