Travel Tips from a Barely Adult Part Two

And I am back with more travel tips! These are things I have discovered while taking a more active role in packing and traveling and when traveling alone. Many times while traveling I got TSAPre at the airport because I was under 18 and very non threatening or something. TSAPre allowed me to get through security in as little as five minutes and not have to remove shoes or coolers or anything. Now that I'm 18, it's quite unlikely I'll be getting that for a while. I say this because my sister isn't that much older than me and as soon as she turned 18 all the times we have flown she never gets TSAPre anymore. Even when we travel in groups either just I will get TSAPre or everyone but my sister will get it. I've gotten rather used to TSAPre but I guess I'll have to get used to regular security again.

1. Check in at the airport!

This is just personal preference but I prefer to check in at the airport because it's really easy and you get a very conveniently sized boarding pass. Just walk into the airport and look for the little check in kiosks and enter in your confirmation number then *poof* out pops a lovely boarding pass. Bit easier to deal with than a giant piece of paper from your home printer that may or may not decide to work (is that just our printer? Well, the thing is 15 years old).

2. Stash your boarding pass somewhere easy to get at!

This can be an outside pocket on your bag or somewhere on your person. Pockets are useful for this but make sure the pocket is big enough and that your boarding pass won't fall out. Another thing I have done multiple times is fold the boarding pass into quarters and then stick it under my bra strap because I didn't have pockets (women's clothing doesn't have pockets sometimes and it's annoying). Also, if you do lose your boarding pass you can get a new one at the gate or something. My sister lost her boarding pass once and they just pulled us aside and got her information then printed her a new boarding pass.

3. Look up what you can and can't bring!

People have a general idea of what you can and can't bring on airplanes but sometimes you have a specific thing you are wondering about such as frozen steak, avocados, knitting needles, or rechargeable batteries (all real things I have looked up). Since I am going to a different country, I'm having to look up the regulations for what is allowed through airports in that country because it may be more strict than American airports. The TSA website is here and the website for a Japanese airline is here.

4. Make a universal packing list!

One time before a trip I made a packing list on my whiteboard and since it was a pretty good list I took a picture of it and now use that as my universal packing list. It is recommended you make these well before the time you have to actually pack because for some reason it's difficult to figure out what you need when you actually have to pack. I found a universal packing list online that I think is pretty good so you can check that out if you need ideas for what to put on your universal packing list.

5. When you land in an airport, get your bearings as quickly as possible!

If you have a connecting flight, this is very important. Figure out what gate you are at and what gate you need to get to as quickly as possible. Once you know that, figure out how you are going to get there. How are the concourses set up? Which direction do you need to walk? Some places have trains along the concourses or between concourses so if you need to use one of those figure out which train gets you to were you need to be as quickly as possible. Once you find your gate, you are free to shop around or get food or go to the bathroom or refill your water bottle. Don't try to do all that on the way there. Simply note where anything interesting is and go back there after you find your gate. Don't want to be trying to find your gate at the last minute. If you landed at your destination airport, don't wait around! Follow the crowd so you can find the baggage claim and exit. There will be signs too of course but it's easier to follow a crowd of people than it is to follow signs.

6. Get ready to go through security while in line!

Lines for regular security are usually long so use that time to get your boarding pass and ID out, drink what is left in your water bottle, consolidate luggage, and remove jackets, belts, and hats. When it's your turn to go through security, simply get your shoes off, throw your bags onto the scanner, put your stuff in one of those bins, and wait to go through the scanner. When you get out the other side, grab your bags and move, don't stand there putting everything back on. You block up the whole process for everyone if you do that. If your bag gets searched, just walk over there and talk with the TSA agent searching your bag. They are often surprisingly nice and it can be fun to talk about the stuff in your bag. One time my bag got searched and the TSA agent kept getting distracted by the cute stuff in my bag and liked how I had so many bags within my larger bag.

7. Put everything in its own bag!

Organize everything in your bag as much as you can so it doesn't just become a giant mess of random items in your bag. You an either use clear ziplock bags or more sturdy ones that you get as hand outs. I don't know if guys have an abundance of these but basically they are these sturdy bags you use for makeup or other beauty products and you often get them as freebies. I knit a lot of bags too so I have a variety of bags to organize my stuff in (well, at least I try to).