Tips For Flying In Fall/Winter 2022

TTT21 - 2022 travel tips
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Jenn: Hey everybody. Welcome back to travel tip Tuesday.

Meggan: Woo woo.

Jenn: Today I have some quick tips for you for traveling in summer fall, maybe winter 2022 for traveling right now because travel right now is cray-cray

Meggan: it's a bit hairy out there.

Jenn: It is crazy everywhere on, on social media. All I see is horror stories of people having their flights canceled and losing their luggage and getting stuck and not able to get home. And some of these, these situations are unavoidable. Yeah, but some of them are slightly less unavoidable with some planning.

And Meggan and I, we were really lucky when we traveled last.

Meggan: We were

Jenn: like really, really lucky, but you never know when we might be unlucky. Next time. So I

Meggan: we're probably due so

Jenn: we're both probably due. It'll make a good podcast episode, at least

Meggan: I will try to keep that in mind at the time.

Jenn: so here are some quick tips if you're traveling now-ish unless you're listening to this five years in the future and everything is perfect in that case disregard.

Meggan: Oh, I can't wait.

Jenn: all right. My first tip is to label your luggage, especially your checked luggage. Luggage is getting lost at an absolutely alarming rate. And I don't know if you guys have seen the pictures of airports where there's just luggage. But I have it. It is terrifying.

Meggan: It is.

Jenn: Um, So if you're checking a bag, make sure to label it with your name, your phone number, your address, maybe your email. I don't know. The more information, the better. I actually saw a story of a guy who was looking through all of this luggage at an airport. I'm not sure where but he was texting people, texting luggage that had phone numbers on it. And saying, like in sending them a picture of like, your luggage is here, I'm in this airport to let people know where their luggage is

Meggan: like and like a luggage, good Samaritan.

Jenn: I know he was looking for, so he like, well, I'll just keep texting all of these people.

Meggan: I bet he did not work for Air Canada

Jenn: He, he definitely did work for the airline. Take a photo of your luggage. So you have it on your phone. If you can plan in advance, probably don't have black luggage, like have something that's a little more black

Meggan: or tie something to your black luggage,

Jenn: identifiable.

Meggan: Yes.

Jenn: I know people, I don't know if you've seen this Meggan in I'm in like a lot of travel Facebook groups, but people are buying those apple air tags and putting them in their luggage with like mixed success. They need to be,

Meggan: what does that do?

Jenn: It's a tracker.

Meggan: Oh, okay.

Jenn: It needs to be close enough to an, an iPhone, any iPhone to be able to ping locations.

Meggan: Okay.

Jenn: But some people have been able to find their luggage in a Depot somewhere or an airport because their air tag is telling them where it is. So I, I don't think they're that expensive. So they might be worth the investment. Just maybe they work.

Meggan: That is like the most 2022 thing I've ever heard. A, you need a pinger to find your luggage and B you need a pinger to find your luggage. Like it's I anyway, welcome to the now I guess

Jenn: welcome to the now, I mean, when I think back to just last month, when we flew to Scotland for my best friend's wedding and she put her wedding dress in her checked luggage and I wanted to strangle her.

Meggan: Yes, my goodness. She's living on the edge.

Jenn: Yep. I mean, I love her to death. I really, really do, but, and it was fine, but it could have not been fine. My bridesmaid dress was in my carryon. It, I carried it with me everywhere. I went

Meggan: you weren't playing games.

Jenn: I was not playing games. No. My next tip is don't wait until the last minute to book anything accommodations especially rental cars cuz you won't get one. Don't wait until a lot of people are traveling right now because we've been shut in for too long. But I've seen a lot of people saying like, I'm just gonna wing it. Do not wing.

Meggan: Oh, good Lord. People no. Even pre all of this nightmare for June travel, we book in October.

Jenn: Yeah.

Meggan: Like I don't mess around a, I wanna stay specific places and B I just want a rental car.

Jenn: Yeah.

Meggan: So like I'm gonna book in advance and I, if you, if you play the too close game you're you're, you could possibly lose and ruin your trip.

Jenn: Try to book the first nonstop flight of the day flights, these flights, like the first nonstop flight of the day get canceled less often. So I mean, things are getting canceled a lot, so you still might get canceled. But the first flight of the day are usually a better chance that it won't get canceled or at least you have time for them to put you on the next flight.

Meggan: Well, that's what I was just gonna say. If it does get canceled, you've got the day to try to get wherever you're going. Fingers crossed.

Jenn: Yes. Travel insurance. Buy travel insurance. I don't know what else to tell you buy the insurance. .

Meggan: I mean, if you're not at this point, like where have you been?

Jenn: What, what are you doing? yeah, especially in the case of being sick and unable to travel, so just do it and just like be prepared to wait in long lines, especially at airports be patient be nice. Everyone's doing their best. The world is understaffed. Like .

Meggan: Yeah,

Jenn: it's crazy. But if you're mean it's like at best gonna ruin someone's day and at the worst it's gonna make you not be able to get on your flight. So. Don't do that.

Meggan: Right. And, and don't get me wrong. We're all frustrated. And especially in those kind of situations, but it's not gonna get you anywhere like it. And it's going, like you said, it's gonna ruin someone else's day. And hopefully if you're a decent person at the end of the day, it's probably gonna ruin yours when you look back and realize what you've done to someone else. So, yeah, like. Just be kind and try to put yourself in their shoes. I think we, the world seems have lost sort of like being able to put themselves in someone else's shoes or something.

Jenn: Yeah. Bonus bonus tips, avoid Toronto Pearson at all costs. Um, It is currently ranked the worst airport for flight delays. and it's like fourth, worst for cancellations. So gross from May 26th to July 19th Pearson saw 52 and a half percent of their flights were delayed. Wow. Over half of their flights were delayed and six and a half percent of their flights were just straight up cancelled.

Meggan: Y Y Z is not where it's at.

Jenn: Do not do not go there right now. It is a mess. And I, Ooh, I don't like Pearson in the best of times. If you're flying to Toronto, I highly recommend tiny little Billy Bishop, Toronto islands, airport. It is small, but it's in the middle of the city. yeah. It's not seeing all of these crazy things.

Meggan, I think I saw that Frankfurt was actually the second worst for

Meggan: really?

Jenn: For delayed flights. I believe it was. So I thought that was interesting

Meggan: yeah, we were delayed getting to and leaving from it was an hour, probably each.

Jenn: Right.

Meggan: So honestly, when I consider it versus everything else, it wasn't that bad, but yeah, we were delayed so that I'm, I'm not shocked I guess.

Jenn: Yeah. Yeah. Yeah, it is, it is great. I'm very happy that we're traveling again, but just know that things aren't a hundred percent normal. And may never be a hundred percent normal. I don't know. We don't know what's happening. We do not have to crystal the ball, but air travels a little crazy, but be nice and have fun, I guess is my final tip.

So that's it for travel tip Tuesday. Uh, Thank you so much for listening to the travel mug podcast. We really, really, really appreciate it. And we love hearing from you on social media. So you can find us on Instagram and Facebook at the travel mug podcast and on our website, travel mug, podcast.com.

You can support us by buying us a coffee, the links in the show notes, and you'll get access to fun stuff, some bloopers and that sort of thing.

Meggan: It's mostly just Jenn. Anyway.

Jenn: yeah, Megan's perfect. It's just me. Consider leaving us an apple podcast or Spotify review. Those really help new people find us. And we want some new travel loving pals. So maybe share the show and we'll chat with you soon. Bye everyone.

Meggan: Bye everyone.