13 SECRET AIRPORT HACKS That Work in 2024 (NOBODY talks about these!)

I've spent time in dozens of airports around the world and these are my all-time favorite travel hacks this is a jam-packed video with little known and practical tips to help you get free stuff skip the lines and make the most of your time at the airport the first hack is a simple and effective way to beat traffic when getting dropped off at the airport have the driver drop you off at the arrivals level which is usually located on the first floor of the airport instead of the the departures level when the departures Lane is packed but the arrivals Lane is empty since most flights are not arriving at 6 a.m. once inside it's just a quick ride up the escalator and you'll find yourself in the departure area on the second floor if you are arriving at the airport at a peak time and you need to drop a bag or check-in in person with an agent curbside check-in allows you to check bags and get your boarding pass so you can skip the indoor check-in lines alt together it's fast convenient and quite useful if you have a lot of luggage as you don't have to carry it through the airport it is important to know that Airlines often charge a fee for curbside check-in and tipping the baggage handlers is often expected and if you are not using curbside check-in this third hack is going to get you through the indoor check-in line as quickly as possible when you are checking in for a flight or dropping a checked bag at the airport always aim for the line that is closest to the business or priority desk the moment those priority desk agents are done with passengers who have St status they often call passengers from the closest economy line this could mean that you get through the line faster than you anticipated and as an added bonus you'll probably get checked in by a more senior agent that is used to dealing with high status customers the easiest way to avoid any check-in line or any bag drop line would be to travel carry-on only and then check in for your flight online before you arrive at the airport but traveling with just a carry-on is not easy so hopefully this next airport hack will help if you are on on the fence between being able to pack carry-on only and needing to check a suitcase consider wearing a hip pack or fanny pack or crossbody sling under your jacket for a little extra packing space many major airlines consider these to be personal apparel and will allow passengers to wear them without it counting towards carry-on allowance I'll leave a link to the one that I use in the video description before heading to the security checkpoint the next hack is to make sure that you have both a physical copy of your boarding pass as well as a mobile copy you can print your ticket at home ask an agent to do it for you at the airport or you can head to a self-serve airport kiosk to print a copy for free having a physical copy of your boarding pass is a lifesaver in situations where you can't access the internet or if your phone battery were to die it can also give you a significant advantage over other passengers you'll sometimes find that there are separate lines for passengers that have a mobile boarding pass and those that have physical boarding passes having both will allow you to hop into whichever line is the the shortest which is usually going to be the line for those with a physical boarding pass as the barcodes tend to be easier to scan and if you miss the announcement about which line is which you could get in either line and not have to worry about getting to the front of the line and being sent to the back of the other line because you had the wrong type of boarding pass and if you do have some other business to take care of do aim to use the restrooms that are before the security checkpoint the restrooms that you'll find before going through the security screening process are usually less crowded and often cleaner making them a better choice than those that you'll find inside the terminal and one last thing to do at the airport before going through security would be to stock up on the TSA approved clear liquid bags which you can often find available for free at a stand just before the security gate having a little stash of these TSA liquid bags is going to simplify the process for the next time that you pack liquids for the airport they can also make great stocking stuffers if you do have friends and family that travel and when it comes to security there are plenty of taxs to get through the checkpoint efficiently including investing in a trusted traveler program if you are eligible TSA pre-check is less than $100 for 5 years and it's going to significantly increase the speed of your security screening and while TSA pre-check is a worthwhile investment there are many Travelers including my fellow Canadians that might not be eligible and it's good to know that there is another option that is absolutely free that is going to speed up your security screening I'll leave a link in the description to a free fast pass service that is offered by major American and Canadian airports where you can secure a security line time slot in advance I'll also leave a link to a free guide in the video description that is full of tips and tricks to help you get through security as quickly as possible and without setting off any alarms the next hack is to check out the app grab airport to skip any restaurant takeout lines the grab airport app lets you see the food options near your gate and offers the convenience of pre-ordering your meal so you can skip the line and head head straight to the pickup counter and if you do happen to have a lot of time to kill there are a few things that you can do to make the most of that time at the airport check out the website sleeping in airports where you can find the best things to do it might surprise you to learn that you are flying out of an airport with a movie theater or a museum or a butterfly garden some airports like Chan in Singapore even offer free layover tours that take you into the City and if you do have a bit of time to kill but not too much time something simple that I personally love to do is head to the airport bookstores plenty of Travelers hang out in these stores exploring some of the new books and even just reading magazines one of the best ways to spend your time at the airport would be to head to one of the lounges lounges give you a fantastic space to relax and they come with amenities like comfortable seating Wi-Fi food and sometimes even showers if you are flying on an economy ticket and don't have a credit card that includes lounge access check for day passes on a secondhand Marketplace like Craigslist where you can usually find find them at a discount walking up to an airport lounge and paying full price for a day pass can also be well worth it especially if the food and drinks are included in the price using the free website Lounge buddy is an easy way to check the cost and the amenities of a lounge that you may be considering let us know down in the comments if you have ever used an airport lounge this is definitely my preferred way to spend time before a flight but it's also gotten me into trouble at least in the past before I discovered this next hack set an alarm on on your phone for 1 hour before your flights depart your time so you are never caught running through the airport to catch a flight because you got distracted or fell asleep when the alarm does go off do not blindly go to the gate that is on your flight ticket but instead double check the flight board or your mobile pass in the Airlines app so you have the upto-date gate information Gates change all the time and you do not want to head to the wrong Gate 1 hour before your flight's departure especially since this is when some International flights begin boarding the next airport hack is to check your flight status on the free app or website Flight Aware flight delays happen all the time and you may find yourself at the gate close to the flight's scheduled departure to see that the plane hasn't even arrived I find this to be especially frustrating when there is an obvious delay but the airline hasn't even made an announcement Flight Aware can help you to predict how long the delay will be since you can type your flight number in and see exactly where the plane actually is and get an estimate of when it's going going to reach the gate and if there is any disruption to your travel such as a delayed flight this next Haack is going to make sure that you get the compensation you are entitled to Airlines will often take advantage of passengers not knowing their rights by offering things like food vouchers for a long delay accepting these offers can even wave your rights to the much more substantial compensation that you should have received such as credit for Future travel the US Department of Transportation is helping passengers by making customer care plans of major airlines easily accessible so you can always find the compensation that you are entitled to in different situations I'll include a link to this free resource in the description where you can filter by Airline and discover exactly what you're owed in the case of a travel disruption the best way to finish off a great airport experience is to have a great flight and the best way to have a great flight is to pick a great seat I'll put a video on the screen now that walks you through the best seats on the plane and the ones to avoid at all costs and if you've made it this far then don't forget to hit that subscribe button to join us back here for more travel tips and hacks safe travels and I'll see you in that next video soon bye

Channel: Portable Professional (Travel Tips with Megan)

Views: 295,576

Keywords: first time airport, travel tips and hacks, airport lounge access, free airport lounge access, how to use airport lounge access, tsa, tsa clear, tsa clear reserve, tsa precheck, tsa precheck benefits, tsa precheck vs clear, tsa precheck first time, airport security, airport check in, carry on travel, curb side check in, carry on luggage, airport food, tsa liquid bag, delayed flight, cancelled flight, cancelled flight compensation, delayed flight compensation

Id: t3Hio52EFRU

Length: 8min 43sec (523 seconds)

Published: Sun Jan 28 2024