Last Updated on December 5, 2020
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Air travel is synonymous with airports. Just thinking about them makes you stressed out. Going through long lines at the security checkpoints, taking things out of your travel luggage and putting them back in at the security screening, sitting in an uncomfortable chair at the boarding gate, and overpriced coffee. These are some of the things that make them horrible.
Seen from a different perspective, this is also the place you have to go through before a great adventure. From which there is a multitude of possibilities and incredible experiences to be lived. This is the mindset you need to have when you arrive at the airport. Otherwise, you are in for a couple of exasperating hours.
To make this time more enjoyable, or less painful, here are nine airport mistakes you should avoid doing!
1. Arriving too late/too early
You don’t want to miss your flight or be in such a worry that anxiety starts taking hold of you, and you are now running around the airport visibly stressed. But you also don’t want to arrive too early and spend hours with nothing to do – that is both tedious and unnecessary. You already know how difficult it is to entertain yourself at the airport. So, how early should you get to the airport? Well, that depends on where you are traveling to and at what time of the year. If you are catching a domestic flight, arriving 90 minutes before departing time is enough – considering you do the check-in online and you are not traveling with a large group of people. On the other hand, if you are catching an international flight, you should arrive three hours before its scheduled departing time.
2. Ignoring TSA rules and luggage restrictions
Airport rules and laws are meant to keep you, all the other passengers and crew safe. Of course, you can argue that they are too strict and sometimes even unreasonable, but there’s a valid reason behind every single one of them. So please, don’t ignore them. Carrying prohibited items will only delay the security procedures for everyone, and you will have to travel without those items anyway. Please make sure you read the TSA regulations very carefully so as not to commit any mistake. You should also be aware that airline companies have specific carry-on bag size and luggage weight restrictions that differ from one company to another. So, you need to check them before packing your essentials – unless you want to pay an extra fee (that in some cases may even be more expensive than your cheap flight tickets).
