Deep dark secrets of the frequent flyer

Joel and I have both adopted some systems over the past few years that make flying easier. Here are a few of our coping strategies and helpful things that have benefited us along the way.

THE FINER POINTS

You saw Up In The Air? Well George Clooney's character was right, it's all about the points. Between Joel and me we rack up enough points on Marriott, Aeroplan, Hilton, Hertz and a stack of other cards that most of our vacations when we head to urban areas are free. Our flights to Europe for instance were free and my round trip to SF in business class was also free. Some of the other perks like priority tagged baggage and frequent flyer lounges are hit and miss in terms of usefulness but you can't argue with free flights and hotels. We also use the special lineups at airports for check in so we can arrive an hour max before international flights and still have plenty of time.

PRINT STUFF OUT

Yes I'm an evangelical Tripit user but sometimes the phone dies or I have to deal with a luddite at a "customer service" counter. I travel with a great wad of paper sometimes in a binder with all of my confirmations printed out. I also print out maps of airports if I know I have a fast transfer and can't afford to dick around.

CHOOSING A SEAT

Avoid the last half dozen rows of economy class.  This is an area where the airline puts large groups like tour groups and kids sports teams. It's also the cheapest seats so sometimes it's tempting but this is also where I've met some of the sketchiest travelers. Think of this area of the plane as the Greyhound bus of air travel. As a woman traveling alone you probably aren't wanting to be sandwiched between  a couple of circus carnies. This actually happened to me.

Avoid the first row of Economy. I know there's more leg room but you have no where to stow small carry-on items. Also that row has all the beds that pull out from the wall for babies. This is baby row. It's going to be a crying symphony for the entire flight. On United it is worth it to pay the $80 to be in Economy Plus but don't take the first row.

PACKING

A purse is your best friend. I hate trying to get things from the overhead bin and unless you're in the aisle seat it's just annoying to other people to try to do this. I put irreplaceable things like my laptop up there and a change of clothes but my purse is where I have my iphone (which is full of movies for the trip) a book, a tiny bag of toiletries and an extra layer.

Never put put your carry-on bag behind where you are sitting. When you exit the plane you'll never fight your way back to be able to claim it again.

Travel light. Joel travels with a bike so he's had to learn to get the rest of his stuff into a small manageable suitcase so he can easily handle the two pieces. I never take a carry on I can't comfortably lift over my head. I know lots of business travelers like to never check anything but as a small person if you can't handle your carry-on it's hell. I buy all my shampoo/conditioner/soap on arrival on any trip longer than a couple of days. I leave it behind on departure. That saves a few lbs in my bag.

Don't do the whole money belt thing. You usually see this with older folks in safari gear and it's as crazy as the hiking poles and boots they're planning to use in downtown Singapore. A money belt means you're going to have to reach down your pants every time you need your passport. You'll look like a noob and frankly more of a target then ever. When we were in Brazil we used little pouches that weren't in the usual moneybelt places and took apart shoe linings and belts to stash things. If you're somewhere that's actually dangerous you need to be more creative than the thieves.

TSA is going to pilfer through any bags that are headed to the US from Asia. Make it easy for them to see your bag isn't a threat by organizing your things and for gods sake don't bring anything you aren't supposed to have. Seriously our bags have never arrived without that TSA tag being on the inside.

If you plan to shop (C'mon, admit it, you don't actually buy your clothes in Singapore do you? Didn't think so) stuff an empty duffel bag into a pocket of your main suitcase so you can put additional clothes in there for the trip back. Untag things and launder them before packing them to go home. This may seem like a obvious thing but lots of folks forget there's a duty limit.


SCREENING

Laces. Don't wear lace up shoes, a belt, a scarf or jacket or anything else you'll have to remove for screening. It holds up the line and if, in a fog of jetlag, you forget to remove this stuff you'll do secondary screening.

Don't put shoes in your carry-on. Shoes get screened separately and you'll have to pull them out each time you get your bags scanned.

Take a tiny stapler in your bag. You are going to get a loose piece of cardstock as your landing card in most countries. Avoid losing this and being detained on exit by stapling it in right away.

Bring a pen to fill in customs cards and always have cash. You never know when an exit tax is going to be imposed.

At customs do not speak. Seriously. People who start talking are trying to hide something and they look for that. If they ask a question, carefully select your answer and avoid quickly saying yes or no before you have a chance to really hear what they asked. One wrong yes or no and you'll miss your connecting flight. In Asia no one will talk to you but the US customs will have a script of trick questions to try to get you to say something crazy.