Travelling for the first time in your new job? And you are here looking for travel hacks to make your first time a little smoother? Or maybe you are tired of travelling and need some hacks to make your frequent travelling for work more bearable? Even still are you deciding whether or not to travel solo or maybe with the help of a corporate travel consultant, either way! You have certainly stumbled across the right article. We are here to share with you the top 10 handy travel hacks that you might need while travelling for business.
- Cheaper upgrades during the holidays
It only makes sense to book coach class tickets when you are on a budget but during the holidays is when you can check for an upgrade to economy or business class flights. This is due to the fact that there are less people who are travelling for business during the holidays and most people will travel via coach class to make it home, leaving an availability of upper class seats which the airlines happily give away at a reduced price.
- Combine fares
This is something your corporate travel consultant can tell you if you have one. Probably one of the oldest hacks in the book is booking one way flights instead of round trips. While round trips can seem the most convenient they can often tend to be more expensive and even less convenient. On the other hand purchasing two one way tickets will cost you less and might even be the more convenient option for you.
- Tweet to get help
Gone are the days of calling or emailing customer service and waiting for your turn to talk or a reply. If you have missed a connection, or suffered poor service, Twitter is the way to go. The majority of airlines have customer service representatives monitoring Twitter, so it’s quite an effective and efficient tool to get the attention you need.
- Sign up for the flyer miles
Regardless of the fact if you are not a frequent flyer or not, but you still ought to sign up flyer miles programs whenever you have an opportunity to travel. Even if your accumulated mileage stands at zero, you have to start somewhere. Maybe over the time, you will collect enough accrued miles to take advantage of it. Having some sort of a frequent traveler number is much better than having none at all.
- Fly on the big holidays
Yes, holidays are a popular time to travel but that are mostly the days leading up to or following the days after the holidays. So if you don’t have any apparent issues, arriving right on the day of you are safe and will are sure to save some money as well.
Research has shown that the fewest numbers of flights are booked on the actual holiday days such as Christmas, thanksgiving etc. So if you are uneasy with crowds and want to travel stress free these are the ideal days for you to book flights.
- Treat yourself during the flight delays
In the case your flight gets delayed, and you happen to get stuck in the airport, it helps if you have planned something to look forwards to. Maybe catch a season finale that you haven’t got time to finish before, catch a movie or maybe even carry an interesting book with you if you happen to love reading. Changing your focus and doing something productive will help you get over the frustration of the flight delays.
- Cutting down the time at security
The people at the TSA (Travel Security Administration) have a tough enough jobs, but you can make it a little easier for both, them and yourself by taking care of little things beforehand such as shoes that can be taken off and worn easily. Avoid wearing heavy metals studded clothes, belts or particularly anything that can set off the metal detector during security. Don’t bring large bottles of liquids along with yourself. It’s better if you read up on the travelling and luggage policies beforehand so you save time and have a more smooth security check.
- Avoid carrying any travel gear
Unless you are travelling for longer periods with long transits times and more than one connecting flight, you don’t really need those special neck pillows or those bulky noise cancelling earphones. Unless you have some special neck conditions you can always roll your jacket or coat to make a neck pillow or even ask the air hostess for a couple of earplugs to help you sleep better on the plane.
- Sort out all your travel details online
It is always wise to have all your travel details sorted out online somewhere. Someplace you can easily access. Details such as room number you will be staying in, the car parking area number etc. There are tons of apps out there designed for exactly this purpose. You can easily search online for the kind that will suit your travel needs the best.
- Check in, in Advance
Checking in for your flight online or even using your airline’s online application. This way you can easily get your boarding pass printed out before you even arrive at the airport. This will help you stay ahead of your routine and at times you will be able to skip the check in and move on straight to security.
Conclusion
Well there you have it! Our handy travel hacks that are going to prove quite useful in your corporate travel or even if you are travelling for pleasure such as going on a holiday or meeting family or friends. Truth is travelling changes you so much and every traveler is different. While our travelling hacks might help you to be a little more prepared there are still a lot of things that will come as a surprise, but then again that is what travelling is all about! To bring you out of your comfort zone and make you experience and view life like you haven’t before.
Other articles by mtltimes.ca and totimes.ca
