With summer time journey already in full swing, Fox News Digital spoke to consultants to be taught a few of their tricks and tips for ensuring {that a} checked bag arrives safely to its vacation spot.
Airports are busier than they’ve been in years, which means there are much more individuals who will be checking luggage on their flights.
Here is what journey consultants suggest doing — and avoiding — so {that a} trip doesn’t start by ready in a line at a misplaced baggage workplace on the airport.
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Check out these 4 tips.
1. Fly direct if doable
“Direct flights are the best bet if you want your luggage to get to the right destination,” Richard Campbell, founding father of Calgary-based journey firm 10Adventures, informed Fox News Digital through e-mail.
If a direct flight just isn’t doable and a bag needs to be checked, Campbell advisable having not less than 90 minutes between flights.
To keep away from dropping checked luggage, fly direct if doable, mentioned one journey knowledgeable — or on the very least, don’t ebook a good connection. (Dustin Chambers/Bloomberg through Getty Images)
“If I have two or more stopovers, I assume I won’t get my luggage when I get to my final destination,” he mentioned.
Nikita Kosholkin, co-founder and CMO of the device App within the Air, informed Fox News Digital that he personally is OK with a 45-minute layover, but in addition famous, “It’s better if it’s over an hour.”
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“There is a limited amount of time that a bag can actually travel due to logistics at the airport,” he mentioned.
“Even if you can make your next flight, your bag might not.”
2. Don’t overpack
Packing frivolously, even for a checked bag, can really assist make sure that a bag makes it to its vacation spot, Jeremy Murchland, president of Seven Corners Travel Insurance, informed Fox News Digital. The firm is predicated in Indiana.
An individual who overpacks could wind up scrambling on the check-in gate to ensure a bag is beneath the burden restrict — one thing Murchland mentioned is “just asking for problems.”
Overweight luggage may be taken to a distinct a part of the airport, an knowledgeable informed Fox News Digital — rising the prospect that it will get misplaced. (Mario Tama/Getty Images)
“You’ll lose items in the shuffle or perhaps damage them if they aren’t repacked securely. Plus, you’re now stuck juggling loose belongings that you might not have even needed in the first place,” he mentioned.
Additionally, a bag that’s outsized or heavy just isn’t handled the identical method as standard-sized luggage, he mentioned. Instead, it will be picked up at a distinct location at baggage declare.
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“Any time your luggage has to be routed differently or go through a different process than normal, you run a higher risk of losing your bag, so stay within the recommended limits set by your airline,” he mentioned.
3. Make your bag look distinctive
Many suitcases look comparable — which signifies that somebody who just isn’t cautious could go residence with another person’s issues.
Adding a baggage strap or sticker to a “basic black suitcase” will help make it stand out, a number of consultants informed Fox News Digital. (iStock)
“After a transatlantic flight, everybody is tired, and it’s so easy to grab the wrong suitcases at the luggage carousel,” mentioned Campbell.
To keep away from this, Campbell places stickers on each side of his “basic black suitcase,” in addition to a yellow pompom — which he places away as quickly as he collects his bag.
Dominic Brown, a Richmond-based meals and journey blogger, additionally makes use of identifiers on his baggage.
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“Whether I’m traveling domestically or abroad, I use luggage straps to ensure that my luggage does not get lost in the airport,” he informed Fox News Digital in an e-mail.
These straps, he mentioned, assist make his suitcase stand out from different “basic colored suitcase sets.”
Brown, who owns the web site TallTravelEats, has traveled throughout a number of continents — and informed Fox News Digital that since he started utilizing baggage straps, he has not misplaced a bag throughout his travels.
AirTags, or comparable monitoring merchandise, will help a traveler discover their luggage after a protracted day of journey. (Apple)
But Brown warned that to keep away from any surprises on the airport, a traveler ought to make sure that the bags straps are TSA-approved.
4. Use a GPS tracker
Another suggestion is that vacationers think about using AirTags or different comparable monitoring merchandise to ensure their luggage make it onto the airplane.
AirTags, made by Apple, need to be arrange with an iPhone or iPad, however the product may be tracked utilizing an app that’s obtainable within the Google Play retailer.
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Other monitoring gadgets comparable to Tile should not tied to a selected working system.
“Luggage will get lost, and often the airlines have no idea where it is,” mentioned Campbell.
“I want to help them out, so I use AirTags, so I can find a lost piece of luggage and show it to the airline.”
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Like all know-how, AirTags should not totally excellent, mentioned Campbell.
“The first time I [used an AirTag in a checked bag], I almost had a heart attack as I flew out of London, but my bags were still showing up in another part of Heathrow,” he mentioned.
“Turns out, AirTags can’t update in parts of the airport where there is no signal.”
