Lessons I've Learned from Airports

Packing, Airports and Planes
Part Two

Security

The two things I dread most when I travel are going through security and facing immigration to get my passport stamped. I always have a lurking fear that something will go wrong, which will lead to us missing our plane, and ruin our entire trip. So that is the reasoning behind my dread, if indeed I really need a reason. I mean, who really enjoys going through security at airports? 

To be fair, I have never, ever had any problems during the process, nor has my fear of a ruined trip ever been realized. Besides that, another thing that eases my mind is the effort and mental energy I spend in making sure I can get through the process without any hitches. 

Here is my mental checklist:

• Are all my liquids in my quart-sized ziploc bag? (Including lip gloss - just in case.)
• Is my liquids bag easy to access, so I can pull it out easily? (Since many airports require that.)
• Are my water bottles empty?
• Will my shoes be easy to remove?
• Is my coat off? (Or scarf?)
• Is my tablet (or laptop) out? And is it easy to access?
• Are my passport and boarding pass ready for inspection?

My nifty collapsible water bottles.

Because I have a fear of forgetting I have a full water bottle until it's too late to empty it, I go through this list dozens of times: when I'm packing, when I'm on my way to the airport, when we're getting in line for security, the entire time we're in line for security, when we're exiting one plane to get on another headed to an international destination, and many more times in between those moments. I do recommend considering these things while you're packing and in line for security, but unless it makes you feel better, it is not necessary to think about them fifty times like I do. :)

Which reminds me: something I forget is that if you have to change planes during an international flight then you will have to go through security again. It is a less frustrating experience when you remember this beforehand. When I forget and fill up both of my water bottles and put a few of my 3oz. liquids in their proper places only to have to undo all of that work, it certainly puts me out of sorts.

Immigration

Beyond looking a bit serious, there is nothing truly scary about the people who inspect your passport and ask you why and for how long you're visiting their country. In fact, there was a very nice lady at London Gatwick Airport who actually laughed when my mom made a humorous comment! So, the friendly immigration officer does exist. ;)

I recommend having the address of the first place where you'll be staying during your trip easily accessible so you can write it down on the customs form that the flight attendants hand out a short time before landing. I had the addresses in my phone, which was very handy (on more than one occasion).

Boarding Passes

If you ever fly with Norwegian Air, remember this: They do not send you a boarding pass ahead of time - in my experience - so go straight to the check-in area and find Norwegian so they can print you a boarding pass.

I mention that about boarding passes because when we caught our connecting flight out of LAX we had to walk all the way from one end of the huge check-in area to the other and back because we found out that the papers we had printed out at home were not boarding passes (they were called "Travel Documents," which means they simply have your flight info on them).

Instead of a Ziploc bag I use a zippered one. It won't pull apart at the top.

LAX Airport

I have a mixed verdict on Los Angeles's main airport. It didn't give us any trouble and the international terminal (once one is past security) is very nice with lots of seating. But the airport is very large, some of it feels a bit decrepit and all the food is outrageously expensive.

Because we flew into L.A. from a U.S. city we landed at Terminal 1, and since our flight out was going straight to London we had to get to the Tom Bradley International Terminal - which was two whole gargantuan terminals away. We decided to walk, because it was the only free mode of transport we could discover, but it was rather a long walk! Thankfully, we had a four hour layover, so a bit of exercise actually felt nice. The walk could be tiring, though, if one has tons of luggage or isn't feeling 100%, and I wondered why they didn't have a train connecting the terminals. Washington D.C. and Denver airports both have excellent train services, and L.A. is a somewhat important airport. However, they were doing construction all over the place, and their website announces that there will be a train there in the near future. Yay!

I have also since discovered that right now there is a courtesy shuttle bus service between terminals running every 10 minutes. I shall be looking for that next time! :)

One last tip is to bring your own food, especially if you have a long layover in the international terminal at LAX. I don't think we found anything that was less than $9.00.

London Gatwick Airport

Gatwick was a lovely airport! It doesn't seem as bewildering or official as Heathrow does. We did have a bit of trouble figuring out what would be the best way to actually get to London, since the airport is over 25 miles south of the city. We found the train station inside the airport, got in line for tickets, but then decided that the price might be more than we wanted to pay, and got out to look for another option, such as a bus. The National Express bus service had a desk back inside the terminal, so we got in line there, and discovered that train tickets were sold there, too! And they cost only 10 pounds instead of the 16 that they were in the train station. We were feeling pretty pleased with ourselves after that. :)


© 2015 Anna Morton