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If you are travelling internationally, check the
voltage
of your destinations and get an adaptor with the proper prongs
and wattage for your electronic equipment. Your notebook computer
is probably ok - but check the transformer.
Keep an eye on your notebook computer
as you are going through the x-ray machine. Some crooks work in
pairs to help themselves to such.
Long trans-Pacific flights used to be a killer for
me because I could never sleep on the
plane. But now I can sleep for hours on end. Here is
my trick: I take along an inflatable neck pillow. Then take the
blanket and pillow they give you on the plane and put them behind
your back so that your back can be level with your neck that is
resting on the neck pillow. Nowadays I even travel with a spare
because they always leak after a few trips - even the name brands.
Take along a pair of ear-plugs.
You just never know when there will be a screaming baby sitting
close to you! Even without that, they help reduce the engine noise.
Blinders are also good to
have along for naps since the airlines only turn off all the lights
when it is a very long flight.
If you have a big carry-on
and don't want to be stuck with it under the seat giving you no
leg room, or worse yet, get asked to check it in due to a full
cabin, book a seat close to the back: you will be boarded first.
(That is not the case with some international airlines though.)
And get one with wheels - the carry-on bag, not the seat. Just
about all the airports I have been in require some walking to
get to and from the gate - and airports are getting bigger and
bigger. If you are traveling on business and want to save time,
try to fit everything in one carry-on and not check it in. This
will get you to your destination faster and reduce the risk of
losing stuff that you cannot do without - like your brochures
and pamphlets and your change of clothes!
Try not to sit close to the bathroom.
I paid for it on a long international flight one time! Not only
was the aroma annoying, people waiting in line with their elbows
on the back of my seat also kept me from getting some much needed
sleep. Bulkhead seats are
great because not only do you get more legroom, you also don't
have to climb over people to get to the bathroom even if you don't
get an aisle seat, nor do you have to get up to let someone out!
But the downside is the airbag in the seatbelt (on some planes)
that makes it uncomfortable.
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