Tags: #tags: flight, flying
First time flying?
Maybe you’re flying ‘by yourself’ for the first time?
The latter is usually scarier as you feel like you should know what to do by now.
Fear not. Here’s how it works…
So you’ve booked your flight. Now what?
Check your email for the details of your booking.
There’s two important bits of information you’ll need:
The reason you need these details is that they’ll let you log into the website of the relevant airline you’re flying with.
Why would you want to do that? Well, it’s because it means you can put in any missing details (ESTA VISA, Passport numbers, reserve your seats, check-in etc).
For example, my last trip I was flying with American Airlines, so I went to their website: https://www.americanairlines.co.uk/ and from there I could locate my flight using the details providing in my booking confirmation email.
Next, find out what airport ‘terminal’ you’re going to be flying out from.
For example, if you’re going to fly from London Heathrow airport (LHR), you can check which ‘terminal’ you’re flying out from here.
If you want to also book car parking at the airport you’re flying from, then knowing the terminal can be useful information (so you get a parking space nearest to that terminal).
I like to fly out from London Heathrow (LHR) airport as it’s easiest for me to drive to.
To review LHR short stay carparking, click here.
You can also manage your LHR account (for car park bookings) here.
So you’ve got your booking and flight details, now what?
Well, you need to get to the airport that you’re flying from.
Make sure you get to the airport 2hrs before your flight is scheduled to leave (maybe 3hrs if you’re nervous).
When you get to the airport, first you’ll want to head to “Departures”.
Now you’re at “Departures”, you need to get your plane ticket (i.e. your “boarding pass”).
Depending on your airport you’ll either talk to a human or the process will be automated by machines.
Either way you look for the airline you’re flying with and you “check-in” (this is the process of identifying yourself and the flight you’ve booked, and in return you’re given a “boarding pass”).
Nowadays you can “check-in” the day before (yes, you can actually “check-in” at home while online). If that’s what you do, you can choose to either print your boarding pass at home from your own printer or you can just “check-in” and choose to pick up your boarding pass from an automated “check-in” machine at the airport.
But realistically, if you’re going to check-in from home, then you’ll likely just print your boarding pass from there as well.
Now you have your boarding pass you can drop off any luggage you have (i.e. anything larger than a rucksack that you want to have stored on the plane while you fly).
Nearby where you “checked-in” will be the “Bag Drop” associated with the airline you’re flying with.
In order to drop off your luggage you’ll need your boarding pass and your passport (to prove who you are and that you’re allowed to drop your luggage onto that flight).
Once you’ve dropped your bags off you’ll immediately walk towards a “security check” zone. This is so the airport authorities can ensure you’re not carrying any dangerous weapons onto the plane.
You’ll have to follow their instructions (which could be things like, take off your watch, belt, jacket and put them into a basket to be scanned).
Once you’re through security you’re get to the fun part…
Depending on how earlier you got to the airport, you’ll now have to sit around until it’s time to get onto your plane.
For me, the process of getting my boarding pass, check-in and going through security leaves me approximately 2hrs of sitting around :-( but hey, I get time to sit on my laptop with the airport free wifi and write things like this very article :-)
At this point you need to look at the large ‘departure’ screens that show all the flights going out that day. On that screen you’ll locate your flight and it’ll tell you where your ‘gate’ is (the gate is where you walk to in order to get on your plane).
If you’re plane isn’t ready to fly, then the screen will say something like “no gate number yet” (or in some cases it’ll tell you when they expect the gate number to be shown; which is handy as I can set a timer on my phone to check back in 2hrs time if that’s when they reckon it’ll be ready - although I have a habit of looking at the screen on a regular basis in case that number changes).
My first pro tip is to straight away go to a shop and buy yourself snacks, a magazine or book and a large bottle of water (so you can stay hydrated on your flight).
One thing of interest to mention here, is that whenever you buy something at the airport you need to have your boarding pass available. I’ve no idea why, you just need to show the sales person your boarding pass and they’ll scan it ¯\_(ツ)_/¯
My second pro tip is to get yourself a seat right in front of the ‘departure’ boards. This is so you don’t have to keep getting up and walking to one in order to see the details of your flight (for nervous passengers this is so much easier as you can constantly glance up at the screen… no, no gate number shown yet).
Eventually your flight’s gate number will be shown on the departure screen. Take note of the number and walk towards that gate.
When at that gate you’ll again present your boarding pass and passport, and then you’ll sit down until the plane is ready for you to board it (this can also take quite some time, so be patient).
You might also find that the airport staff will only allow certain members to board the plane at a time. Usually disabled people or parents with young children are first. Then rich people who fly first class, and so on down.
I fly economy, as I can’t afford rich people seats, so I have to sit around for quite a while.
Once you’ve landed, and you’ve departed the plane, you’ll need to head to the “Arrivals” area of the airport (or look for “baggage claim” if you’ve got luggage on the plane you need to now collect).
Once in that area, look for your flight number and walk to the zone where your luggage will be made available for you to pick up.
Pro tip: tie some colourful material around the handle on your luggage. So many people have black luggage (or luggage of the same colour as you) that it becomes awkard knowing which bag is yours.
Some people place bright stickers on their luggage so they instantly recognise their bags. Other people just buy REALLY bright coloured bags :-)
Once you’ve got your luggage you want to head for the airport exits.
But first you’ll need to go through “passport control”, this is where your destination country checks your passport and ensures you’re not a known criminal trying to hide away in their country.
If you’ve landed in America you might find that you have to go through multiple security checks.
The steps are generally…
Pro tip: be patient, be kind and give honest answers. Don’t crack a joke about having a bomb in your bag or anything like that. Security at airports do NOT have a sense of humor. Just smile, answer questions you’re asked and you’ll be through and out of there in no time.
Now from there you can go about getting to your hotel and enjoying your holiday/trip.