{"id":16974,"date":"2015-11-18T09:04:01","date_gmt":"2015-11-18T17:04:01","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/spijue.wpengine.com\/news\/more-thanksgiving-travelers-dont-get-stuck-at-airport\/"},"modified":"2015-11-18T09:04:01","modified_gmt":"2015-11-18T17:04:01","slug":"more-thanksgiving-travelers-dont-get-stuck-at-airport","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.juneauempire.com\/news\/more-thanksgiving-travelers-dont-get-stuck-at-airport\/","title":{"rendered":"More Thanksgiving travelers; don’t get stuck at airport"},"content":{"rendered":"

NEW YORK<\/strong> \u2014 A stronger economy and lower gas prices mean Thanksgiving travelers can expect more congested highways this year.<\/p>\n

During the long holiday weekend, 46.9 million Americans are expected to go 50 miles or more from home, the highest number since 2007, according to travel agency and car lobbying group AAA. That would be a 0.6 percent increase over last year and the seventh straight year of growth.<\/p>\n

While promising for the travel industry, the figure is still 7.3 percent short of the 50.6 million high point reached in 2007, just before the recession.<\/p>\n

Like on every other holiday, the overwhelming majority of travelers \u2014 almost 90 percent \u2014 will be driving. And they will be paying much less at the pump.<\/p>\n

AAA says the average retail price for gasoline is now $2.15 per gallon, 74 cents cheaper than the same time last year. With the average car getting 18.5 miles per gallon, that means a family driving 300 miles will save $12 in fuel this holiday.<\/p>\n

Airlines for America, the lobbying group for several major airlines, forecasts 25.3 million passengers will fly on U.S. airlines, up 3 percent from last year. (AAA\u2019s forecast shows fewer numbers of fliers because it looks at a five-day period while the airline group looks at the 12 days surrounding Thanksgiving.)<\/p>\n

Airfare is basically flat compared to last year, with a mere 0.3 percent or 69 cent average increase, according to the Airlines Reporting Corp., which processes ticket transactions for airlines and travel agencies.<\/p>\n

Traveler counts are a little fuzzier when it comes to other forms of transport.<\/p>\n

Bus use will continue to grow, according to the Chaddick Institute for Metropolitan Development at DePaul University. The school expects 1.2 million to take buses, up 1 percent to 2 percent from last year. However, AAA says travel by cruises, trains and buses will decrease 1.4 percent this Thanksgiving, to 1.4 million travelers.<\/p>\n

\n

AIR TRAVEL TIPS<\/strong><\/p>\n

Since flying can often cause the most disruptions and leave travelers feeling helpless, here are some tips to cope with any delays. Flights are packed around the holidays and if there is any hiccup, the difference between getting home and not can come down to asking the right questions and acting fast.<\/p>\n

DELAYS<\/p>\n

\u2014 At the first sign of a serious mechanical problem, call the airline to have it \u201cprotect\u201d you on the next flight out. That way if the mechanical problem leads to a cancellation, you are already confirmed on a new flight and can just print a new boarding pass.<\/p>\n

\u2014 If you miss your flight connection \u2014 or bad weather causes delays \u2014 get in line to speak to a customer service representative. But also, call the airline directly. If the phone lines are jammed, try the airline\u2019s overseas numbers. You\u2019ll pay long-distance rates, but might not have to wait. (Add those numbers to your phone now.) Finally, consider sending a tweet to the airline.<\/p>\n

\u2014 Consider buying a one-day pass to the airline lounge. For one thing, there are usually free drinks and light snacks. But the real secret to the lounges is that the airline staffs them with some of its best \u2014 and friendliest \u2014 ticket agents. The lines are shorter and these agents are magically able to find empty seats. One-day passes typically cost $50 but discounts can sometimes be found in advance online.<\/p>\n

\u2014 If weather causes cancellations, use apps like HotelTonight and Priceline to find last-minute hotel discounts for that night. Warning: Many of the rooms are nonrefundable when booked, so lock in only once stuck.<\/p>\n

LUGGAGE<\/p>\n

\u2014 Weigh it at home first. Anything over 50 pounds (40 pounds on some airlines like Spirit) will generate a hefty overweight surcharge, in addition to the checked bag fee.<\/p>\n

\u2014 Before your bag disappears behind the ticket counter, make sure the airline\u2019s tag has your name, flight number and final destination. Save that sticker they give you \u2014 it has a bag-tracking number on it.<\/p>\n

\u2014 Place a copy of your flight itinerary inside your suitcase with your cellphone number and the name of your hotel in case the tag is ripped off.<\/p>\n

\u2014 If you can\u2019t live without it, don\u2019t check it. It might take days to return a lost bag. Don\u2019t pack medication or outfits for tomorrow\u2019s meeting or wedding. Never check valuables such as jewelry or electronics.<\/p>\n

\u2014 Prepare your carry-on bag as if it will be checked. You might not have planned to check your bag, but given today\u2019s crowded overhead bins many fliers don\u2019t have a choice. Pack a small canvas bag inside your carry-on so if you are forced to check it, you can at least keep your valuables with you.<\/p>\n

SEATS<\/p>\n

\u2014 Set up alerts for seat openings. ExpertFlyer.com offers free notifications when a window or aisle seat becomes vacant. For 99 cents, it sends an email if two adjacent seats become available. The service is available for Alaska Airlines, American Airlines, JetBlue Airways, United Airlines and Virgin America but not for Delta Air Lines and some smaller carriers.<\/p>\n

\u2014 Check the airline\u2019s website five days before the trip. That\u2019s when some elite fliers are upgraded to first class, freeing up their coach seats. Another wave of upgrades occurs every 24 to 48 hours.<\/p>\n

\u2014 Check in 24 hours in advance when airlines start releasing more seats. If connecting, see if seats have opened up 24 hours before the second flight departs.<\/p>\n

\u2014 Keep looking for new seats. Even after checking in, seats can be changed at airport kiosks and on some airlines\u2019 mobile applications.<\/p>\n

__<\/p>\n

Follow Scott Mayerowitz at twitter.com\/GlobeTrotScott. His work can be found at http:\/\/bigstory.ap.org\/content\/scott-mayerowitz<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

NEW YORK \u2014 A stronger economy and lower gas prices mean Thanksgiving travelers can expect more congested highways this year. During the long holiday weekend, 46.9 million Americans are expected to go 50 miles or more from home, the highest number since 2007, according to travel agency and car lobbying group AAA. That would be […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":107,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_stopmodifiedupdate":false,"_modified_date":"","wds_primary_category":4,"footnotes":""},"categories":[4],"tags":[65],"yst_prominent_words":[],"class_list":["post-16974","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-news","tag-nation-world"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.juneauempire.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/16974","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.juneauempire.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.juneauempire.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.juneauempire.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/107"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.juneauempire.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=16974"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.juneauempire.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/16974\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.juneauempire.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=16974"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.juneauempire.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=16974"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.juneauempire.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=16974"},{"taxonomy":"yst_prominent_words","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.juneauempire.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/yst_prominent_words?post=16974"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}