Ready to fly!

We’ve all heard the horror stories about airport chaos, so I was a bit apprehensive before I flew to Berlin recently for a weekend break with friends. But I shouldn’t have been worried because things went surprisingly smoothly.

Bear in mind we were travelling at the height of the school holidays and early on a Friday morning, so it was never going to be a quiet time. Our flight left from Stansted and we arrived to find the baggage drop area was working efficiently, most of the check-in desks were manned and airport staff had everything running well. It was a far cry from the scenes of chaos we’d been hearing about in the news.

Yes, Security was busy and I managed to cause myself a problem because I’d packed my ‘liquids under 100ml’ in a clear plastic bag that wasn’t resealable. It was a simple mistake to make and I wasn’t the only person who had been caught out. So, although all my bottles were already in one bag, I had to re-pack them into a resealable bag that the airport provided. It all took time and I won’t make that mistake again.

In Departures, the shops, restaurants and Duty Free area were busy but functioning, even if there were some queues at the takeaway food stands. But by 6.00am a lot of the flights had left or were boarding and things quietened down a lot. Just as well, because it gave us time to sit and enjoy a cup of tea before we moved through to our departure gate!

In fact, our journeys out and back were quite uneventful. Even before Covid you would have expected airports to have been busy at this time of year, so it wasn’t surprising that they were. Yet despite all the gloomy reporting our flights were on time and the airports were managing things well. It felt quite like old times and it was lovely to fly again. I wish now I’d done it sooner!

A few tips • Save money by booking your airport parking well in advance. You pay premium prices if you just turn up on the day. • Booking an airport lounge can give you a stress-free start to your holiday. The price includes seating and usually hot and cold food as well as alcoholic and non-alcoholic drinks. • If you don’t like arriving at the airport too far in advance consider booking a Fast-Track through Security. Some airports offer this for a small fee and it definitely saves time.

Do get in touch with me if you’d like more information about the range of airport extras or any help with booking travel arrangements.