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A picture of me calm and sleeping after good preparation ^^

Overview.

We have all experienced it- the classic pre travel panic. Symptoms of such panic includes: packing your National Geographic extended version of 1000 places to visit before you die, your 2018 wall calendar planner, a compass, penknife, emergency whistle, arm bands, rubber ring and crocs to ensure that you have have suitably packed EVERYTHING you need for your 8 days away.

Pre travel panic isn’t associated with just packing alone, I am always 90% certain that I am not going to make my flight or that someone will have somehow smuggled something upon my person without me knowing.

I am not alone in this and I have friends and family who encourage me to panic and openly add to my panic. Whether it be figuring out Ryan air’s new cabin bag policy …(sorry Ryan air but its CONFUSING) or how to get through the barriers when your Dad decides to download all the boarding passes on his own phone (not helpful) Travel panic is all around us.

 

Over the years I have perfected it into an acceptable form of stress less travelling and here’s my tips on how you can join me!

That’s Daisy ^^

Booking.

Always read then re-read then read again the boarding policy and cabin bag allowances that go with what you are booking. Do yourself a favour and always go for priority boarding because without it you can loose a lot of nights to reading flight providers websites and trying to understand if they even understand what their cabin bag policy is.

Once this is complete you can decide to book a seat if you wish and sometimes it costs more. I don’t bother if I am travelling alone and often don’t bother if I am with people because in fairness all I do is fall asleep on the plane so I am so use to anyone. Do note that often this means you will get a slightly compromised seat. On my way to Sicily, I was on the planes engine and thought I was inside the Apollo 11 for most of the journey. A gentleman next to me tried to chat and it just didn’t work, so I went to sleep.

From here I feel that all the tech bit is out the way and it is now in your soul hands of planning to ensure that you turn up and board the aircraft. Check in as soon as you can so that is out of the way and for ease download whatever flight providers app if you can so you have the boarding pass easy to hand…you can always delete the app later if you need.

My friend Shana made us both an excellent itinerary when we traveled to Spain a couple of years ago. It had our every move noted down with the exact timings and what was expected of us and our movements of the day. Some people like to be free spirits but be careful because technology favours the afraid and over prepared. You never know when your GPS signal will take you to the other side of Agrigento because it felt like it leaving you stranded. So always have some written form of help available, or a map if you are good at orienteering.

 

Packing.

Next bit, on to the packing! My friend Daisy shoves things into a case at around 1 am the night before a flight with the idea that ‘I can always buy it if I need it right?’ WRONG. Who will help you when you realise that you have only packed two pairs of knickers and your housemates painting shirt by mistake? Not me that’s who. Sanitary items are also ones to consider because as much as we feel cheated here being taxed it gets a whole lot more pricey in different parts of Europe. So consider your essentials and the bits and bobs you can always find when you are away, like loo roll.

Don’t overwhelm yourself too much here, I’m sure I am scaring you a bit but packing can be therapeutic. You learn a lot about yourself with what you want to put in your suitcase. Take it as part of your own personal growth.

Pre Boarding, airport security.

Regardless of what anyone tries to make you believe no one has ever had a smooth pass through security pre or post flight. Fact. I like to enter with confidence, if I am wearing headphones I will choose a suitable track to pump myself up. Obviously, I have to take this out as soon as I start putting my bags on the conveyor and then I’m open to distraction again. The most important part of any airport security is ensuring that someone somewhere has remembered to bring at least 60 plastic bags to cover the liquids in. I make sure that I take anything off that isn’t material. I will leave that to your imagination.. My watch. Then I display everything clearly in the plastic tubs. I arrange my phone and my iPod, my watch and my jewelry together. Next I have my plastic bag of liquids, personally I think is astonishing that we are encouraged to add to the plastic waste problem but there we go. All that is left now is to swirl myself through the scanner and I am on the home straight. I flick my hair back and laugh loudly in the face of the security guards in an attempt to ensure that they know I am an avid  traveller who knows her way around an airport. Then the alarm sounds and  I have to stand with my arms up in the air while they try and find that thing that someone shoved in my pocket or my shoe or my sock without me knowing… and -oh I left my belt on. I silently weep around the corner because they raised their voice at me and made me take my belt off and everyone looked.

Boarder Control.

When entering boarder control look at no one and ask NO ONE for help because it wont be given to you and you will be treated like a criminal. This happened to me when I last entered the UK. I can’t bring myself to recount it yet because it made me very sad and people were crying. I will most likely not travel again to and from this certain airport again, so sorry.

*Amendment* I have already booked into this airport again..wish me luck.

 

Now all of the hard part is out of the way! You made it into the country of your choice! The world is your oyster and you can start exploring and snapping and sharing your stories……all after you have found your air BnB of course….