Vacation Planning (Airfare & Luggage)- part 2

I covered quite a bit in my last Vacation Post. Here are a few things I didn't mention about how to find a Thrifty deal on Airfare:

• Use your air miles. If you have saved any miles up, take a look at that airline reward schedule. You might be surprised and how far you can get on the miles you have, and if you are a little short, most airlines let you "buy miles" to make up the difference. Also remember most airlines have "air partners" and you can use your miles on ANY of those partners. Here is a list of Sky Team partners (Delta), and Here is a list of Mileage plus partners (United). We travel a lot, and we had enough miles and used them to get our family of 5 to Maui over Easter this year.
• Fly in and out of the same airport, it's usually cheaper. Arrange your plans so you and arrive and depart from the same airport.

• When you purchase your tickets, you will often have the option to select your seats. Selecting an aisle and window seats (leaving the middle seat vacant) will deter strangers from taking your middle seat...if the flight is not full. Think about it....if you were buying a ticket that was sitting single, would you purchase a ticket in between 2 people? And if you luck out and no one does sit in that seat, you have room to stretch out. If someone does purchase that seat, it's VERY easy to swap them after you are on board for the window or aisle seat....no one wants a middle seat. :)

Luggage: People over pack. The end.
Here are a few tried and true tips to packing luggage:

• You can not carry water through security. HOWEVER, you CAN carry EMPTY water bottles through security. Pack an empty water bottle (disposable ones you have previously used) and fill them at a water fountain after you pass security. Then you can carry it on board and use it when the stewardess takes too long with your Coke. This works GREAT with kids with short attention spans that "NEED A DRINK NOW!!!"
  
• Ear phones are a must. Airlines charge you an average of $2 to use a pair of theirs. Earbuds don't take up much room, just toss them in your carry on bag for easy access.
• I like to travel with magazines I haven't had a chance to read yet. When I'm done with them, I can toss them in the trash and have more room to bring back souvenirs. And I don't have to re-pack that book to take back home.
• On long flights, or red eyes, be sure to pack eye masks and sleeping pills. You might feel stupid wearing the eye masks, but they really do help. They block out the annoying cabin lights. Sleeping pills help you sleep undisturbed for longer while on the flight.
• You can do laundry in your hotel. This lessens the amount of clothes you need to pack and therefore maximizes your space to bring stuff home. My husband and I traveled to Europe for two weeks a few years ago with a carry on each (2 total) and one small backpack, we did laundry in the hotel.
  
• As of now, carry on luggage is FREE. Take advantage of it and pack light.
• And lastly, pack an empty duffel bag in your luggage. This comes in SO HANDY if you buy stuff where you are going. Choose one that is very compactable without a hard bottom. *Think Gym bag* They roll up nicely, but can hold quite a bit of stuff when opened.