Let's talk airplanes, airports, etc.

Lesson #1:
Flying on Christmas Day is cheaper than the days preceding, did you know that? Truly. And "they" say there are fewer people traveling on The day. May well be true. We flew out on Christmas Day from Cleveland Hopkins to Newark Liberty, then on to London Heathrow. By flying ON Christmas Day, the tickets were about $400 cheaper each, times 3 travelers. You do the math.

Lesson #2:
Leave yourself some wiggle room/time. I booked this trip. So, I planned longer than would seem necessary layovers in Newark. Why? Because I've missed enough connecting flights in my day. I hate that! Then you're stuck flying stand-by and inevitably end up sitting in the middle seat, etc. Little did I know when I booked our flights that the Hubby would be recovering from a broken hip, and I would be nursing a bad knee which would slow us down from our normal breakneck speed. But I booked those longer connections anyway, thank God.

Lesson #3:
Check out the airplane seating diagram before you choose your seats; then choose wisely. I hate sitting in the middle seat. Hubby doesn't hate it, but he's not a fan, either. And we don't really cuddle on airplanes- it's just tacky, you know? So, we both got aisle seats, just across from each other. And fairly close to the front lavatory. I did give up my aisle seat on one flight, though, because a mother and her 2 little girls were unable to book seats together and I wouldn't want my little girls sitting with a stranger, so I gave the mother my aisle in exchange for her window by Hubby.

Lesson #4:
On international flights, check in at the gate, even though you've already checked in online. They usually want to check your passport again, and if you don't check in at the gate, they may send you back during the boarding process. It's not just a pain in the a$$, but it's embarrassing. Didn't happen on this trip because I learned this lesson somewhere else, long, long ago.

Lesson #5:
Going forward, when booking an international flight, I will check the aircraft scheduled to be used. Flying international, long-haul flights in anything less than a 777 is inhumane, and to be avoided if at all possible. I will, in the future, consider the AIRCRAFT as important as the flight time.