hypertravel

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Hypertravel by Marcia Conner

Travel makes you younger. Journey well. - Kent Trogdon

There are four types of business travelers. There are the naïve, the ambivalent, the reluctant, and the hyper. The first three groups either travel infrequently or too often. The last group doesn't spend much time thinking about how often they travel, they just know it can't keep them from getting their work done and having a little fun along the way.

If you fall into the last category, you've probably already mastered all the travel tricks. Here's a review.

1. Avoid lines. If you can't avoid them, ignore them. With a little planning, you shouldn't have to stand in line. Before you ever head to the airport, you should have your airline tickets or electronic ticket receipt. With new security regulations, you'll have to get your boarding pass at the airport, but head directly to the boarding gate if you don't have access to your airline's travel lounge. The lines at the gate are usually much shorter and the people working the desk know the most about your flight. Travel lounges rarely have lines and can furnish boarding passes as well as a quite environment to work.

Another line you can avoid is the one on to the plane. If you can't travel in first or business-class, ask for a seat at the very last row of the coach section. You'll be able to board first and recline your seat as soon as you board. That seat also often provides extra storage space behind you and has quick access to bathrooms and the on flight kitchen.

When you register at your hotel or for a rental car, inquire if they have an express service that allows you to pick up your own room information or key. Again, if you do get stuck in line DO SOMETHING, don't just stand there. Using a cell-phone seems to be the activity of choice these days, but I've learned that a compelling paperback novel gets your mind off the line and is kinder to the people around you and those you might call.

2. Know your airline. Learn the ropes. The more you know about the airlines policies, the more pleasant your time with them.

I used to travel with two United Airline frequent flyers. They used to rave about their service but when I traveled with them something always went wrong. When they traveled on Delta with me, things would go wrong for them. We finally realized that it wasn't that either carrier had a problem, it was that each of us knew the subtitles of our preferred airline. We knew how long before take-off they began boarding. We knew which seat reclined most and provided the most legroom. We knew where you could stow your carry on bag. When we traveled on a different airline we boarded late, our luggage didn't fit, and we always found ourselves in line.

Pick an airline. Join its frequent flyer club. Read its newsletter. Pay attention to its rules. Get to know the little things too and you will begin feeling more like home onboard.

3. Pack light. You may need some special outfit or a certain paper during your trip, but chances are you won't. For a 2-4 day trip, pack one outfit (gals, that means one pair of shoes) with 2 variations. For men, this means one suit, 3 shirts, 3 ties. Women, this means one skirt suit, one pair of pants that goes with that suit, 3 shirts, 3 scarves. On the fourth day of a four-day trip, wear the cleanest outfit you can put together.

In addition -- and only if you have actually worked out at least on one of your last 3 trips -- bring something lightweight to work out in and the appropriate shoes for your sport.

Toiletries should fit into a quart-size zip-top bag (double-bagged). Get small travel bottles from a camping store instead of a pharmacy. Campers have no tolerance for things spilling. You shouldn't either. Bring enough underwear for something new each day and stuff it into your shoes or store it in a mesh laundry bag that you can put your dirty clothes in for the trip home. For trips that are 5 or more days, bring 2 outfits and 1 alternative for every additional 2-days.

Hang everything you can on as few hangers as you can (layer the lightest items closest to the hanger and wrap heavier items like jackets around the outside). Place each hanger bundle in a dry cleaner bag. Hang the bundles in a suit bag or fold them over with the hangers near the top in a suitcase. Men, if you dry-clean your shirts, get them boxed instead of hung. Set the folded shirts on top of the suites in the bags. Put your shoes, ties/scarves, and belts around the outside of the luggage. Make your goal to wear everything you packed. If you don't wear something, leave it out next time your pack.

4. Make yourself comfortable. You can make your flight or hotel room less foreign if you bring along some of your own supplies. Everyone's creature comforts are different, but they usually keep you healthy or happy. A well-packed carry-on bag includes a good paperback novel, earplugs or noise-canceling headphones, bottled water, soft socks, moisturizer, aspirin, travel toothbrush and small toothpaste, eye drops, and snacks. For overnight or overseas flights, add an inflatable neck pillow and eye mask.

For all flights, I also bring a light blanket that doubles as a robe or skirt and a tube of wasabi paste that adds flavor to the airplane food, opens up my sinuses, and kills germs. My other travel trick is to bring a stack of trade magazines that I read through, tear out the good articles, and throw the rest out.

I've traveled with people who've brought their own pillows, pickled ginger, media players, family pictures, and their own washcloths. Take any small items that you'll actually use and that make you feel comfortable.

5. Drink water. Then drink more water. If you can't bring your own bottled water, politely ask a flight attendant for a bottle of water before takeoff. Get used to drinking the water straight out of the bottle so you can always keep your water with you. While the air quality within airplanes has improved over the years, air cabins and hotel rooms are very dry. Dehydrating your body on the road causes many symptoms described as jet lag. Your goal should be to drink at least 8oz of water (not juice, not wine, not cola) for ever hour in the air. I drink close to 20oz an hour so I know it can be done. Besides, walking to the bathroom is good for your circulation. Because of their dehydrating effects, if you're going to drink alcohol or caffeine, just be sure to drink more water.

6. Smile and laugh often. Instead of getting angry or frustrated on your travels, get creative and enjoy the ride. Even if your seat companion(s) have had too much to drink, the two year old in the seat ahead of you won't stop screaming, or you're so close to the bathroom you can smell the soap, find a way to laugh it off. Spend your energy instead being grateful you're not that child's mother or father right now. Appreciate the fact the bathroom is close if you need it. Know that you'll be waking up clear headed the next day while the drinker won't be feeling so fresh. You could surely be doing worse things than traveling. It may not be as glamorous as infrequent travelers believe but it is an endless opportunity to experience new things. Enjoy.

Marcia Conner is CEO of the Learnativity Alliance and Editor-in-Chief of LiNE Zine. She is writing a book on women business travelers. If you have tips to share, email her at [email protected] or visit http://learnativity.com.

Orignially featured on the Ninth House Network Think Thank 8/25/99.

ACTION ITEMS

1. Avoid lines.

2. Know your airline.

3. Pack light.

4. Make yourself comfortable.

5. Drink water.

6. Smile and laugh often.

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