Improving your travel experience:

Getting through security:

• TSA Pre vs. CLEAR pass

TSA Pre is a great option for expedited security clearance provided you travel on airlines that honor your Known Traveler Number. The process for application is simple – you apply online at https://www.tsa.gov/tsa-precheck, and sign up for an in person appointment at the TSA Pre office, usually within the main airport terminal before security. If you have an appointment the process is very quick and only requires a few questions, signatures, and an $85 fee, which provides you with TSA Pre access for an entire year if your application is approved. You will need to bring your passport if you have one, otherwise a driver’s license and birth certificate are required. DO NOT bring a copy of your birth certificate – they need to see the original document or your application will be denied. The approval process takes between 10 days to several weeks, at which time you will be notified by mail if you have been approved for a Known Traveler Number (KTN). You will receive a letter in the mail with this number on it. No other documentation is provided. When you book flights you will be prompted to enter your KTN and the rest is automatic. At check in your boarding pass will automatically say “TSA-Pre” which allows you to enter the special screening lane and exempts you from removing your “3-2-1” bag of liquids, keep your shoes on and leave your laptop in your bag. These minor conveniences alone are worth the cost, but clearing a 2-hour security line in LAX in under 20 minutes is priceless.

• Some things to consider about the TSA Pre service:

It is not available on all airlines. Frontier, for example, does not honor your KTN and will not provide TSA Pre options for you at boarding. I fly out of a very busy airport and because of this I have pretty much stopped flying on Frontier at all. Also, some international affiliates like Lufthansa will not honor your TSA Pre status even if you book the flight through a partner like United. For these circumstances the Clear Pass is the better option, but you only really benefit if you fly out of one of the few airports currently offering Clear Pass security lanes.

 

Clear Pass provides many of the same benefits as TSA Pre with the special exception of going straight to the front of the line. TSA Pre members still have to wait in the TSA Pre screening line, whereas Clear members skip to the front of the security line like airport personnel do. It is not airline specific, and with a quick fingerprint scan, you are on your way. If you fly out of San Francisco, Denver, Austin, Baltimore or Miami a lot, Clear Pass might be the option for you. Here is a list of airports currently utilizing Clear Pass security lanes https://www.clearme.com/where-is-clear/. Clear costs $179 annually, so it’s about twice as much as TSA Pre, but it does have the advantage of allowing you to add family members to your plan for reduced pricing. Clear Pass members are still subject to regular screening requirements, however – they still have to remove shoes, and take laptops out of their cases etc., they are just fast tracked to the front of the line. For the very frequent traveler a combination of both TSA Pre and Clear is probably worth every penny.

 

Getting Extra Room

• Have you ever booked an Economy flight for you and a companion thinking you would be slick and book the window and the aisle seats hoping no one would purchase that middle seat, thus providing you with extra room on your flight? We have, too, and once upon a time that actually worked. These days almost every flight is oversold and jam packed and attempting that trick is going to result in one of you giving up your aisle seat to avoid sitting next to that awkward stranger in the middle. If you’ve ever flown in the middle seat on a flight from Japan, you will remember how that strategy failed you and come up with something else next time. If flying business class is out of the question, there is still hope. Plenty of airlines still allow you to book two seats in your name specifically for this purpose. They don’t care if you are denying a seat to someone else, they only care the seat is sold. Obese people have been required to do this for years and it is still entirely possible to do it today. The major airlines like United, Delta, and American all still allow this, although airlines with no seat assignments like Southwest do not. I have not yet tried this on Virgin America, but will be booking with them soon and will update this post when I have information. A coach seat is much less than a first or business class seat and will still provide you with much needed personal space, ease to move around, and exit your seat to use the restroom. On airlines like Frontier, that offer $49 base fares, sometimes you can access this extra room for only $100 round trip. Frontier makes their money on baggage fees, overhead bid space and reserved seating, so although you will have to commit to the reserved seat fee for your unused seat, you won’t be paying baggage and refundability fees for that seat. It is best to call when you book this option and explain that you require additional room or are recovering from injury or something. You might end up with a ticket that reads “oversized passenger” or something equally degrading, but it is completely worth it to have access to that extra seat.