Call me paranoid (like everyone else), but the idea of having my name on a luggage tag leaves me feeling a little exposed. My overactive imagination envisions a network of baggage handlers scanning addresses and calling their network of home invaders to divest my four walls of all things choice and pricey. (In my house, they would be sorely disappointed).

The good news is my practical side keeps my crazy side in check, well most of the time. It also helps that in the old days when air travel was almost glamorous and polyester the uniform of choice, I worked in an airline lost and found department (and permanently scared as a result).

The reality is bag tags reunite people and things. Travelers with contact information in or on their luggage are usually reunited before you can recite the U.S. presidents backyards in Pig Latin. (Hey I never said we were expedient.)

So I read with interest a piece in The Seattle Times, courtesy of the Los Angeles Times: The best ways to tag your luggage.

I think they have some fine tips based on my experience in the sixth circle of ..uh, an airline baggage department, a place where Peaches and Herb sang our daily anthem: Reunited, and it feels so good...

Posted by Tom at 2:40 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Q: I'm a pro when it comes to business travel, but I'm a little fearful about our first family trip this summer. Any tips for traveling with children.
— Jim B.

A. Jim, I am a bit out of my element on this one. It's kind of like asking Julia Child about low-fat cooking or Paris Hilton about thriftiness.

Truth be told, there was a time when I would arch an eyebrow in silent judgment, praying that the boarding troupe of diapered ones would bypass me, my row, my section, and my plane.

Now that family and friends have (and travel) with children, I'm a changed man (peer pressure, and sharp rebukes and equally sharp elbows notwithstanding).

Uncle Tom has a new perspective. Traveling parents need all the support they can get.

So what if you've scaled El Capitan in your bare feet. Have you ever flown across the Atlantic with a toddler? I think facing a vertical wall of granite may be the less challenging option.

With help from my extended family of travelers, here are some tips for traveling with wee ones.

1. Book nonstop flights where available.

2. Make sure you have seat assigments.

3. Select seats together or the best seating configuration available. For a family of four, holding seats 1+3 or 2+2 is better than not holding any seats. Once at the airport, check with the gate agent for better seating.

4. Check your airline's Web site for the traveling with children section (Examples: British Airways, United Airlines

5. Consider kid-friendly arrival and departure times

6. Brief your children about the wonders of flying, make it fun (advanced parenting skills required).

7. Pack luggage the day or night ahead.

8. Utilize a travel checklist.

9. Check in online and print boarding passes prior to leaving for the airport (usually up to 24-hours ahead of flight time).

9. Pre-board the flight if applicable.

10. Pack carry-ons with snacks and games to entertain and preoccupy.

11. Consider your family's mealtime before traveling.

12. Remove all old destination tags from luggage.

13. Add ID tags to luggage (inside and out).

14. Know TSA and airline carry-on luggage policy.

15. Double check your departure time.

16. Email your itinerary/travel plans to appropriate parties.

This is just the tip of the sippy cup; consider some of the following sites focused on the specific needs of traveling with childen.

Jim, hopefully there's enough info here to get you and your kids from point A to Point B, from diapers to dorm rooms and in between. Safe and happy travels to you and yours.

Tom C., who often wonders if his seatback has a bullseye on it, looks forward to your questions, comments and tips.

Posted by Tom at 9:52 AM | Permalink | Comments (2) | TrackBacks (0)

New Zealand Air has found a way to secure your attention during the safety demo: show a safety video with crew members dispatched in their birthday suits. Well actually, they are wearing a little something: earrings and body paint. Camera angles err on the side of modesty, but the video is gripping nonetheless. I actually now know where all of the life jackets are in the unlikely event of a water landing.

Here's the clip as seen on YouTube.

Posted by Tom at 10:10 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)