Flying by myself.

[Amina516]

Check the Internet for maps of the airports you will be passing through. Carriers each have their own sections at each airport... knowing the layout up front will help a lot if the gates are on different "arms".

Interestingly enough, my boarding pass for PA to CA has a printout of Houstons airport on it with the terminals labeled! I thought that was nice for a connecting commuter. Im assuming itll be the same on the way back, only Ill stop in Chicago.

[Jester]

Just out of curiosity, is it IAH or Hobby?

I've flown in and out of Hobby, but never connected there, and connected many times through IAH, but never began or ended my travel there.

If your layover is long enough to warrant some food, IAH has some decent places to eat, though I can't remember specifics. If you do feel like having a single beer (I know you said you're not drinking, but you may change your mind and have one), while Shiner Bock is the big name Texas beer, I prefer Ziegen Bock, which I have had in IAH. And I don't know if they have it at IAH, but St. Arnold's has some really nice stuff, too. (I first came across St. Arnold's on my trip to Houston last year, so was completely unaware of it the last time I connected through IAH.)

Hey, you may change your mind and decide to have a beer with lunch. Better to have knowledge and not need it than need it and not have it, right?

Also, major airports tend to offer free wifi within the terminal. Just so you know.

[Chromatix]

Some people scan numbers quicker, some words. Whichever is easiest for the OP is what they should probably use.

Actually, I think it would depend on how the departure screens are organised. In every airport I've been to recently (all in Europe) they are organised by time - but if they really are sometimes organised by destination over there, then scanning by destination makes sense in that context. I've just never seen it done that way.

[Greenday]

Actually, I think it would depend on how the departure screens are organised. In every airport I've been to recently (all in Europe) they are organised by time - but if they really are sometimes organised by destination over there, then scanning by destination makes sense in that context. I've just never seen it done that way.

I've never been to an airport in the US that doesn't arrange departures by destination. THEN they arrange all flights to the same destination by departure time.

Hopefully your flight experience is as smooth as mine was on Friday. 15 minutes from being dropped off at the curb, dropping my check in bag, getting through security, and getting to my gate. Granted Austin's airport is pretty small.

The main thing is just to listen to what the TSA officers are announcing. When you go through the scanner, don't leave anything in your pockets. At all. Grab a bin, dump everything in there (Shoes, wallet, cell, belt, etc.). Laptops get their own separate bin. If you leave it in a bag, they have to take it out and send it through the x-ray scanner again.

Just get to the airport 1.5-2 hours early. You'll probably have plenty of time leftover, but I'd rather wait around for over an hour than feel like I'm rushing around. Transferring really isn't that bad. You don't have to worry about checking in or going through security. Just relax, find your connecting flight on the departure board, and head on over.

[Jester]

Actually, I think it would depend on how the departure screens are organised. In every airport I've been to recently (all in Europe) they are organised by time - but if they really are sometimes organised by destination over there, then scanning by destination makes sense in that context. I've just never seen it done that way.

I actually have no idea how they're organized here in the US...I just automatically scan for the city. That's just the way my brain works.

[Amina516]

So, in. Baltimore, waiting to board and we get word. My plane is broken, yes, they literally said broken. Que the mad scramble to get on the flight my friend was on that left an hour later. I got one of the last seats on Baltimore to Denver and then Denver to LA. Thankful I made it! I'm in DisneyLand resort in Anaheim. Woot woot. If only this darn educational opportunity didn't interfere with my drinking time.

I found out later that my original flight left 2 hours after schedule so I definitely would have missed my connection in Houston had I just opted to wait.

[Chromatix]

Sounds like you had a competent airline that let you adjust to circumstances. That's always helpful.

A couple of years ago, during a particularly snowy winter, I had to get back from a fairly rural part of England to Finland. The weather was *bad* that day. I got on a train due to arrive 3 hours before the flight's departure, knowing that as long as I was in good time at checkin, the airline would take care of the rest. (I usually fly SAS, as they are one of the better-priced flag carriers - they represent Norway, Sweden and Denmark all at once.)

It was a very good thing that I'd planned ahead. The train stopped a mile short of my *departure* station, with the brakes clogged up with snow and ice. It stopped *again* after limping just clear of the main line after calling at the station. After clearing that mess (while several trains delayed behind it found a way to overtake), it limped across the Pennines considerably more slowly than normal, then turfed us out before reaching the airport proper, directing us to use a local service for the last few miles. I reached the checkin desk not much more than an hour before scheduled departure.

As it happens, the flight *was* cancelled due to the runways spending most of their time closed for snow clearance (British airports not having heated runways). The checkin clerk directed me to the booking desk opposite to arrange a new flight. Just ahead of me in the queue was an ex-Easyjet customer, Easyjet having provided refunds for cancelled flights rather than rebooking. That's what you get with a budget airline, folks. The booking clerk explained to him that seats were in short supply, and could he wait a moment to let her see to my needs, since I was already their customer? (I was holding up my printed itinerary with the SAS logo at the top.)

The rebooked flight was for the last flight to Stockholm, a short overnight stay in the airline's hotel there, and then the first morning flight Stockholm-Helsinki. The first leg of even this was quite badly delayed, leading to free meal vouchers all round - and the planeload of passengers promptly cleaned out the few fast-food vendors still open that late in the evening. I overheard the workers there complaining they hadn't got any warning about it...

Once in Nordic territory, delays were a thing of the past. Winter comes every year up north, so the Swedes and the Finns know how to deal with it, and organise infrastructure (such as runway heaters) and manpower (such as snowploughs and de-icers) accordingly. A clerk explained how to get to the hotel on Stockholm's automatic metro system, and issued me with a return ticket and a voucher for the stay. That gave me about four hours' sleep - not much, but far better than not sleeping at all, or attempting to sleep in the airport terminal. Scandinavian hotels tend to be simple but comfortable, which is just fine by me.

The point is, SAS did everything reasonable to keep me comfortable and get me home, even though the delay technically wasn't their fault. Easyjet took the typical budget-airline approach with the other chap I encountered, and merely met their simple financial obligation. I know which one I prefer.