Travelling can often be a charmless, tiring ordeal. Despite new airports being swanky, state of the art places, they are still for many people, scary, daunting areas full of queues and instructions and expensive shops. Nobody talks to each other and people always seem in a rush. One thing I have realized is not to be penny wise pound foolish when travelling. Include the actual travel (aside the ticket) in your holiday budget, then you won’t feel too guilty about spending on the best and most reliable luggage and a splurge at a hotel close to the airport. Why a hotel if you live in the same city? Well, instead of enduring that potentially cardiac inducing drive to the airport, where you invariably arrive either way too early or just in the nick of time, I have discovered that either checking in to an airport hotel or at least enjoying a drink or a meal there before travelling or after landing, really calms the nerves.
Here are my personal travel tips for International travel after making many mistakes for many years. It’s worth a read!
1. Book Flights on Tuesday, Wednesday or Thursday. Weekends are a nightmare including Monday mornings. Avoid Friday like the plague; airports are packed, flights delayed and if God forbid, you get stuck in a lift or any other calamity befalls you, all systems seem to fail on a Friday!
2. Getting to and from Airport; I have been travelling for longer than I care to remember and I can never judge when to arrive for a flight. I am either too early or rushing like a maniac. A solution I have found recently which empties the pocket a bit but ensures sanity is to check into an airport hotel. Have a drink or a meal, relax in the comfort of a 5 star room if it’s more than a 3 hour haul (most airport hotels have 6 to 8 hour rates), enjoy a spa treatment, get a mani – pedi or go to the gym / pool (the gym/pool, spa) are free for hotel guests. See box below
3. Bags: Which suitcase/ bag to buy? It doesn’t pay to buy cheap and it’s not cheerful to have a zip splitting in the middle of an airport or in a remote destination where you can neither repair nor replace a bag. I have been using Samsonite for years without a single problem EVER. The zips on suitcases and bags are superman strength and the new ‘light’ suitcases and strollers, a God send. My stroller weighs 300g. I swear by them. You should too. Buy Samsonite in India. It’s cheaper than Europe. For smaller, leather travel bags, I love Tumi. They look great and last, but are more of an extravagance than a necessity.
4. Clothes: Pack as light as you can with things you can wash in a machine. Dry cleaning takes time and is expensive everywhere except India, where it is cheap but unreliable. If you are travelling to a cold climate, remember you don’t need different sweaters every day. One is enough plus a shawl/poncho, jacket or coat. National dress can be painful, so for women, invest in some stretchy sari blouses (available in cotton and lycra) and some neutral basic bizzy lizzy petticoats.
5. Take some time to study your destination. It is virtually impossible to stroll large wheely suitcases up and down bridges and down cobbled stoned streets in Italy. You are better off carrying a light weight bag over your shoulder.
6. Transport to and from airports – Yes taxis can be expensiveand you hear there there is a train but it’s a 30 minute walk to the station! Maybe easier and less stressful to jump into that taxi after all, especially if there are 4 of you. Find out from the hotel or from locals what to do on arrival.
7. Rent- a- car. Much easier to do this from an airport on arrival than a city office. Remember to ask for a car with satellite navigation in a language you understand.
8. Granola bars / seed bars / nuts – Take something with you to munch which doesn’t melt and fills the hunger gap till your next meal. Airline food can be atrocious and may not be served when you are hungry and it is becoming more and more difficult to find decent food at decent prices at airports. You may be better off with your granola in a quiet corner with a coffee, wi-fi and book than in a hot crowded overpriced airport café.
9. Coins: Trolleys in most European airports needed a 1 euro or 1 pound coin. Always keep some local small currency handy for these kinds of things.
10. Remember you can travel with food and solids in your hand luggage. Its only liquids they object to. If you have bought cheese, chocolates or whatever and fear that your checked in luggage may be over-weight, just transfer it to your hand luggage – provided of course, your hand luggage isn’t a hernia inducing weight already. Most airline staff don’t bother about your hand luggage as long as it conforms to a stipulated size.
MY PICK FOR AN AIRPORT HOTEL
Sea food at the JW Cafe
On my trip back from Europe last month, I stayed at the new JW Marriott, literally a stone’s throw from Mumbai International airport. You can get a day rate which is less than the normal rate – provided you check in after 9 am. I skipped breakfast since I arrived at 5 am and headed straight for lunch. Before lunch I popped into the spa which I was told is the first spa by the JW in Asia Pacific. I decided to indulge in an express treatment which happens in the ‘Express treatment pod’ –it’s a dedicated area with low lighting in the kind of chair where you kneel, somewhat similar to the ones you find at the airport – only this one is super deluxe with adjustable levels and heavily cushioned. It’s a fabulous experience when you don’t have the time or budget for a full fledged massage and at very reasonable prices. They also have private treatment pods where you can get a quick foot massage while you catch up on your emails. It is quiet and luxurious and is very calming when you get off a crowded noisy flight. Lunch at the JW Café is a pretty spectacular affair and certainly worth the 1200 rupees, especially if you’re hungry. A couple of things they do which I have not seen elsewhere are the ready-made kneaded doughs for various rotis. You can choose from around 6 doughs on display which are then rolled and cooked in front of you. They also have a live waffle station making amazing Belgian style waffles. The seafood section is one of the best I have seen with mussels, jumbo prawns, squid, crayfish and so on which you can have either in a salad form or grilled. I would happily go back on Sunday for brunch where for a few hundred rupees more they also throw in Alaskan Crab and scallops. If you know you’re going to do brunch, lunch or dinner here I advise you not to eat on the plane or skip a meal before you come. The variety is stunning. They also have a pretty good sushi section, Lebanese, Thai and a variety of Marwari dishes.
Spa Express at JW Marriott, Sahar