On the February 11th episode of “The Jet List,” we talked about how to prepare for both international and domestic trips. Shimber and Millie gave their best tips for what to do before departure to make things easier. Here are some of the tips that were shared on the show:

1. Order a guide book for each destination or download to e-reader.

2. Look-up and print out airport maps.

3. Look-up bag regulations to avoid surprise baggage charges.

4. Print-out all of the itinerary.

5. Buy medical insurance because you cannot assume yours will cover you in another country.

6. Look-up seat map of airplanes to be sure seats are good.

7. Get taxi rates and plan limos if necessary.

8. Call cc company to put on travel alert so there will not be charges declined while traveling.

9. Get the weather forecast for your destination.

10. Check hotel amenities and check for nearby health clubs etc., if necessary.

11 Medicine for the trip should be checked to be sure it is legal at the destination.

12. Whatever you do, don’t get money before you leave the states because the conversion will cost you more.

13. If your hotel offers transportation, set it up prior to leaving.

14. Make copies of passports.

15. Learn to say hello in the languages of the countries you are visiting.

Also, we had some very interesting calls from our listeners including:

• Joan, who asked what the panel at The Jet List thought of her run-in with a flight attendant over her changing her baby on the changing table. Gailen, Millie and Shimber agreed that the flight attendant should have not embarrassed the woman over the incident. However, the flight attendants also have a tough call since they must look out for all passengers and using a tray table as a changing table is just not sanitary. The mother did leave out an important detail which is that the flight was actually in the deplaning process which left the mother with nothing else to do but use the tray table since it was impossible to get to a lavatory at that time. But on the other hand, what was the hurry? Could she not have waited until she could get to a restroom in the terminal? There are so many things we may never know such as how short the connection time was or how many other children she was juggling.
• A young man of only 14-years-old called into the show to ask about becoming a flight attendant. He was concerned that becoming a flight attendant was not an option for a “straight” male. We assured him that there are plenty of heterosexual male flight attendants in the sky and that he should go for it!
• Guillermo, a flight attendant for a popular airline, called in to say how much he enjoyed the show.

It was a fun show, so be sure to listen as there is so much more on the podcast.

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