Summer is here and for many, that means heading to the airport to take a flight to a sunny destination. Anyone that's travelled through the airport though knows it can be a stressful and expensive process.
However, there are actually a ton of hacks you can use at the airport next time you travel that you might know nothing about and some of them will save you a lot of time and money.
If you're getting airport ready, you might want to check out these secret hacks because you never know when they might come in handy.
Your boarding pass has a ton of secret codes on it
Whenever you're next heading through the airport, you might want to take a closer look at your boarding pass as, sometimes, there are some secret codes printed on it. Depending on what is printed, it could either mean good or bad news.
One code you really don't want to see on your boarding pass is "SSSS," because the likelihood is that your journey through security is going to be a lot harder.
According to Travel + Leisure, "SSSS" stands for Secondary Security Screening Selection and its usually used on flights to, from or within the U.S. As the name suggests, you'll have to go through a pretty intense screening process before you can catch your flight which could include being patted down, your electronics might be swabbed and your personal items and carry-on luggage thoroughly checked.
In this case, be prepared to have to spend some extra time at security.
However, if you see a floating letter on your boarding pass, it might be better news. If you spot the letter "A" or "F", you're likely to be in for some first-class treatment, and the letter "B" could mean you'll be offered an upgrade.
Meanwhile "Q" and "Y" are seen on cheaper economy fares so if you have these, don't expect an upgrade or any special treatment.
Use an ATM instead of converting your cash
If you've forgotten to take out some cash ahead of your trip, don't even think about converting cash at the airport where the rates are notoriously bad. According to advice from the Government of Canada, fees at the airport foreign exchange counters tend to be very high.
"Even those advertising no commissions may have hidden fees, making these desks the most expensive places to change money," the government said.
One workaround if you desperately need some cash is to wait until you're at your destination and use an ATM instead. The government added you should always look for bank-affiliated ATMs when in a foreign country and you should check if your bank has any international branches or partners where you can use your debit card fee-free.
Even if you are going to be charged a fee, you can minimize the impact by withdrawing larger amounts less often.
Being bumped from a flight could get you some cash
While not all your travel plans will be flexible, listen out for any notices asking for people to volunteer to switch flights. If you're in a position to change, you could actually make some money here.
According to Canada's Air Passenger Protection, airlines need to compensate any passengers that get bumped from their flight for reasons that are within the airline's control like overbooking the flight or if the plane's size is changed for commercial reasons or for scheduled maintenance.
Airlines will have to call for volunteers before bumping anyone involuntarily so if you're able to change, that's your chance to speak up. In this case, the airline needs to give you written confirmation of the benefits you accepted.
The amount of compensation you'll get for being bumped depends on how long your arrival at your destination has been delayed, Air Passenger Protection added. Between zero and six hours will get you $900, between six and nine hours will get you $1,800 and over nine hours could get you $2,400 so it's well worth volunteering if you can.
Duty-free isn't always cheaper
So you've arrived at the airport with plenty of time ahead of your flight and for a lot of us, that means a ton of time to kill wandering around the duty-free stores hoping to pick up a bargain.
However, you may just find that the prices aren't too different from just buying them outside the airport and it all depends on which airport you're shopping at.
According to The Points Guy, there are a few factors which will determine whether a duty-free product is cheaper. Firstly, it's the amount of VAT that's usually applied to goods in each country.
However, duty-free prices also vary depending on costs such as employing staff, rents and other taxes so they can "set their pricing as they see fit."
So if you're looking to make a duty-free purchase, your best bet is to check out the prices online beforehand to see if you're really getting a good deal.
Parking at a hotel could be cheaper than at the airport
Anyone knows that travelling to and from the airport can be stressful, whether it's contending with public transport with bags, getting a taxi or trying to snag a lift from friends or family.
Most airports have a ton of hotels close by for obvious reasons, but if you need to drive yourself to the airport for whatever reason, you might actually be able to save some money by parking at a hotel instead.
If you were looking to stay at an airport hotel either before or after your trip, take advantage of any parking options they have. Websites like ParkSleepFly are available to help you find hotels with parking offers and you might not even need to book a room.
While airport hotel parking can be significantly cheaper, most also operate free shuttles to the airport too so the journey is likely to be pretty smooth.
Baggage gets loaded in a very specific order
If you've ever spent what seems like hours waiting at your destination for your bags to arrive, there's actually a straightforward reason for that and it's all down to how baggage is loaded onto the plane to begin with.
A baggage worker at Vancouver Airport has actually revealed the order of how bags get loaded and – most importantly – unloaded on a plane.
Bags are placed on the flight according to local bags, connection bags, priority bags then any fragile items and items like car seats and wheelchairs and then any standby bags.
When you land, priority bags will be taken off the pane first, followed by connection bags and then local bags so if you're aiming to leave the airport in a hurry, you may want to consider paying for priority baggage.
If you're not willing to pay the extra for priority, it might be a good idea to make your suitcase super noticeable to avoid any delays at baggage claim. Who wants to sift through dozens of identical black suitcases to try and find theirs?
Andy Davis, terminal operations director at YYC Calgary International Airport told Narcity that you should aim to make your baggage as eye-catching as possible with ribbons or stickers as it will also help if your suitcases unexpectedly go missing.
6 Secret Airport Hacks You Probably Don't Know About That Could Change The Way You Travel
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