9 Travel Secrets M’sians NEED to Know to Make Their Travels 10X Easier

Whether you’re going on a business trip or holiday, travelling can sometimes be a hectic and stressful ordeal. It also doesn’t help if you’re an incredibly last minute person like me. Well, if you love travelling but wish it could be a lot less taxing, here are some travel secrets that might just help you on your next getaway!

 

1. If you’re a nervous flyer, get the seat located in the middle of the plane or where the wing is

If you, or someone you know, doesn’t do well on planes, then the best way to help them would be to pick seats located in the middle of the plane or near the wing. Sitting in the middle is where airflow is the smoothest and can be much less nerve-wracking for anxious flyers. According to Patrick Smith, a pilot and author, he states that a plane is similar to a seesaw. If you’re in the middle, you don’t move as much. Makes sense!

 

2. Follow your favourite airlines on social media and subscribe to their mailing list

Seriously though, you’ll be surprised by how often airlines actually post on social media or through e-mail blasts regarding the latest promos and flights. And since you spend most of your time scrolling through Facebook and Instagram anyway, might as well put that to good use. You may just come across some insanely cheap flight promos to your favourite holiday destinations just by being on your phone!

 

3. When queuing for anything at the airport, look for the leftmost lanes

Due to the fact that about 90% of the world’s population is right-handed, studies have shown that most of them tend to gravitate towards anything and everything found on the right side first, even when it comes to queuing at counters. So, if you’re at the airport waiting to check-in your luggage, remember to look out for the leftmost lanes instead!

But of course, if it’s the peak travel period, all the counters will probably be full, so it really depends.

 

4. Beat the duty-free shopping queues by buying your stuff online before your flights (and have them delivered to you onboard the flight!)

One great thing about travelling on planes is the fact that you get to go to airport and do all your duty-free shopping at the same time! However, depending on how early you arrive and how crowded the airport is, you may not have enough time to shop at all. What’s more, your friends would probably want to tumpang you to help them shop too, right?

Well, if you’re flying with AirAsia, you can always shop for their wide range of duty-free items online via www.ourshop.com and have your purchases delivered to you onboard!

It’s true! Don’t believe us? Try it out yourself!

To shop, all you have to do is:

1. Go to www.ourshop.com, select “Deliver on board” and key in your AirAsia Flight Booking Number
2. Add products to cart and complete the checkout process
3. And your purchased products will be delivered right to your seat onboard!

That’s it! So convenient and you don’t have to fight the crowd or queue up to pay in-store. What’s more, the prices on OURSHOP.com are cheaper than most airport duty-free shops! You also won’t have to rush your shopping since you can do it online. Just make sure you place your order at least 24 hours before your departure.

 

5. Always, ALWAYS be nice to your cabin crew

Simply greeting and smiling at your flight attendants or saying “please” and “thank you” to them can do a great deal to lift their spirits. It lets them feel respected and in return, they’ll probably treat you extra nice and pay more attention to you too, making your flight experience that much better (and easier). Don’t have to fight for their attention also! What’s more, your flight attendants are probably insanely exhausted already, so it wouldn’t hurt for you to be kind and courteous.

 

6. Book tickets for flights taking off during noon on Tuesdays or Wednesdays, and at least seven weeks in advance

This is largely due to the fact that those schooling or working full-time jobs would have to take an extra day off when flying off at noon, as opposed to flying late at night. Also, because Tuesdays and Wednesdays are right smack in the middle of the week, that would mean having to apply for more annual leave days too, making Tuesdays and Wednesdays rather unpopular travel days.

 

7. Don’t just look for direct flights, look for flights with layovers too

While this might take a bit more time to get to your destination, there are benefits that come with picking flights with layovers. First of all, although it’s not ALWAYS the case, flights with layovers can sometimes be cheaper, especially during peak periods. For example, if you plan to fly to Tokyo, Japan during the Sakura season, you’ll find that flights are usually more expensive. However, if you pick a flight with a layover, it can sometimes be much cheaper, even during non-peak periods. Just make sure you do your research first to make sure the layover trip is actually cheaper lah.

Also, depending on how long your layover is in another country, you’ll get to explore a different place altogether without paying for that extra flight ticket! Can kill two birds with one stone wei!

 

8. Remember to bring along some type of moisturiser with you (in aeroplane-friendly bottles)

Did you know that the air in an aeroplane is as dry as in the desert? In fact, the humidity in aircraft cabins is only about 20%, while the Sahara Desert’s average is around 25%. Imagine how dry it is! That’s why you’ll often feel dehydrated and suffer from cracked lips or dry skin after a long flight. If you want to avoid this, always remember to bring some moisturiser, lotion or lip balm along with you in your carry-on. Especially if you’re the type who doesn’t drink enough water!

 

9. Book late night flights to avoid the crowds

Airports like KLIA are generally much more crowded during the daytime as opposed to late at night. Simply because for flights that take off during the day, most flyers (especially those leaving for a long period) would probably come with a big group of friends and family members to see him or her off. At night, however, these send-off groups tend to be much smaller, because well, we’d rather sleep, kan? Also, most of the stores in KLIA would be closed at night, so there really isn’t much for anyone to do there. This is the best time to be at the airport!

Speaking of closed shops, this wouldn’t be a problem at all if you shop online before your flight at www.ourshop.com (that’s if you’re flying with AirAsia!).

Pssst! Here’s a bonus tip:

AirAsia Duty-Free and Merchandise is actually running a “Screenshot & Win” contest on Facebook where a total of RM100,000 worth of e-vouchers and flight vouchers are up for grabs! Follow these steps to participate:

1. Go to www.ourshop.com and browse AirAsia Duty-Free and Merchandise (DFM) products
2. Screenshot any DFM item of your choice
3. Post it on the Facebook contest post’s comment section and tag 3 friends to tell them these are in your Christmas wishlist

That’s it! Contest ends on 24 December 2018. So faster join and don’t say we bojio! Additionally, you can find out more about www.ourshop.com here!