Summer Travel Boom — Experts Reveal Which Tools are Worth Sharpening to Circumvent Travel Stress, High Prices and Inconvenience

Take the time to download a few favorite shows or movies before you take off. It’s something people forget to do, and really regret once they’re in-flight. – Bayram Annakov, App in the Air

NEW YORK (PRWEB)
May 31, 2022

Well, it seems that travel is finally back — at least leisure travel, anyway — but so too are some of the old pet peeves, including delays, lost luggage, and getting stuck in the dreaded middle seat. Now that consumer travel is quickly approaching pre-pandemic levels, it may be time to blow the dust off some of those tried-and-true travel tools or download some new ones to make traveling a bit more tolerable, and even enjoyable.

ExpertFlyer went One-on-One with several industry experts and influencers to learn which travel tools are always within arm’s reach to make their travels by air, land, and sea more enjoyable, economical, and organized. Interviews were conducted with App in the Air CEO Bayram Annakov, travel rewards and credit card expert Jason Steele, and travel author and blogger at CheapestDestinationsBlog.com Tim Leffel. Additional advice and input were provided by Johnny Jet, founder of JohnnyJet.com, and Chris Lopinto, president of ExpertFlyer.com.

42Matters, a mobile app intelligence and analyst company, recently listed the top 10 iOS and Android travel apps (free and paid), which included many rental and RVing apps including VRBO Vacation Rentals, Upside, and Airbnb. This shouldn’t really come as a surprise to anyone since the pandemic forced many frequent flyers to improvise road trip getaways, including more than 9 million first-time campers in 2021 alone.

With so many effective travel tools available, ExpertFlyer asked its committee of experts to play the role of minimalist and share some tools they use that have withstood the test of time and rest at the very top of their toolbox.

Air Travel Tools

Johnny Jet has been helping travel aficionados get to where they want to go, economically and in style, for decades and admits that trying to reduce his favorite apps to a choice few is very difficult. “The United app is my favorite airline app,” he said. “They do a great job with all of their features, including being able to chat with an agent on-demand. And if there’s a flight cancellation that involves an overnight delay, they will send you hotel options instead of waiting in any long airport lines.” Johnny also included CLEAR, Global Entry and NEXUS as air travel favorites. “CLEAR allows me to go to the front of the security line, Global Entry gets me back into the U.S. without waiting and NEXUS does the same when I go to Canada,” noting that his wife is from Toronto.

Another app Johnny frequently uses is FlightRadar24 a global flight tracking service that provides real-time information about thousands of aircraft, including their destinations. “Since I live near the airport, I’m always curious about where the planes flying above me are going.”

Bayram Annakov, CEO of App in the Air really likes Delta’s app citing its functionality around the virtual queues, and overall innovation built around and into the app.

While Chris Lopinto, founder of ExpertFlyer, is an air travel and tech expert, his go-to list for travel hacking apps is simple. “I like the American Airlines (AA) app because it notifies me when boarding starts for my flight. A very useful feature when you’re in the lounge,” says Lopinto. “And speaking of lounges, my Priority Pass membership is invaluable for finding a comfortable place to hunker down in most airports I fly through,” he added.

Jason Steele says he has been using ExpertFlyer for years because it solves one of his biggest problems, namely finding tickets using points or miles. “You can use ExpertFlyer to not only search for available award trips, but you can use it to set alerts and for me that is a big deal,” he said.

Organization and Rewards Tools

Jason Steele admits he’s not a huge app person, stating that it really has to offer something truly compelling if he’s going to use it. “As a travel enthusiast, I have a lot of credit cards. To help me stay on top of my rewards and expenses, I use Travel Freely. It organizes my credit cards and reminds me about upcoming due dates. It also helps me to decide which card to use for which purchases. If you have a stack of credit cards, like I do, that kind of information becomes indispensable.”

For Tim Leffel, when it comes to selecting the apps he uses, it’s all about saving time, making travel more convenient, and helping create balance in his life. “The app I probably use the most and find essential for travel organization is TripIt. Once you set it up, emails related to plane, hotel, or car rental reservations, etc. are automatically uploaded to the app. Now, I don’t have to manually put all this stuff into my Google calendar, especially when I’m traveling. All the important travel info I need just shows up in the TripIt app.”

Bayram Annakov admits that he tracks all of his frequent flyer rewards through App in the Air, which is probably why he created it in the first place. “It allows me to track all my points and all my loyalty programs in one place.” Anakov also recommends using Google Maps to find a great local restaurant.

For tracking miles and points, Chris Lopinto prefers using The Points Guy (TPG) app.*

Booking Tools

“For booking hotel accommodations and ground transport, I use HotelTonight and Blacklane,** respectively,” explains Johnny Jet. “HotelTonight usually has great last-minute deals, which is often how I’m traveling. And having a reliable car service to pick me up so I don’t have to deal with any long lines or pricing tricks, like you often find with Uber or Lyft, really makes my trips to/from the airport so much smoother and more enjoyable.”

General Tips and Reminders

Oftentimes the best travel tips are subtle reminders of activities to complete before leaving the house or everyday travel tools hiding in plain sight. For example, Bayram Annakov wants to remind everyone to download content for their trip, whether it’s viewing, listening, or reading content. “It’s amazing to me how many people forget to download their favorite TV series or movies. Take the time to download a few favorites before you take off because the selections offered on your In-flight Entertainment (IFE) system may not suit your taste or the aircraft may not have an IFE system. It’s something people forget, and then really regret it in-flight.”

Jason Steele suggests checking out Wikipedia, especially for airports. “It sounds old school and maybe a bit obvious in a way too, he said. “When I’m trying to piece together a trip, I will go to Wikipedia’s page for the airport I’m flying to or from. There, you’ll find a list of every airline that flies to that airport and every destination that they serve nonstop.” During an extended stay in Italy this summer he plans to take the family to Paris. “How do I get from central Italy to Paris? I don’t know all the airlines and even a website like Expedia isn’t going to list all the airlines. Sure enough, I found EasyJet, which I’ve never flown before. I went to their website and booked five roundtrip tickets for $260!”

Johnny Jet has a secret for getting more items on board a flight without adding any weight or extra baggage fees. “I wear a Scottevest whenever I fly. Their jackets act like a third carry-on with all of their large, secret pockets. It’s key when traveling on airlines that weigh your carry-on bags and my laptop sometimes puts me over the limit. Not anymore.”

To listen to the interviews and see all the favorite travel tools from these, and other travel experts, visit ExpertFlyer’s blog.

*The Points Guy is owned by ExpertFlyer’s parent company, Red Ventures

**Johnny Jet is a brand ambassador for Blacklane

About ExpertFlyer.com

Each month, ExpertFlyer’s One-on-One blog goes face-to-face with the travel industry’s leading decision makers to discuss and address topics relevant to many of today’s business and frequent travelers.

ExpertFlyer.com was conceived and created by an eclectic team consisting of a veteran elite tier frequent flyer, an airline captain and corporate travel manager, and information technology professionals to deliver a 24/7 real time powerful air travel information service. The company provides its subscribers and corporate travel managers alike with a complete, concise, and efficient way to access the ever-changing details of worldwide air travel information. For more information, please visit expertflyer.com.

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