Flying playbook

Documents

• REAL ID or passport for domestic flights — confirm what the airport and airline want
• Passport if we leave the U.S. or the airline asks for it
• Airline app downloaded; boarding passes saved offline
• A paper backup in case phones die at security
• Travel insurance papers in the same folder — see Documents

Flights

• Write airline, flight number, from airport, to airport, and date/time on the trip page — not as a made-up ticket.
• Screenshot the confirmation in the folder that does not get checked. Do not paste secret codes into this website.
• Build a buffer the first time we use an airport. One tight connection is enough to ruin a day.
• Meds, a layer, and a charger stay in the personal item.

• Set flight-status alerts on the airline app
• Check liquids and battery rules the night before

Seats

Pick seats when we know who is coming. Note the assignment on the flights table. We do not invent a “best seat” here.

• Together if we can. Aisle if anyone needs to move.
• Exit rows only if everyone in that row can do the job.
• If a seat map costs money, decide if it’s worth it before the airport, not at the gate.

Lodging near airports

Use the lodging table on the trip page: type (Resort / Hotel / Airbnb / Vrbo / BnB / Hostel / w/ Family), then name, address, phone, URL, confirmation, cost, check-in, nights, notes.

• A night next to the departure airport is worth it when the first flight is early.
• Shuttle hours matter more than a pretty lobby. Write them down.
• Parking: on-site vs. off-site vs. a ride. Decide before we leave the house.
• Quiet at night still beats a “fun” strip if we’re flying out at dawn.

Preference to fill in: hotel vs. family house vs. a kitchen, and a nightly range that isn’t invented as a fact.

Airport pacing

• One big activity after we land. The rest is optional.
• Build a rest hour if the flight was long.
• Who needs shorter walks or fewer stairs: ________