Came back on the weekend from travel in Asia and noticed the seemingly, unwarranted stress of other passengers fumbling for passports and boarding passes etc.
Curious to hear how you all handle these documents while in the lounge or walking through immigration/security/airport in general.
Myself, inside top pocket of jacket or if travelling sans suit/jacket back pocket of pants all in easy reach.
I saw people struggling with boarding pass in mouth, passport wedged under arm and a bag in each hand. Nightmare for them and really feel bad for them and the stress that air travel seems to invoke in people.
Keen to hear your thoughts and any other strange sights to do with passport and boarding pass "holding".
It’s hardly difficult. So much of travel isn’t helped by people who seemingly ignore the obvious. Was traveling through LHR last week and going through security a guy had a six pack of beers in his carry on and was arguing about how he was allowed to bring them through. I didn’t stay to watch the obvious end, but there’s always (at least) one. This could develop into a rant, but it always astonishes me that so many people queue at security or at boarding and only when they get to the front of the line do they suddenly realize the same requirements that apply to everyone else also apply to them!
A few years ago checking in at Sydney for a flight to Melbourne the couple in front of me managed to lose their boarding passes between printing them at self service check in and dropping their bags off. Literally 10metres. They had no idea what they had done with them.
Boarding Pass, passport, baggage claim tags, ticket/itinerary, FF Cards, pen, etc all in a travel portfolio, in a pocket by itself, on the front of my carry on. Been travelling that way for over 30 years and haven’t lost (or fumbled) anything ever.... touch wood!
Get a passport holder with a sleeve large enough for a boarding pass and hold it in your hand until you’re physically on the plane. Life is not rocket science.
I keep everything tucked in the photo page of my passport, which is tucked inside a small travel wallet/sleeve. The part I find stressful is the uncertainty of which documents are needed at which different type of checkpoint, as this varies between airports. Signage is not always clear, and I end up fumbling at the counter with too many seemingly crucial documents to hand (eg, I've now learned that no one wants to see a print out of my ETSA, but it's the sort of thing you'd assume would need to be produced). Recently I had an arrivals immigration lady at MEL say helpfully as she processed people, "You can now put your passports etc away, from here you only need the arrivals card to show Customs". I'm sure that's an obvious point, but it was much appreciated especially after an overnight flight when you're not at your sharpest.
All well and good to keep boarding pass and passport close by, in jacket or trousers, or in hold all.
Only problem if departing Australia, where we have full body scanners, other countries seem not to have them, ie/eg, NZ, havent seen them there, been to and back 15 times since 2013...
For Australia, if you are picked for full body scan, you have to walk through with nothing in your pockets, if you do have a stray something, and it look bulky, or even if not carrying anything but xray shows, you are asked to go through again, while your hand luggage sits there, waiting for you.
I do agree with full body scans, but I am always picked.
Or if you are unlucky to be in a queue of Asian ladies with their water bottles, no LAGS, we all know, but not the poor dears, and they will hold up the line, drinking up their water, complaining in Mandarin or helping others explain in their "team" that no water allowed.
Or hand cream, or perfumes.
I havent flown to Singapore in years, or Kuala Lumpur, but when I depart Sydney or Melbourne internationally to New Zealand, there is always the hold up.
Priority scanning tends to be closed (so everyone is correlled into the same scanning line), Auckland Airport is good for premium guests, (as when I go through, as I am larger girth, I tend to go business to NZ).
In regards to Marlzmarlz, apart from the arrivals card, you also need your Smartgate receip if self processed via Smartgate.
Granted that if a person didn't use Smartgate, ie, staff assisted at counter, then of course no Smartgate receipt.
New Zealand, incoming if I remember, does not have incoming Smartgate receipts anymore, you walk straight to the bright light face scanner, enter passport (take off glasses), and then if all ok, you collect passport, the gate opens, and thats it, past to baggage claim, then to final check incoming customs query desk, and bag xray and thats it.
I just have mine in my top pocket. The other one is the ritual of getting buried ‘stuff’ out of hand luggage after boarding thus slowing the whole process. Most of this could be done in the boarding area and have ready to hand as well. Sometimes I misjudge how cold it will be and so get a jumper out but that will be later in the flight. But tablets, books etc are all in hand.
Get a passport holder with a sleeve large enough for a boarding pass and hold it in your hand until you’re physically on the plane. Life is not rocket science.
So very true. But so many people seem to want to make it so!! It never ceases to amaze me what you see sometimes at airports, flew over 200k miles last year so plenty of time to marvel at what new levels of Darwin defiance people can come up with.
Never underestimate how stressful and intimidating airports and flying generally are for those that do it only once or twice a year (if that).
I keep mine in a zip-up travel wallet which lives in the front zip-up pocket of my rollaboard. But even then - between dragging the trolley, opening the pocket, opening the wallet, extracting the correct boarding pass (usually one of about 14 pieces of paper they seem to give you at check-in), digging out the passport - open to photo page of course - all while moving so as not to hold up the queue, there's inevitably some fumbling.
A few years ago checking in at Sydney for a flight to Melbourne the couple in front of me managed to lose their boarding passes between printing them at self service check in and dropping their bags off. Literally 10metres. They had no idea what they had done with them.
Easy - they put them in their bags! (Probably a side zip pocket.)
I used to just throw them in the front of my bag (the thin zip pocket) but switched to hardcase without one.
I went into Strandbags and just picked up quite a lightweight wallet on special, which is big enough for passport/immunization booklet and cash/boarding passes whilst small enough to fit into a standard pocket. At the moment I'm just using it as my daily wallet and haven't had any problems so far.
I'm also pretty good at getting everything in one hand and doing everything else one handed :p
Don't forget RFID rays (blocking scammers) capable wallets are now the bees knees.
Guess we are lucky here in Aust that as you go through either domestic or international security screening, as of now, we are still safe.
Horror stories overseas of things going walking as people go through security processing at airports.
O/T, of course as mentioned on AFF, there was a relative of a certain well known female who went to Melbourne Airport on a regular basis, and was taking other peoples bags off the arrival carousel, I assume it was Melbourne domestic T1/T3/T4.
All someone has to do, is take off with your items while you go through airport security screening/processing, and there goes your holiday/business trip.
Hi Guest, join in the discussion on
Airport Drop Off to Plane - Passport/Boarding Pass
lancer
lancer
Member since 06 Feb 2018
Total posts 5
Came back on the weekend from travel in Asia and noticed the seemingly, unwarranted stress of other passengers fumbling for passports and boarding passes etc.
Curious to hear how you all handle these documents while in the lounge or walking through immigration/security/airport in general.
Myself, inside top pocket of jacket or if travelling sans suit/jacket back pocket of pants all in easy reach.
I saw people struggling with boarding pass in mouth, passport wedged under arm and a bag in each hand. Nightmare for them and really feel bad for them and the stress that air travel seems to invoke in people.
Keen to hear your thoughts and any other strange sights to do with passport and boarding pass "holding".
Ourmanin
Ourmanin
Singapore Airlines - KrisFlyer
Member since 08 Jun 2018
Total posts 144
It’s hardly difficult. So much of travel isn’t helped by people who seemingly ignore the obvious. Was traveling through LHR last week and going through security a guy had a six pack of beers in his carry on and was arguing about how he was allowed to bring them through. I didn’t stay to watch the obvious end, but there’s always (at least) one. This could develop into a rant, but it always astonishes me that so many people queue at security or at boarding and only when they get to the front of the line do they suddenly realize the same requirements that apply to everyone else also apply to them!
Ourmanin
Ourmanin
Singapore Airlines - KrisFlyer
Member since 08 Jun 2018
Total posts 144
A few years ago checking in at Sydney for a flight to Melbourne the couple in front of me managed to lose their boarding passes between printing them at self service check in and dropping their bags off. Literally 10metres. They had no idea what they had done with them.
SimonFrost
SimonFrost
Qantas - Qantas Frequent Flyer
Member since 10 Jul 2013
Total posts 69
Boarding Pass, passport, baggage claim tags, ticket/itinerary, FF Cards, pen, etc all in a travel portfolio, in a pocket by itself, on the front of my carry on. Been travelling that way for over 30 years and haven’t lost (or fumbled) anything ever.... touch wood!
Mjkcan
Mjkcan
Singapore Airlines - KrisFlyer
Member since 14 Jun 2017
Total posts 60
Get a passport holder with a sleeve large enough for a boarding pass and hold it in your hand until you’re physically on the plane. Life is not rocket science.
marlzmarlz
marlzmarlz
Member since 08 Nov 2018
Total posts 2
I keep everything tucked in the photo page of my passport, which is tucked inside a small travel wallet/sleeve. The part I find stressful is the uncertainty of which documents are needed at which different type of checkpoint, as this varies between airports. Signage is not always clear, and I end up fumbling at the counter with too many seemingly crucial documents to hand (eg, I've now learned that no one wants to see a print out of my ETSA, but it's the sort of thing you'd assume would need to be produced). Recently I had an arrivals immigration lady at MEL say helpfully as she processed people, "You can now put your passports etc away, from here you only need the arrivals card to show Customs". I'm sure that's an obvious point, but it was much appreciated especially after an overnight flight when you're not at your sharpest.
Andrew Barkery
Andrew Barkery
Qantas - Qantas Frequent Flyer
Member since 21 Mar 2011
Total posts 433
All well and good to keep boarding pass and passport close by, in jacket or trousers, or in hold all.
Andrew Barkery
Andrew Barkery
Qantas - Qantas Frequent Flyer
Member since 21 Mar 2011
Total posts 433
In regards to Marlzmarlz, apart from the arrivals card, you also need your Smartgate receip if self processed via Smartgate.
patrickk
patrickk
Qantas
Member since 19 Apr 2012
Total posts 731
I just have mine in my top pocket. The other one is the ritual of getting buried ‘stuff’ out of hand luggage after boarding thus slowing the whole process. Most of this could be done in the boarding area and have ready to hand as well. Sometimes I misjudge how cold it will be and so get a jumper out but that will be later in the flight. But tablets, books etc are all in hand.
Ourmanin
Ourmanin
Singapore Airlines - KrisFlyer
Member since 08 Jun 2018
Total posts 144
So very true. But so many people seem to want to make it so!! It never ceases to amaze me what you see sometimes at airports, flew over 200k miles last year so plenty of time to marvel at what new levels of Darwin defiance people can come up with.
Rufus1
Rufus1
Member since 04 Dec 2013
Total posts 70
Never underestimate how stressful and intimidating airports and flying generally are for those that do it only once or twice a year (if that).
Red Cee
Red Cee
Member since 15 Feb 2018
Total posts 151
These are probably people who don’t fly very often.
John Phelan
John Phelan
Qantas - Qantas Frequent Flyer
Member since 28 Oct 2011
Total posts 261
Easy - they put them in their bags! (Probably a side zip pocket.)
Dredgy
Dredgy
Qantas - Qantas Frequent Flyer
Member since 02 Apr 2017
Total posts 180
I used to just throw them in the front of my bag (the thin zip pocket) but switched to hardcase without one.
Andrew Barkery
Andrew Barkery
Qantas - Qantas Frequent Flyer
Member since 21 Mar 2011
Total posts 433
Don't forget RFID rays (blocking scammers) capable wallets are now the bees knees.