There are two types of travelers in this world, those that get to the airport early and those that arrive minutes, if not seconds, before final boarding. I am far from the latter type of traveler. Around three hours to my flight, I start to develop this anxiety. The clock becomes some sort of captivating TV show to me. I can’t take my eyes off of it, prodding whoever is my airport driver that day to be ready to go at a moment’s notice. At two hours to my flight, I better at least be in a car shortly away from the airport. My anxiety doesn’t end there. After saying my goodbyes, I quickly dart inside, forever fearful the security line is out the door and I’ll miss my flight that is over an hour away. After I walk past whatever scanner they are using these days, I gather my belongings and note the time. I still have an hour to get to my gate. The anxiety is gone. I know I will be traveling that day.
Then, there are those other travelers. They leave for the airport an hour before the plane departs. They casually act like it is no big deal. They arrive around 30 minutes to flight time. They aren’t anxious for they do this all the time. They walk into it with the mindset, “well if I miss my flight, I miss my flight.” They are the cool, calm and collected travelers. At least, that is how they appear to me. The woman on the loudspeaker is calling out final boarding and they walk right up, maybe in a sprint, but usually with a smile on their faces. How can they be so calm? You will see them pile in just when you think you are that lucky one on a full flight with no one seated next to you. They sit right on down in the empty seat. These travelers live in a state of not knowing, but not worrying about if they will be traveling that day.
Waiting at the airport a little tired, but not missing that flight
After examining the two types, I am left with the question as to what each says about you and how you travel. I inherited my Mom’s timing. She is always early for the airport, or anything in life for that matter. My Dad’s timing is the polar opposite. He hasn’t showered an hour before his flight. Rather than writing it off as some sort of genetic timing, I have to think the way I travel to the airport, early and on time, is part of my urgent need to travel. I don’t want to miss a flight or connection. I know there will be other flights, but that is precious travel time I’m not willing to forfeit to seem like one of those nonchalant travelers that saunter up to the gate without a care or worry. While I will probably never be this type of traveler, here is my case to you travel late-comers, my reasons for early airport arrival.
1. Oh The People You Will See
When you arrive to the airport late, you miss out on important airport people watching. You would miss the woman I once witnessed yell at a Starbucks employee, shouting at the top of her lungs, “Starbucks! Do you have food here? Starbucks!”. I think she thought the employee’s name was also Starbucks. Yes, these are the episodes that I enjoy and learn from while waiting at the gate for hours. If you arrive late to the airport, you miss them. Sure, you have a whole plane ride of people watching ahead of you, but the amount of people for viewing at gates and terminals allots for more opportunities and more stories.
Look! It's Einstein! Someone you would miss seeing if you arrive late to the airport.
2. Oh The Problems You Won’t Have
If you arrive early to a flight, and the ticket agent tells you there is a problem with your ticket, you have time to sort out the issue. I once arrived to a confusing Sicilian airport. The agent informed me that my ticket didn’t exist. She told me I would have to get out of the line I just waited 40 minutes in and purchase a new ticket. Now, this issue was not my fault. It was the airline’s, and I’m not just saying that. Due to the fact that I allowed for early arrival, I was able to solve the problem and make my flight that day.
3. Oh The Places You Will Go
This is the biggest reason I can tip in the early to the airport traveler’s favor. Your chances of missing out on that extra day in Maui are incredibly slim. Unless there is some sort of weather problem, you will be on the beach shortly with a Mai Tai in hand. Travel is something that should not be taken lightly. Few travel in a lifetime. I treat the opportunity in this way. I am lucky to have a seat on that plane. I am lucky to be heading out of town. Many would take my seat in an instant, so out of respect for travel, I’m arriving early.
Two thumbs up for arriving at my destination
Now, this is just my case to become what I am, a traveler that must arrive early to the airport. Feel free to leave your case, walk up to the gate travelers. Try and convince me of your ways, but I guarantee come June 8th, I’ll be headed out to the airport for my flight to Italy at least three hours in advance. I’m not missing out on travel.
Which type of traveler are you? Leave a comment in the box below. I’d be interested to see which category most people fall into.
early early early!
Great post you have here! I have never been late for anything… dunno why, maybe it is the swiss part of me… but I for some reason NEED to be prepared and early for everything 🙂
I like to arrive to the airport about one and a half hours before my flight, and while I do enjoy the people watching aspect of waiting, I’m often much too excited to be able to sit still for too long. So I’d prefer to just arrive, get my ticket, pass through security, board the plane and be on my way…without having to fidget around in anticipation!
I could not agree more! I am a bundle of anxiety until I get past security and can relax with a novel and some delicious airport cuisine. I have a flight in… 5 hours and I’m already starting to feel anxious.
I’m a weird sort of in-between. I HATE waiting in airports, especially when I know I have plenty of time to sit and read magazines on the flight. However, I’m also perpetually early for everything.
It’s the result of a mother who is always running late because she’s doing 83928 things at once and a father who insists we arrive at the airport hours ahead of time “just in case.”
That being said, my ideal is arriving at the airport an hour early: enough time to check in, get a coffee and go the bathroom–and be last on the plane because I hate sitting in planes any longer than necessary.
My 6 a..m flight leaving next week? Hoping to breeze in about 5:15 a.m., grab my Starbucks and score any open seat 🙂
One of the pluses of arriving early (on time) is that I can walk around the terminal and stretch my legs before sitting for hours. I guess I could do this at home and arrive late, but then I run the risk of not getting to fly at all!
I’m a total early bird in everything I do. I’m not on time, I’m under time. It drives my wife crazy (and vice versa) since she’s definitely of late persuasion. Must be my German roots coming through.
Great pics!
You’re good, I start on the anxiety attacks the night before! Especially if it’s a morning flight – I’ll put three different alarms on but STILL wake up every hour thinking, “OMG I’ve slept in!! Outta bed… damn it! Did it again, I still have x hours until the alarm which is 2 hours too early to be at the airport 3 hours before the flight which I could still possibly miss by a 0.01% chance… Back into bed, again”.
Thanks for sharing… It’s nice to know I’m not alone in my strangely stressed out world 🙂
I’m somewhere in the middle but definitely on the late side. If international flights require that I check in 2 hours beforehand I usually show up an hour and 15 beforehand. I hate waiting at the gate.
But that may be why my bag didn’t make it to Mexico with me!
I enjoy reading, and as my Dad says if you enjoy reading you are never bored. I prefer to be at least an hour early get a drink at the bar and read a chapter or two without any anxiety. Good post.
Definitely believe in getting there early. Last trip Syrian Air refused to take my Armavia e-ticket for a code-share flight, and it took Armavia 40 minutes to issue a paper ticket. (Same as your Sicilian problem.) I made it through security just as boarding was called (but didn’t start – I did have time for much-needed coffee). I figured that justified a lifetime of early arrivals!
I am the anxious, gets there way too early type of traveler. I like the buzz and excitement at airports, and I also think waiting around in airports is part of the travel experience. You won’t catch me running down a corridor or hearing my name paged over the intercom!
EARLY! Gawd. The only thing I hate about being early is that it gives me more time to be anxious.
I can’t count how many times I’ve just walked right on to the plane as they were closing the gate door behind me. I’m habitually very late and clocks don’t bother me at all. If I were to travel with people who like being early, I’d drive them nuts for sure.
I want to see Einstein at the airport!! Alas, I’m always a little too late…
I also like to be early for the airport, probably a habit born out of the fact that most of my flights are trans-Atlantic/Pacific flights that I book months ahead of time, and if I’m late, it’s not just a matter of “getting on the next one in a few hours.” I have a theory that how early you are for a flight should be proportional to how long the flight is and how early you booked the flight in advance. If it’s a long flight that you booked 4 months in advance, what’s a few hours to wait in the airport lounge?
I like to think I am an early traveler. Especially after they have more vigorous TSA security checking, the waiting lines could be really long. But occasionally I had to run to the gate as well, and the door closed behind me. For those occasion, I usually got really nervous, don’t like the feeling.
I am always an early type. If my flight leaves at 8, I like to try to be at the airport by 5. Which means, leaving around 4:30 and still having plenty of wiggle room. But inevitably, despite this planning at quarter to 4 I will be placing another call to the cab company to get them to show up earlier because I don’t want to wait around at home. Mostly for me it’s nerves of something going wrong, even traffic on the way etc
So have to be at the airport early. Like you Suzy I love watching people scamper around. You see the people arrive late and then get all angry when really they could have just been early.
While sitting around in an airport drives me batty and gets me very anxious. I like knowing that I’m making the flight and have time to browse the over priced merchandise in the departure lounge.
I’ve changed as the airline security has changed. I didn’t used to mind being late and I thought getting there too early was for uptight old fuddy duds. I’m becoming one of those uptights now and would prefer a non stressful start to my travels. I bring a good book now and I’m happy…okay mostly happy because waiting too long can drive you nuts.
I am the bloke sitting in the corner reading or chatting to the weird looking bloke with the dirty backpack
Great post, it made me smile! I am the sort of person who always arrives at the airport stupidly early. I once sat in Auckland’s domestic terminal for 8 hours as I forgot my hostel could store my luggage after I checked out!
I wouldn’t change my airport habits for the world though, I think that having a coffee and a wander around the airport people watching is all part of the experience!
I probably wouldn’t be super-early to the airport if I drove myself there, as I am never early to anything in my life, but my mom always insists on driving me and as we live 1.5 hrs from the busiest airport in the US (Atlanta) she makes sure we are very early in case of long lines at security. Normally, I end up sitting in the terminal for at least an hour by myself, but there’s a lot to do in that airport (including people watching) so it’s not bad. My first solo international trip is coming up soon (right after Labor day) and I will probably be anxious enough about it to be happy with getting there stupidly early so I’m not stressing about it. This is the first trip I’ve put A LOT of my own money into, and I’m nothing if not extremely frugal, which means not missing my flight and having to pay extra.
Love this post – I am an airport loving freak. I once showed up to Bangkok airport seven hours early and they wouldn’t let me check in until six hours before my flight. By the time my flight boarded, I knew that airport inside out! It’s like a second home now 🙂
I am late for EVERYTHING… except airports!!! I must arrive at the airport at least 3 hours before my flight, and I also must provide myself with an hours travel time to avoid any traffic jams or accidents on my way. Therefore I demand to be out of my house at least 4 hours before my flight!
A sore point between my transportation to the airport and myself on my last trip!
My theory, much like yours, I’m not in the least bit willing to allow for anything to jepordise my presious and valuble time away. I’m not privleged enough to have the money or time to go away often, so when I do NOTHING is getting between me and that plane!
Besides, There is nothing more enjoyable the arriving to the airport getting through security knowing exactly where your gate is then with your extra two hours of time, sit in a nearby cafe and ponder, dream about all the adventures your about to have over a nice coffee or depending on the time of day perhaps a good cocktail and your journal! 🙂
EARLY! Although, I’ve arrived freakishly early on a couple of occasions – I was at Incheon Airport in Seoul 7 hours before my flight to Sydney once. The bus I was taking arrived there an hour ahead of schedule…I also needed to get a special re-entry permit on my visa, with friends telling me the queues were usually a couple of hours long. It took 5 minutes. That was a looooooooong day.