The Alberta Motor Association is giving out some holiday flight tips to Lloydminster residents who are planning to travel during the season.
AMA Members Services Manager Roland VanMeurs advises homeowners not to post their travel plans on social media to keep the house safe.
“If you’re posting on Facebook that you’re going away you’re telling everybody that your house is empty. It’s one of the things I recommend not to do.”
Some things to look at ahead of time is to have all the home security apps updated before leaving and notifying a trusted friend or neighbour of the dates the house will be empty. VanMeurs says to have them inspect the home and put it into a log for insurance purposes.
“If you happen to have a flood in the basement or a burst pipe in the winter months it must be checked on a daily basis otherwise you could have your insurance claim potentially denied. Have a neighbour or a security company take a log to show they were in each day.”
Before leaving VanMeur says people should look over their passports and IDs to ensure they are still valid, check-in 24 hours ahead of the flight, register any checked luggage and get boarding passes early. He reminds travellers to keep any liquid and gel products in the check-in luggage if they are in a container more than 100 mL.
VanMeurs recommends waiting after the flight before wrapping gifts.
“Security isn’t concerned with if a package looks nice and pretty, if they want to look into it they will rip off the wrapping paper to get into something they did need to look at it. Wrap it when you get there.”
For those taking pets on the flight, every airline has different restrictions on the weight and size of the kennels that can be taken on the aircraft. Travellers can phone the airlines before the flight to ensure their pet can be taken on the flight. VanMeurs recommends getting a soft-sided kennel if the pet is going to be in the cabin.
“The soft-sided kennel can squish down a bit and the pet needs to stay in the kennel the entire time and needs to be under the seat in front of the traveller.”
Airlines could also place a travel ban on pets during the holidays if there are too many people on the flights or if they feel the weather is unsafe.
VanMeurs says patience is key when dealing with any problems during the holiday travels.