With summer trip already in full swing, Fox News Digital spoke with experts to learn some of their tips and tricks for making sure a checked bag arrives safely at its destination.
Airports are busier than they have been in years, which means there are a lot more people who will be checking their bags onto their flights.
Here's what travel experts recommend doing — and avoiding — so your vacation doesn't start with a queue at the lost baggage desk at the airport.
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Check out these four tips.
1. Fly direct if possible
“Direct flights are the best choice if you want your luggage to arrive at the right destination,” Richard Campbell, founder of Calgary-based travel agency 10Adventures, told Fox News Digital via email.
If a direct flight is not possible and a bag must be checked, Campbell recommends allowing at least 90 minutes between flights.
To avoid losing your checked bags, take a direct flight if possible, a travel expert said — or at the very least, don't book a close connection. (Dustin Chambers/Bloomberg via Getty Images)
“If I have two or more layovers, I assume I won't get my luggage once I get to my final destination,” he said.
Nikita Kosholkin, co-founder and chief marketing officer of the App in the Air tool, told Fox News Digital that he personally agrees with a 45-minute layover, but also noted: “It's better if It lasts more than an hour.
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“There is a limited amount of time a bag can actually travel due to logistics at the airport,” he said.
“Even if you can catch your next flight, your bag might not.”
2. Don’t overload your luggage
Packing lightly, even for a checked bag, can actually help ensure a bag gets to its destination, Jeremy Murchland, president of Seven Corners Travel Insurance, told Fox News Digital. The company is based in Indiana.
A person who over-packs may end up rushing to the check-in gate to make sure a bag is under the weight limit – something Murchland said is “just asking for trouble” .
Overweight luggage can be taken to another part of the airport, an expert told Fox News Digital, increasing the risk of loss. (Mario Tama/Getty Images)
“You will lose items in the process of mixing or possibly damage them if they are not repackaged safely. Plus, you are now forced to juggle loose items that you may not even have need in the first place,” he said.
Additionally, an oversized or heavy bag is not treated the same as standard-sized bags, he added. Instead, it will be collected at another location during baggage claim.
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“Any time your baggage has to be routed differently or go through a different process than normal, you are at higher risk of losing your bag, so stay within the recommended limits set by your airline,” he said .
3. Make your bag unique
Many suitcases look the same, which means someone who isn't careful could end up going home with someone else's belongings.
Adding a luggage strap or sticker to a “basic black suitcase” can help make it stand out, several experts told Fox News Digital. (iStock)
“After a transatlantic flight, everyone is tired and it’s so easy to get the wrong suitcase at the baggage carousel,” Campbell said.
To avoid this, Campbell puts stickers on both sides of his “basic black suitcase,” as well as a yellow pom pom — which he puts away as soon as he picks up his bag.
Dominic Brown, a food and travel blogger based in Richmond, also uses identifiers on his luggage.
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“That I am travel domestically or abroad“I use luggage straps to make sure my luggage doesn't get lost at the airport,” he told Fox News Digital in an email.
These straps, he said, help his suitcase stand out from other “basic colored suitcase sets.”
Brown, owner of the website TallTravelEats, has traveled to several continents and told Fox News Digital that since he started using luggage straps, he has not lost a bag during his travels.
AirTags, or similar tracking products, can help a traveler find their luggage after a long day of travel. (Apple)
But Brown cautioned that to avoid any surprises at the airport, the traveler should make sure the luggage straps are TSA approved.
4. Use a GPS tracker
Another suggestion is for travelers to consider use AirTags or other similar tracking products to ensure their luggage arrives on the plane.
AirTags, made by Apple, must be set up with an iPhone or iPad, but the product can be tracked using an app available on the Google Play Store.
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Other tracking devices such as Tile are not tied to a particular operating system.
“Luggage gets lost and often airlines have no idea where it is,” Campbell said.
“I want to help them, so I use AirTags so I can find lost luggage and show it to the airline.”
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Like any technologyAirTags aren't entirely perfect, Campbell said.
“The first time I (used an AirTag in checked baggage), I almost had a heart attack as I was leaving London, but my bags still showed up in a different part of Heathrow,” he said. he declares.
“It turns out that AirTags cannot be updated in parts of the airport where there is no signal.”
