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Lessons We’ve Learned about Student Travel

airports and travelSummer officially begins at Adventure Treks in just four months, and the first students of 2017 will be landing at their arrival airports a few short weeks later. In order to make planning your student’s transportation a little easier, here are a few lessons we’ve learned over the years.

*These suggestions are based merely on our experiences on flying more than 1,500 students in the last several years.

Choosing airlines and unaccompanied minors

Simply put, some airlines, like Southwest and Alaska Airlines, are easier to navigate when booking tickets for teenagers under 18. For example, students 12 and older can fly alone on Southwest and Alaska, meaning you do not need to purchase the extra unaccompanied minor (UM) service (which can cost upwards of $150 each way) which will assign an airline attendant to accompany your child during the flight. (However, you do still have the option for your child to fly as a UM with either airline.)

Delta has great customer service when dealing with UMs and travel complications. They do require UM service for students 14 and younger, and it usually costs about $150 each way, but on a rough travel day (e.g., with delays due to weather, etc.), we’ve found that they are the most helpful in helping students get from point A to point B. If flights are delayed and connections will be missed, they’ve often already re-booked a student on the next best flight before we’ve reached a human on their customer service phone number (but that also happens relatively quickly, too).

Now onto our least favorite: Last year, United quietly changed its UM policy mid-winter, upping its age requirement from 15 to 16, and restricting those under 16 to nonstop flights only. We had several families who had to pay for new plane tickets last-minute due to this policy change, costing thousands of dollars. We encourage families to look at other airlines first, and only choose United if necessary or if your student is older than 16.

Choosing early flights and connections

It may sound nerve-wracking, but remember—it’s OK to book flights with connections! In fact, most of our students will fly with at least one connection during their journey to or from Adventure Treks. However, look closely at connection times before purchasing a ticket. We highly recommend at least an hour between flights, as it is our experience that anything less can result in travel complications. Last summer, the students who most often missed their second flight leg were those with connection times of about 30 minutes.

For our east coast students, please book the first flight of the day. We know it will mean an early morning for you and your child, but it offers much more breathing room in case of delays, missed connections, bad weather, cancelled flights, etc.

Adventure Treks is there to help!

Flying to and from Adventure Treks sometimes causes more stress for parents than students! Adventure Treks is with you every step of the way.

  • We have the confirmation code of every student’s flight so that we can quickly and easily confirm and/or note any changes in flight details.
  • We check flights three to four days before opening and closing days, again the day before, and again the morning of.
  • We are in the office by 7 a.m. on airport days, even if it’s a weekend, for support.
  • On opening days, our instructors and regional directors arrive at the airport early. We (both the office staff and instructors/directors) track all flights—from before the first student takes off at his or her home airport to when the last student lands at his or her destination airport.
  • We pay close attention to weather all over the U.S., and we try to get ahead of any potential complications as much as possible. It is not uncommon for one of us to call a parent with information regarding a flight delay, possible missed connection, etc., and a plan B (or C!) before the parent is aware of that change.

Someone from our office is always on call (24 hours a day, 7 days a week) during the summer. If a student experiences a significant travel delay, we’re available to help, even if it’s 3 a.m. We also ask for our students’ cell phone numbers so we can be in direct contact with them while they are traveling. Please stress to your child the importance of turning their cell phones on when they land at every airport, and to answer any calls or text messages from strange phone numbers, as it is likely a staff member. Also, it’s a good idea to plug our office phone number (828-698-0399) into your child’s phone.

A few tips for your child

It’s a good idea to sit down with your child and look over a map of the airport your child will be flying into; this gives your child a head-start on navigating the terminal. If your child feels lost at any point inside the airport, tell him/her to look for a mom with kids—she will always stop and help your child! Here’s more helpful information on airport days, and we suggest watching this video for both you and your child:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xmSJvhe0u4U

Read all the paperwork

Before booking airline tickets, read your student’s Travel Information document, which you’ll find in the “forms and documents” section of your CampInTouch account. You’ll find all the details you’ll need to book your student’s tickets, along with other valuable travel information, including a description of how the unaccompanied minor program works. A note to new families: feel free to browse tickets, but please don’t purchase anything until your student has been officially accepted.

We treat all of our students as if they are our own kids. If you have any questions or concerns, or just need to chat through the process, please give us a call at 828-698-0399. We’re always here to help and make the travel process as smooth as possible.

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Getting Through Airport Day (From a Mom’s Perspective)

My kids Sarah and Thomas spent six summers each flying to Adventure Treks. It can be nerve-racking to drop your child off at the airport, but one thing I have learned is 1) they can do it and 2) it makes them (and you!) feel great to know they can handle themselves. Here are a few tips that might help you stay relaxed until you receive the “Hi mom/dad, I am with Adventure Treks!” phone call.

First, be prepared. If you’ll be flying as a family on any trips before Adventure Treks, let your child take the lead, figuring out the flight monitors and finding the gate. This boosts confidence in navigating terminals while still having the support of parents nearby. You can also print out and go over the layout of the airport your student will be arriving in; this is especially helpful if there’s a layover, and if the connecting airport has trains running to and from terminals, like Atlanta or Denver.

It’s crucial to keep your child’s cell phone and charger easily accessible and in the carry-on bag. Remind them that not only will you be available should they need to call you, but they can always call the Adventure Treks office as well (and kids do call us on airport day!). Also, we highly recommend providing spending money for food or a book in case of delays or cancellations.

Second, rehearse asking for help with your child. I make my kids practice saying, “Excuse me, I am flying by myself,” at the beginning of any conversation with airline staff. As a parent, when you hear those words, it changes the way you listen and engage with teenagers. I also tell my kids to look for another mom traveling with her children when they need help and have trouble finding airline staff. Moms always stop and take the time to help your child get to where he or she needs to be.

Third, request a gate pass when you drop your student off at security. (This is different from purchasing the extra unaccompanied minor service, and is free.) A gate pass allows you to walk to the gate with your child and watch the plane depart. Getting a gate pass depends entirely on the security staff working that morning, but I’ve never been denied the privilege, and we’ve flown multiple airlines. Remember, you will go through security as well, so keep it simple: I bring just my car keys, ID, and a credit card.

Here’s the million-dollar question: What do you do when a flight is delayed or canceled? First, take a breath! It will be OK.

One year, my daughter’s itinerary to Anchorage, AK, was Asheville > Charlotte > Chicago > Anchorage. After arriving in Charlotte, Sarah found out her next leg to Chicago was canceled (the first time that has happened to us in a total of 30+ Adventure Treks flight segments). She stood in multiple lines and talked to several airline staff, but the information she received from staff and what I found online back in Asheville was conflicting. Sarah and I were in constant contact, and she did a great job at finding the right airport staff to clarify what was happening with her flight. Still, she really got the run around for a while, and we both started to get a bit unraveled—it was nearing midnight, and the airport was virtually shutting down. Being that my daughter had just turned 16, she could not get a voucher for a hotel.

I did learn that many airports have an unaccompanied minor lounge. Even if you have not paid the UM fee, your child can still access the lounge and sleep, watch movies, and eat until their rescheduled flight boards.

I called our marketing director, Amanda, who was our on-call Adventure Treks emergency after-hours contact that evening (even though I do this very job myself). It helped just to hear her calming voice and be reassured that she was also trying to sort things out, just as I was doing for my daughter. Rest assured, you and your child will always be able to speak with our staff, at any time, on airport arrival and departure days.

After a long evening, Sarah boarded her new flight and made her connection to Anchorage. The airlines had lost her luggage, but she had her carry-on backpack to get her by, and our director, Dave (aka Dmac, as students call him), was standing by to greet her as she landed. He figured out her luggage dilemma and quickly connected her with the rest of the group.

Once she was on the ground in Alaska, and we had a chance to talk, it was clear that she felt pretty good about figuring it all out. Yes, she was tired, and yes, it was inconvenient—to say the least—but she did it by herself, and she never felt unsafe. In hindsight, I’m glad she had this experience. It was an opportunity to learn resilience and think on her feet. (And it added a little excitement to an already-extremely-high point in her life!) As a parent, I was so appreciative of Amanda and Dmac that day; although they would say they were just doing their job, it was how they did it.

The best thing we can do as parents is prepare our kids and remind them that they can figure out these logistics and overcome any hurdles that come their way. And not only can they do it, but they are better for it. Chances are that everything will go just as planned. Direct, early-morning flights are recommended. Should a flight get delayed or cancelled, no matter what time your child arrives, we will be there to greet him or her—even if it is 3 a.m.! So take a deep breath and know your child can do it—and you can too!

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The Best Time to Buy Airline Tickets

By Stacey Rice, logistics coordinator

Sunday marked the official start of spring. Flowers are blooming, leaf buds are opening, and temperatures are warming. With that, millions of travelers are beginning to think about their summer plans, including Adventure Treks families looking to book cost-effective plane tickets for their child’s trip! But what day of the week is the best day to buy? And how far in advance will you find the best price?

A report published in December 2015 suggests that while some days of the week are better than others (with Friday being the worst), there is really no one best day to purchase cheaper plane tickets, and travelers should grab a good deal when they see one. The report also suggests that for travel within North America, the best time to buy is roughly 57 days in advance.

Timing is everything

Years ago, most airline executives would spend Mondays analyzing the number of seats sold over the weekend. They would then create advertising campaigns based on those numbers, and consumers could always count on seeing the lowest airfare prices of the week published in Tuesday’s papers. As Internet ticket-buying sites emerged, this practice continued, and low airfare prices would sometimes spill over into early Wednesday morning. Now, it seems, those days are long gone.

The report, “Preparing for Takeoff: Air travel outlook for 2016,” is a joint effort by Expedia and Airlines Reporting Corp. (ARC) to look at global airline data annually and to forecast the year ahead. Online giant Expedia and ARC (which processes tickets bought through traditional travel agencies) analyzed more than 10 billion passenger flights from October 2014 to October 2015.

While Tuesday remains a relatively decent day to purchase lower-cost tickets (and is still usually the best weekday), you’re more likely to find the best prices on Saturday and Sunday. But shy away from Fridays, as this is when business travelers are booking last-minute tickets and fares are typically most expensive. Sarah Waffle Gavin, who writes for Expedia’s travel blog Viewfinder™, summarized the report in her December 10, 2015 blog “Air Travel Trends for 2016”:

“Of course there are mitigating factors. Most analyses show low air ticket prices on weekend days because that’s when many leisure travelers purchase tickets (and leisure tickets are much cheaper than business tickets). What’s more, airlines change their fares multiple times a day. With all of this in mind, Expedia and ARC advise that travelers who find a fare that looks like a great deal to purchase it, regardless of the day of the week.”

Be an early bird

The report also suggests that booking early is often the biggest factor in scoring low-cost tickets. “The sweet spot is about two months before departure. The study found the lowest-priced economy tickets for a flight within North America were sold, on average, 57 days before departure,” said Scott McCartney in his review of the report in The Middle Seat column, published in the Wall Street Journal on December 11, 2015, “The Worst Day to Buy a Plane Ticket.”

Waffle Gavin further points out that “the research indicates that air ticket prices purchased around this point yield a 10 percent savings versus the average fare.”

In McCartney’s column, he cites Patrick Surry, chief data scientist at Hopper (the only travel app to make Apple’s Best Apps of 2015 list), as seeing “benefits in buying even earlier than 57 days on domestic trips. On many flights tracked by Hopper, the cheapest prices for domestic U.S. trips are about 80 days before departure.”

Regardless of whether tickets are booked two or three months out, the experts tend to agree that this time period often produces the cheapest options, because airlines typically begin their price-cutting measures during this time.

Parting tips

With the first 2016 Adventure Treks opening day roughly only 3 months away, now’s the time to begin the search. These days, sales are short-lived and often restrictive. While looking for the best deal possible, be wary of sales that seem too good to be true; they usually are. Rick Seaney writes a tips and advice blog for tracking site FareCompare. In his January 18, 2016, blog “Cheapest Days to Fly and Best Time to Buy Airline Tickets,” he offers these tips: compare prices and set airfare alerts. And expand the search. “Bigger airports (particularly hubs) often have cheaper airfares. Compare prices from your hometown airport as well a larger airport and you may find a longer drive is worth it,” he said.

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