Of all the things I do to prepare for a trip, by far the most stressful (to me) is actually researching my route and purchasing the ticket.  The reason I have so many issues with this portion of the process is attempting to route flights to and from my destination through a halfway decent layover point (if necessary) on planes I’m comfortable riding in.  This can prove challenging at best, but a few key websites can be really helpful in this area.

Researching and booking flights

Two of my go-to websites that are very helpful are Kayak and SeatGuru.

Kayak is a travel site that lets you select destinations, dates, times and a myriad of other options to help you plan your route.  It is less traditional than most travel sites because it even draws information from other larger travel booking services.  Kayak does not have it’s own travel booking service, it’s simply a search engine for the best price on travel and has some really great features to help you nail down the perfect travel schedule for the big and tall guy.

I’ll try to be brief, but a few of the great things about Kayak are it’s ability to show you pretty much up-front (after hitting the details button) on your flight search what kind of plane you will be riding on (so you can beware of the dreaded CRJ Regional Jet or the much hated D95 Narrow-body Jet).  Also, it allows you to modify and narrow your focus on departure and arrival times, layover time and location, as well as many other great things.

A site I use that is always open in another browser tab or window is SeatGuru.  If you are unfamiliar with your plane or flight, SeatGuru is an absolute must to help you plan and prepare for your trip.  SeatGuru has seating layouts and information on most major airlines and their floor plans for each type of airplane (example pictured below).  This can be particularly helpful during the booking or check-in process when selecting your seats.  Some of the great little details of SeatGuru is the lengths they go to detail seat comfort.  From “lacking legroom” for whatever reason to “next to a commonly drafty window in this type of plane, don’t sit here if you get cold easily”, SeatGuru never fails to provide me with the knowledge I need to book my flight with confidence.

A huge part of the hassle and annoyance of travel is just making it through security and getting to my departure gate.  The travel experience can be a real downer if things don’t move along quickly and efficiently.  While doing some business travel for a company I used to work for and searching for tips on efficient travel, I discovered the TravelCommons Podcast.  Although I don’t travel for business much these days, I do like to travel for leisure. Finding ways to reduce stress and hassle at the is a huge help, as flying is generally an uncomfortable experience for the big & tall.  The TravelCommons Podcast discusses a wide range of topics relating to frequent travel, it’s perils, technology that travels well and how to overcome tough situations on the road.  If you’re a frequent traveler, or even an occasional traveler looking for tips on how to make your next travel experience less painful, give the TravelCommons Podcast a try.

In defense of layovers…

When researching and booking my trip, I use the sites mentioned above to get myself the best big guy-friendly seating and planes.  Unfortunately, your destination requires a few bad planes along the way and there is no avoiding it.  If such an occasion arises, take a layover to stretch your legs (and you may get a bit of a discount on the flight, too).  Layovers really don’t bother me, as I’ve already convinced myself that the day is lost to travel.  Once I accept that a two hour layover isn’t really going to make much of a difference, I take advantage of that time to stretch my legs and relax in the large seats at the gate.  I usually enjoy this time, mostly on longer 2-3 hour layovers as it gives me a chance to get some “real” food as well as use the restroom without worrying about people waiting or having to fold myself in half just to fit in the tiny bathroom.

On the other hand, I do appreciate direct flights within the continental U.S. if they are held to around 4 or 5 hours…  but only if I’ve got a decent seat on one of my “preferred” planes, as referenced in Part 1 of this series “Choosing your plane wisely.”

In Part 3 of this series, we’ll talk about seating and boarding.  Have any travel tips, stories or experiences for your fellow Big & Tall man?  Drop us a line in the comments section or at email us at tim@sizeoflife.com.

Categories: Travel
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