I haven’t flown since 2019, and I have mostly flown SWA for the last 15 years.
I am flying from Charlotte, NC (CLT) to LAX next week on American, and then from LAX to CLT on Spirit a week later.
I have downloaded both apps. and created accounts with both.
I have pre-paid for a carry on for Spirit and it is included for AA.
Is there anything else I should do?
It looks like 24 hours before my AA flight I will check in on the AA app (or my desktop). I already have assigned seats. What do I do when I get to the airport? Do I go to a kiosk? I remember doing that with one friend one time and we printed labels for our checked bags. But I don’t have checked bags. Do I just go to TSA line? How do I prove I belong there? Will they look at my app? Do I stop at a kiosk for some kind of paper?
So many questions - I know.
Our flight is 7:11AM, so I hope to be at airport at 5:30 AM (park and fly). We will need to find food because it is a non-stop flight and about 5 hours long. Good grief - what have I done? I am a road trip person. This is so complicated!
Then, coming home, do I do the same thing only different?
TSA will want to see your license, and MAYBE your boarding pass (on your phone is fine)…but usually not. They don’t care about what luggage you bring through as long as it adheres to TSA rules.
If you already checked in on-line 24 hours ahead of time and have no checked baggage, there is no need to do anything more. Just go through TSA to your gate.
Also, for future reference, (because this was a huge surprise to us when we restarted flying ), if you do have checked baggage, you are now expected to tag it using kiosks before dropping it off. So you might want to just look and see what that is before you go through security, in case you ever do have to fly with a checked bag.
That was definitely not something I was expecting when we did encounter it. I hope you have a phenomenal time!! We will be there at the end of the month!
I don’t know if this is the same for AA and Spirit, but with SW your boarding time is earlier than you flight time. Im assuming it is. So if you have to find food before the flight, add that into your time consideration. I’m only very familiar with MCO and MSY so I can’t help with timing there. I’ll go out on a limb and say you will need MUCH more time to deal with LAX than CLT because of the size and times of flights. If you have a later in the day Spirit flight be prepared to occupy time incase it’s late.
Just wanted to make sure you are aware of the 3 oz limit on individual liquids or gels in carry-on bags, and all must fit into a single quart-sized ziploc. In some cases they don’t make you take out your ziploc bag, but in all cases you are held to that limit. Also be aware of the carry-on size limit for Spirit and AA as it might be different.
@QwertySC You actually have a limit of 100 ml, or 3.4 fl oz. I was happy to discover that, since it lets me use my regular size and brand of an item, instead of using an off brand, just to be 3.0 fl oz.
Also, TSA has some interesting rules about what is, or is not, in the fluid category. You don’t need to waste valuable space in that quart-size Ziploc for solid deodorants, for example.
When we flew in March 2023 it was the first time we had flown with kids since 2016. DH & I had flown in early 2019 on our own and we were previously frequent fliers prior to our having kids, but we were so so so rusty.
Most everyone has called out/answered your questions but wanted to add about the food before a cross-country flight because we’ve had to figure out that now a few times going to MCO from our home airport (SLC).
On the way out, CLT should have food/quick service restaurants for you to purchase food after going through TSA. And even if you don’t have time to eat before boarding, you can carry on the food. But with that early of a flight I would see if you can find online any information about what’s available/what’s typically open. Most airports we’ve been in lately only have the one option for breakfast and the line can be long if it’s the only one. You can bring packed food with you through TSA, just not liquids so if you want to bring food, that’s also an option. My sister in law for 2 of our 3 flights this last year has packed up snack bags of bunches of good yummy treats for us and those have been clutch in the plane to help break up the flight AND not be hangry. We also maximize the included snacks (we always fly Delta so not sure if AA hands out snacks, but I’m positive Spirit doesn’t include them so for the way there it would be prudent to have snacks).
For the way back, budget time for traffic going to LAX. If your flight an afternoon/early evening flight, you’ll want minimum 2 hrs for potential traffic, more if you want a buffer for just in case. If it’s any other time of day you could do with 90 minutes (but again, I like a buffer when there’s air travel involved since they don’t hold the plane for you).
Since you’re not returning a rental car or checking a back you could probably show up 90 minutes before the flight out of LAX and be ok to get through security, find food, make it to your gate, but I always prefer just to be there 2 hours early because, especially with my family, we’re just always just barely making it in time.
I also just connected the dots that a colleague that I’m working closely with on a project will be there your same time and she is also going to Lamplight because she had never tried it & heard me rave out it & wanted to try it, so I can’t wait to hear how both ya’ll love Lamplight (I hope! )
Just thought of one more thing re: the kiosk. As mentioned before, if you’re happy with the boarding passes on your phone & don’t have checked bags you absolutely don’t have to. But DH always, always always always does just print out a paper boarding pass because it’s he feels it’s easier and even if one of us ends up using our phones anyway, it’s a good back-up. But if your phone is charged and not prone to glitching, then you should 100% be ok with the boarding pass on your phone.
We always bring some protein bars and/or mixed nuts with us.
Saw a thing on the TSA instagram that clarified the “liquids “ as anything that can be spread, so peanut butter and jelly sandwiches are a no go. Just to give you an example.
Ah, then definitely aim to be to LAX 2 hours before and 2 hours of traffic to drive in. Use an app like Waze (or your favorite navigation map app) to help you figure out a route and typical traffic for that day.
ETA: Budget 2 hours minimum if your drive will be anywhere from 2-6pm.
Ok first recommendation is to park at one of the 2 offsite lots Park 'n Go or The Parking Spot. The rates are similar to the long term lots at CLT and so convenient bc they tell you where to park, pick you up at your car, and drop you off at the main terminal. This way you don’t even have to remember where you parked, you just give them the paper they gave you when they picked you up. They usually have sales and discounts too.
Once at the airport, if you checked in online or in the app you will have electronic boarding passes. I usually screenshot them when I checkin so it’s easy to find later in my gallery. Without any checkin bags you can go straight to the TSA line. Mostly they just ask for your drivers license (or ID) and not your boarding pass. They want you to take your clear, quart sized liquids bags out of you luggage, your laptops, and then make sure you take anything metal out of your pockets and take your shoes off before going through the scanner. It’s a pain, just be prepared and allow about 30 minutes to clear it. Boarding for your flight should begin 30 minutes before the flight time listed on your ticket, so I would get to the airport more than an hour before your flight time.
TSA can be kinda backed up in the very early morning bc they usually don’t have all of the lanes open FYI.
Our departing fight is 8:27AM from LAX. I was planning to leave the hotel at 4:30AM.
I’ll fill it up with gas Sunday after going to the beach. Then we’ll grab dinner and visit DCA a short time. Then try to get SOME sleep.
)