ROUNDUP: our top business travel tips, tricks, hacks & guides
By John Walton, February 23 2012
Want the best travel tips for the frequent flyer? Trying to find the best business travel hacks, tricks and insider guides? We've got you covered.
At Australian Business Traveller, we bring you tips and tricks on a regular basis, starting at the very start of your trip -- booking a flight -- through planning, packing, getting to and through the airport, on the plane and when you arrive.
Here's a selection of our most popular travel tips, sorted by when and where you can use them.
Booking a flight
Get the best flights for your schedule, travel budget, frequent flyer points balance and in-flight comfort:
- Four great travel tricks using Google Search
- Which is better and what's the difference: nonstop or direct flights
- How to get extra legroom when booking economy class
- Fees and charges: where your airfare actually goes
And don't forget our popular insider guides to picking the best seats on your flight!
Before you leave
Be prepared before you travel and ease your way through any situation.
- What you can do before leaving home in case an emergency happens while you're travelling
- What the Schengen zone -- and its visa program -- means for your business trip
- Cash or travel money card -- which is best?
- Cracking the Wotif "mystery hotel" code
- What to look for when buying carry-on luggage
- Travel money and currency exchange: get the best value
- Staying safe abroad: the fastest way to register with DFAT's Smartraveller service
- Call the hotel concierge before you arrive to book airport transfers, restaurants, bars and everything else
Packing your bags
Packing, packing, packing: the bane of any business traveller's life. Here's how to hack that tedious process.
- Pack like a pro: roll some clothes, fold others
- Always travel with an Australian power board
- How to pack wine, champagne or any other delicious beverage
- Travel hack: contact lens holders are perfect for small amounts of travel liquids
- How to pack your carry-on like a flight attendant
- Avoid checked bag fees in the USA
- The world's lightest carry-on luggage
- Two wheels good, four wheels also good? The suitcase buyers guide
- Australian airlines' carry-on baggage limits — and what they mean
- 37-pocket cabin baggage coat helps you evade the carry-on limit
- Useful or useless: "packing cubes"?
Business travellers spend a huge amount of time in airports. We'll show you the best way through.
At the airport
Love them or hate them, airports can feel like a second home — and we've got a few tips to speed your way through them:
- US Skycap porters: a good deal for heavy or bulky luggage
- The five best places to find AC power points in an airport
- How to reduce the risk of lost luggage
- Speed your way through airport security: top tips
- Keep a bartender app on your smartphone to expand lounge cocktail options
- Finding the cheapest parking at Sydney Airport
In the air
Whether you're on a short hop between cities or an ultra-long-haul flight across the world, make the most of your flight with our top tips:
- What to wear in the air: tips for a more comfortable trip
- What to wear in the air, redux: the "startup casual" business traveller
- Your guide to the various types of business class seat — and cabin layouts
- How to survive a red-eye overnight flight in economy
- Top tips for the best international economy flights
- Stay healthy on international flights
- In-flight reading: iPad? Kindle? Magazines? Or just a good book?
- The lie-flat lie: when is a business class bed not a bed?
- Leg room, seat pitch and your personal space on a plane demystified
- Do bulkhead seats really give you extra legroom on a plane?
On arrival
From the plane door to the meeting, here's how to get through the arrivals process faster — and some trips for that wonderful invention, the "onward journey".
- How Qantas passengers can jump the US airport customs and immigration queue
- Tip properly to show you're a savvy business traveller in the USA
- How to claim back UK VAT (the British GST equivalent) on departure
- The best way from Heathrow to London: taxi, car, train, tube or bus?
At the hotel
Whether you're in a luxury penthouse or a basic room, we've got you covered with our handy hotel hacks:
- Snap a smartphone picture of your hotel room number
- Always ask for two key cards when checking in
- How to shine your shoes in a hotel without shoe polish
- Find out how much ground coffee per cup your hotel coffee maker needs
- Handling the hotel "incidentals" deposit without losing out
- Give up on poorly-equipped hotel gyms and find a local one instead
- Avoid Amazon's international shipping fees
Tech and gadgets
Most business travellers will be lugging some combination of laptop, smaller ultrabook, tablet and smartphone with them. Here's how to get the most out of them:
- How to turn your iPhone into a portable wifi hotspot
- Do you really need that big laptop any more? We take the ultrabook plunge
- Avoid the overseas data roaming ripoff with our tips and tricks
- How to watch Australian TV while you're overseas
- Setting up a wifi router: get a hotspot in your hotel room
- Five ways to boost your iPhone's battery life
Advanced tips and tricks
Want to rival Ryan Bingham in a frequent flyer faceoff? Take your travel knowledge to the next level with our advanced traveller tips:
- Five advanced travel hacks: what your TQ is and how to boost it
- Christmas and New Year flights: the pros and cons for business travellers
We'll continue to bring you more frequent flyer hacks, business traveller tips and road warrior tricks here and on Twitter: we're @AusBT.
Aviation journalist and travel columnist John took his first long-haul flight when he was eight weeks old and hasn't looked back since. Well, except when facing rearwards in business class.
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