SMART TRAVEL TIPS

Making your time on the road as hassle-free as possible helps ensure a successful business trip

By Phillip M. Perry, Contributing Editor -- Industrial Distribution, 2/1/2001

Cramped airline seats, long car rental lines, congested expressways, lost hotel reservations-it's a litany of horror familiar to any business traveler. And there's more to come: despite the growth of electronic commerce, we're hitting the road more often for sales calls and trade shows. Maybe we've given our minds to the information superhighway, but our bodies still belong to the concrete toll road.

So is there any way of making business trips more pleasurable? If the experiences of veteran travelers are any guide, the answer is yes. In the following pages, three well-traveled businesspeople reveal the secrets of a successful sojourn: Leil Lowndes is a New York-based speaker who keynotes business conventions and leads training seminars; John Tschohl is president of Service Quality Institute, a Minneapolis-based consulting firm; and James Feldman is a Chicago speaker who gives seminars on "The Cure for the Common Trip."

Prepare for success

Savvy business travelers plan a successful trip long before they leave the office.

"I always keep a travel bag handy with items that I know I'll need on any trip," says Lowndes.

If you grab this bag on your way out the door you won't be caught short in mid-flight. Common pre-packed items include business cards, aspirin, vitamins and prescriptions drugs, breath mints, a small umbrella, an extra laptop battery, extra notepad and pens, computer mouse pad and wrist supports, two small alarm clocks, an electronic egg timer to ration naps, a corkscrew, a toothbrush and toiletries including small bottles of shaving cream or cologne. Lowndes also recommends bringing a lightweight robe to throw on if you need to run to the hotel vending machine in the evening.

"To decide what should go on your own list, keep track of everything you use for two weeks prior to a typical trip," says Lowndes.

Keep the list in your travel bag, then check each item before you go. And pack your own meals. Business trips are notorious for waist-expanding junk food.

"I always take a bag of healthy snacks and a sandwich," says Lowndes. "They'll cost twice as much at the typical hotel shop-which is often closed by the time I arrive if I'm traveling late in the day."

Pack some fruit to save a significant amount of money over the hotel's overpriced breakfasts and to keep you from settling for sweet rolls that give you a fast energy boost but make you tired by noon. Include tea bags so you'll have something to drink if the hotel room has a hot water pot.

Tips for airline travel

Don't cut connections too close. Avoid costly glitches by scheduling buffer time between your flight and your meeting.

"If I have a morning meeting, I avoid taking the last flight out the night before," says Feldman. "If the flight is delayed or canceled I can still make my meeting."

Get the best seats.

"Call the airline and ask them to send you their seating charts," suggests Feldman. "Most will do so at no charge."

Every aircraft has seats that are better than others. For example, exit rows usually have more leg room. In some cases, though, the arms do not go up on the exit row seats so you have less seat area. If you take aisle seats you will have more leg room and can more easily get up and down-but be aware you are more likely to get bumped by attendants and other travelers as they walk the aisle. On a night flight, take a window seat so you have more room for your pillow.

Avoid the row immediately behind the bulkhead, which is the upright partition separating sections of the plane. There's less room to store your gear and no room to stretch your legs.

Keep hold of the good stuff.

"I never check the materials I need for a business meeting or a presentation," says Tschohl. "It's extraordinarily risky to do so. The chances are too great of losing luggage. All you need is for this to happen one time and you are out of business."

Keep your valuable business materials with you in a small carry-on. And make sure that bag is small-airlines are getting tougher about the size of luggage you may take aboard. Some even have metal templates through which your carry-on must fit. Prior to your trip, call the airline to get their maximum luggage dimensions. When measuring your luggage be sure to include the wheels.

If a flight is really full there may be no room for your carry-on, even if it is under the maximum size allowable. In such cases the crew may check your luggage bag after you board, so be prepared for this possibility by packing a plastic bag at the very top of your carry-on. If you need to surrender your luggage, pull out that plastic bag and unload the absolute essentials, which you can hold on your lap or store in a small space under a seat or overhead.

There are some other steps you can take to assure you will have room for your carry-on. Airlines board passengers by row, so try reserving a seat toward the back of the plane to make sure you will be among the first on-there will be more overhead space available. You can also improve your overhead access by boarding early once you're at the airport.

Order special meals. "Special meals are fresher and are hand-made as opposed to mass produced," says Feldman. Examples are fruit plates, seafood, low fat and low sodium meals. "Check out the kid's meal," he suggests. "Airlines are very careful to see that kids get hot, fresh food."

Note that you need to order these meals 24 hours in advance.

Travel in comfort. "I always keep a blow-up pillow, a sleeping mask and a pair of soft slippers in my permanent travel bag," says Leil Lowndes. Catching some shut-eye in mid-flight can make up for truncated sleep the night before. And that can make a big difference in your presentation at your arrival city.

Car rental do's and don'ts

Don't buy the rental agency gasoline. The car will have a full tank when you receive it. Make sure you buy your own gasoline and return it with a full tank. Otherwise the agency will charge you a big premium for fuel.

Don't pay for insurance you already have.

Check with your insurance company to see what car rental agency insurance you can decline. In some cases, credit card companies will pay for collision damage: find out before you travel. The savings can be significant.

Ask for an upgrade. You can often get a better automobile just by asking nicely.

"Use your best smile and ask 'is there any chance you can give me a complimentary upgrade?'" suggests Tschohl. "Most of the counter people get beat up by customers all day, so you want to pump them up and make them feel better," he says.

Rent from the agency location at your hotel.

If you travel frequently to the same hotel, you'll get to know the car rental agency people and they'll be more lenient with your car return times. Also, you can take the hotel shuttle and the driver will load your luggage, notes Feldman.

Hotel smarts

Make sure the computer is with the program

"I always ask, 'is the reservation entered in the computer?'" says Tschohl. "The computer is God today. Whatever the computer says goes. So make sure your room reservation and the price you have negotiated is in the system." Otherwise prepare for verbal battle upon arrival.

Ask for the right room.

"Because of the way buildings are made, corner rooms are usually bigger," says Feldman. "I also try to get on the concierge floor. These typically have meal service and complimentary soft drinks."

You need peace and quiet, so ask for a room away from the elevator, on a higher floor, and on the side of the building away from the street. Planning to arrive around 11:00 in the morning? The hotel may promise you they'll have a room ready, but it's smart to give them a reminder so you won't have to wait in the lobby. "I call them sometime after 9:00 a.m. and ask them to save me the first available room," says Lowndes, adding that you should get the person's name to encourage accountability.

Get a suite deal.

Many hotels have suites that are designed to be roomy enough for business meetings, but offer just a couch and wall bed for overnight guests. Many customers get irate when they get stuck with a room without a traditional bed-but not you! You would rather have the extra room for your business activities.

"If you are checking in late in the afternoon or evening, ask if the desk will give you a suite for the same or lesser price," suggests Tschohl. "Many times you'll do the hotel a favor by taking that room off their hands."

Don't take the mini-bar key. Fed up with downing too many? Turn down the key. "The net worth of the mini-bar exceeds that of many a guest," quips Feldman.

Use 800 numbers if it's cheaper. While hotels may charge you a steep rate for local calls, they may waive this for 800 numbers. In this case you can save money by using your MCI, Sprint or other telephone card to make calls.

Here are some additional hotel-smart tips from Lowndes:

• Hang your clothes on the shower rod to steam out the travel wrinkles.

• If you're prone to misplace those plastic security cards that pass as keys today, train yourself to slip them behind the "fire exit" signs that always seem to be screwed onto the inside of your hotel door.

• No safe in the room? Ask if there's one at the front desk. Emergency back up: hide money in your shoes in the closet.

• Want to be treated well? Always tip the maid and the concierge. And you'll be more likely to get back any items you may leave in the room on your departure.

• Left some computer gear at home? Guest books often have leather covers that make great substitutes for mouse pads; hotel towels are usually thin enough to roll up for wrist supports.

• When tracking down a good restaurant, avoid asking for suggestions from the hotel concierge who is often paid by an over-priced eatery for referrals.

• It's easy to leave valuable goods behind when you check out. Says Lowndes: "Maids tell me that people most often leave things in three places: On the back of the bathroom door, on the side of the tub, and under the bed."

Getting around town

Carry small change.

"No matter where you travel, taxicab drivers have the same routine: They claim they don't have any change with the hope you will give them more money," says Tschohl. "I always carry a supply of small change for this very reason."

Hire a private car.

Given the high cost of taxicabs, it often makes sense to hire a car and driver if you need to travel a lot at your destination city. They have many benefits: they know where everything is so you don't get stressed out in traffic; having them handy means you won't incur costly delays waiting for a taxi; they have tips for you on local resources; and leaving the driving to them will make you more productive.

Additional items

Check safety of pressurized cans. If you're planning to take shaving cream or other pressurized cans, call the airline for their instructions and rules. Some cans will explode, by the way, if they are stored in the un-pressurized luggage area. That may ruin anything stored in your suitcase.

Have a mailing bag ready for documents.

Take a pre-addressed mailing bag so you can pack up magazines, documents and other materials that you don't want to haul around with you. Hotels usually have cartons you can use as well, so also carry some pre-addressed postal or FedEx labels.

Keep receipts in one place. How do you handle the dozens of little receipts, notes and business cards you pick up on your journey? Take a tip from Feldman: "I get one of United Parcel Service's International Pouches," he says. "These are zip lock bags with adhesive on the back. I remove the paper and attach the pouch to the inside of a manila file folder. Everything goes into the bag." When he gets back to the office, Feldman files the manila folder in a drawer for easy access.

Cultivate a good agent. With airlines and hotels letting you book direct, and the growth of travel reservation Web sites, who needs agents? Maybe you do, says Feldman.

"Perhaps you can find a better price at a Web site, but you will lose the personal service," he warns. "When there is a problem, you need to go back to your travel agent to iron things out."

A good travel agent will also get you the best deals and know how to deal with airlines.