Travel for work
Was asked if I want to take a job in the company traveling about four weeks a year for work to heat up new glass furnaces. Never traveled by air for work. Any tips?
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Use a plane that does takeoffs and landings well, It beats flapping your arms. Don
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I don't go places I can't drive to. 0 -
Pack your carry on with the assumption they will lose your checked bag. If a short trip (3 days of less) skip the checked bag altogether to save the baggage claim wait time.
Get a rental car you can enjoy when you turn off traction control.[:)]. A decent hotel makes travel better too.0 -
get it up front what will and will not be paid for, such as motels, car rental, meal, breakfast, lunch and dinner, plane tickets, overtime, ect...... get it all upfront so their will be no suprises, after all is spelled out in plain english it may not be worth your time to do it, unless you just want to travel 0 -
Do some research around travel rewards groups.
Fly with ONE airline group and take advantage of the miles. I fly in the Star Alliance and have gotten really good tickets with my miles.
Book hotels through a site like hotels.com and take advantage of the free nights.
Rental cars?
If the company offers business class seating on flights longer than __, do it.
I was flying long distances (15hrs, 30hr travel days) for work and felt guilty spending their money on $5,000 international business class seats. The wife had to remind me that I was doing them a favor and while 5k is a good chunk of change to typical folks, it's nothing to them.0 -
Save every perk mile and credit card reward for yourself and your family; negotiate to get boarding and seating perks for the business flights with your company. Use a carry on if you can. Pack light and keep valuables on your body until the TSA makes you remove them so they can feel your junk. 0 -
Fly business class or first class. Its worth the extra money. Get a TSA Pre-Check card and move quicker thru security. Depending on how long you are going for use carry on bags only. 0 -
Business or first class for domestic flights is a waste of money, and is also for some international flights. We flew Virgin Upper Class on a 787 to London last month, and the first class seating was less comfortable IMO, that the premium economy. For domestic flights, go with premium economy as well.
Airline miles are becoming worthless as well. NW Airlines had a great program and after the merger with Delta it was OK for a while. Anymore, you have to spend 100,000+ miles to get a round trip to anywhere, and there a blackout dates, restrictions on upgrades, etc. It is usually a better deal to just buy the damn ticket than go through the hoops.
Look at a flight like you would a trip in your car. Not a big deal, plan ahead, and drink a lot before you leave.
Don0 -
In no particular order, here's what I've found helpful:
--TSA precheck and Global entry (if international)
--Pick one loyalty program and apply EVERYTHING towards it - better service while you travel plus the rewards add up to free travel for you/family later on. I especially like the hotel programs.
--Join the airline program that gets you early boarding (at least zone 2).
--Ask if you are authorized to fly business class - if you're tall/big, it's a must for over seas flights. Economy plus at the very least.
--Pack assuming they'll lose your checked baggage - be ready to work the first day without that stuff.
--Schedule the flights that fit your time line, not just the cheapest. Avoid stops, layovers, plane changes. Make sure you're home for important family events.
--Use creative scheduling so you get to see the sights when you travel. Get something personal out of the time away.
--Ask for a reasonable per diem allowance. Understand what receipts you have to submit - follow the company rules and do not pad your expenses.
--If allowed, consider a cash back credit card (CitiBank has 2%) and use that for business expenses...free money.
--Make sure the family adjusts well to the change. If not, stop the travel.0 -
Pack lite and carry in luggage if possible. 0 -
quote:Originally posted by Don McManus
Business or first class for domestic flights is a waste of money, and is also for some international flights. We flew Virgin Upper Class on a 787 to London last month, and the first class seating was less comfortable IMO, that the premium economy. For domestic flights, go with premium economy as well.
Airline miles are becoming worthless as well. NW Airlines had a great program and after the merger with Delta it was OK for a while. Anymore, you have to spend 100,000+ miles to get a round trip to anywhere, and there a blackout dates, restrictions on upgrades, etc. It is usually a better deal to just buy the damn ticket than go through the hoops.
Look at a flight like you would a trip in your car. Not a big deal, plan ahead, and drink a lot before you leave.
Don
It cost me 67k miles to fly my wife AND Daughter with me on a business trip to Houston (United Airlines) last fall. 8am flight to and 7am flight back.
Don't be un-reasonable in your "Free Ticket" selections and there are lots of flights that are available for low fares.0 -
All the above suggestions are good, but for someone who travels a lot for business. You're going to travel only 4 weeks a year, so not much different from how you travel normally. Typical business traveler is away 30 weeks a year (I had one year of 42 weeks). So I actually spent a bit of money buying the lightest and smallest versions of everything I would need including duplicates of some things (like electric razor, hair brush, etc...) that I leave in my bag all the time. This way I can get packed and ready to go in less than 10 minutes. 0 -
I told them I'd take the job. I've wanted something like this for a while but at the last company furnace startups was handled by corporate. They'd send out a smart guy with one or two college grads or a college grad from South America to supervise an outside contractor. Dumb idea. They'd pay these South American engineers peanuts and hotel expenses and be cheaper than hiring Americans.
I love making glass furnaces do things they normally don't do, especially the new ones that aren't likely to leak on you. The corporate furnace guys in the last company meated it like a special fraternity. This company skips the outside contractor and does it themselves.0 -
quote:Originally posted by Captplaid
I told them I'd take the job. I've wanted something like this for a while but at the last company furnace startups was handled by corporate. They'd send out a smart guy with one or two college grads or a college grad from South America to supervise an outside contractor. Dumb idea. They'd pay these South American engineers peanuts and hotel expenses and be cheaper than hiring Americans.
I love making glass furnaces do things they normally don't do, especially the new ones that aren't likely to leak on you. The corporate furnace guys in the last company meated it like a special fraternity. This company skips the outside contractor and does it themselves.
Good luck!0 -
Congratulations on your new job, and think about the first time you made love to your wife when the TSA strip searches you. It gets them all flustered when you "stand erect".[:o)][:D] 0 -
I used to fly with the company I worked for back in the 70s. We had company planes which made it nice.
I remember flying to Muscle Shoals, AL a few times back in the mid 70s to do inspections on Wilson Dam which was like going back into time. On Friday evenings that little airport would be closed and I'd be sitting outside by myself by the runway listening to crickets while swatting mosquitoes and waiting on TVA's Gulf Stream to pick me up. [:D]0
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