Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
I think I'll just fly once a year, and hire a private jet, or some close derivitive (jet shares).
I loved train travel when I was a kid, but they take forever to get there due to all of the stops. Same with busses, but I will look into the express busses (Mega). I'd be fine with trains or busses if they were "express", and made very few stops.
My wife will continue to circle the globe on comercial planes w/ her girlfriends, but she'll obtain one of those advance clearance passes, and we learned there's even a Global version it she'll get prior to her Israel trip. If she's selected again for the overly intrusive search, she'll ask for a private room.
Thanks for all the thoughts, comments, and ideas. I'll keep checking back to see if anything new comes up.
It is not that bad. I work in a very busy airport. Average Passenger Count per day is about 74,000. The airline I work for has about 66% of that number.
Yes, once in awhile I hear about a jerky TSA experience from a Passenger. Yes, during the Summer and Holidays the TSA line is out the door in the early morning hours.
I fly about once every eight weeks for fun. I haven't had a bad experience yet. Yes, sometimes they have to search my bag--big deal, a 5-10 minute interruption. Once in Copenhagen they took me in a small room and search all my bags and had me turn on all my electronics. Germany I was padded down once. So what!
Tell it to a travel agent??? What are they going to do about it??!!!
My idea of talking to a travel agent wasn't complain to them about pat downs, it was because I thought they may know of travel methods commonly used by people who have the means to avoid commercial travel. I'm thinking there are travel agents that specialize in this. I'll also walk into the restaurant/lounge area of our local airport and talk to the private jet pilots who I always seen hanging around.
TSA is just one of a long list of abuses heaped on airline passengers and other than the delay and inconsistency, I have few TSA complaints. The actual airline experience is awful and almost totally abusive. And they expect us to pay dearly to be abused and treated like livestock. They should pay us to fly. Once upon a time it was reasonably comfortable and enjoyable to fly (believe it or not). Even if you make it through unscathed the person next to you is so pissed off they are unfit for human companionship. The system in place now is so fragile that if there are thunderstorms in Atlanta or Houston the entire country sees delays and cancellations.
Thefts by TSA employees is rampant. Nobody is overseeing them. When I did fly, I delayed buying an Apple laptop because I heard they loved to steal anything Apple. A friend of mine had his Rolex watch stolen right in front of him, they didn't even try to conceal the theft. He asked for a Manager and Police, but was denied. He was told if he didn't move along, they'd have him arrested. That happened in Atlanta. He had an important flight to make (he was an M&A guy) that was even more valuable to him than the watch, so he moved along.
Haven't really had a pat down in years. We do TSA Pre and Global Entry, which may have eliminated all but the random check here and there. Have you looked into those programs?
I find that being a savvy, aware traveler gets you way less attention that being a disorganized traveler with many bags and random items -- perhaps visiting a few travel websites for recommendations on simple, appropriate carry-ons and other packing advice may help you streamline your experience? Getting to the security checkpoint with little fuss, dressed appropriately, carrying your one correctly-sized carry-on and a small personal bag, and not having a bajillion pieces of jewelry and accessories and layers of clothing that will set off the metal detectors won't draw attention, will get you through faster and with less fuss.
Gen X remembers too. It's overall just unpleasant and stressful. For me it's just what a dog and pony show it is and being treated as a criminal suspect the moment you step into the airport. I don't really get/feel violated so much, but I understand how people feel that way. It's the general attitude and vibe of the entire process, the nickel and diming and diminishing services.
To a lesser extent I felt the same way about cable TV. Paying $100+ monthly to watch 15-20 min of commercials/hour of "programming". I cut the cord years ago. I don't fly as much as I used to. 1x every year or two now, but family separation necessitates now.
In reading all these replies, there have been a handful of posters who I feel could be my long lost twin, and Wisertime is one of them. The guy from page 1 was another who though my post was really his that he did while sleepwalking...I thought that was clever & funny.
The Atlanta airport is by far the worse, and they are consistenly horrendous. If I do fly again, I won't be going though that airport ever again. The last time I flew 2+ years ago, I went into and out of Logan/Boston, and their TSA folks were much more professional, & effective. However, the rental car taxes at Logan and all the tolls in Mass are the reason I wont be going back to Logan again. If I return to Maine, I'll charter a private jet, and land at Hancock-Bar Harbor airport. I'll rent a VRBO ocean view home for 4 weeks, then charter jet home to the smal local airport here in SW Florida.
I fired Cable TV too many years ago to remember...maybe 10 years ago. I have wifi internet, Netflix (shared w/ Sister-in-law, Amazon Prime (student account shared w/ our College student Son), and an antenna up in the attic that cost $100 (including installation labor). I shop at Aldi and Dollar General..mostly. Walmart's too darned expensive. Some call me eccentric...I take that as a compliment.
Early on I learned a dollar saved is NOT a dollar earned, its more like $1.50 earned due to payroll and income taxes, embedded costs/taxes, transportation costs, ect..
Plenty of middle-aged people go on cruises. Of course, many middle-aged people have children, so they're more likely to be cruising during school-break times. And this means that you'll have more children along for the ride.
If you want to maximize the middle-aged passengers but minimize the children, pick a smaller ship ("smaller" meaning around 2,000 passengers or less) and take a cruise for 6 to 9 days (that's the sweet spot between the shorter party cruises and the longer old-folks cruises) during the summer. There will be children, but not all that many of them, and you probably won't even notice that they're there.
You can ride in a sleeper compartment on a train between Florida and Maine. (You'll have to transfer trains in New York, and again in Boston.) I've only done it once, but it was a very comfortable and relaxing experience.
I used to ride Greyhound with some degree of regularity. Most of the trips were OK; a few were horrible. I haven't ridden them in probably 3 decades now, and I'm not planning on doing it again. I've heard much better things about Mega Bus and Bolt Bus, but I haven't tried them myself.
Thanks for taking your time to write all of this. Some good thoughts and suggestions...
I will pursue small cruise ships short duration in Spring and Fall when the kids are still in school.
The train from FLA to ME is that Amtrak? Can I rent the whole car? 1/2 a car? Changing trains 2x cant be that bad so long as those are the only 2 stops.
Another poster mentioned Mega but you are the 1st to name Bolt Bus, I'll invstigate Bolt...thx!
How do you know this? Sure there are occasional stories in the news but they have over 50k employees most of whom see expensive things pass in front of their faces all day every day, do you really know they are "filled" with thieves or you just judging people who have lower wage jobs as likely to be thieves?
A close friend of mine watched as a ATL TSA guy took his Rolex out of the plastic tub, and put it right into his pocket with my friend watching. The TSA guy didnt even try to conceal the theft.
Also, I have seen expose's on TV back when TSA first became Federal government run, and they had hidden camera's. I also have an Atlanta Police Detective friend who had to deal with these thefts occasionally. One TSA employee had an entire mini storage warehouse full of items he had stolen. His partner in crime worked at ATL airport for customs, and he had another mini storage warehouse that was the largest size, and it too was filled to the brim w/ stolen import/export items.
Yeah, this dude can hire a private jet if he's really a 2%-er.
I guess I'm not that easily upset or offended as I appreciate being able to fly affordably. And I get the full pat-down every time. Even snapped my bra once. Eh, I can deal with it. Move on. I got to see 3 movies on Lufthansa and get 3 meals and free cocktails going to Europe.
Then again, I'm easily amused.
I don't understand this snowflake thing (some other) people have about their bodies. Look - I want to go to the restroom in peace.....or only have a doc stick his finger up my...whatever.
I am very modest and shy...always have been...and yet TSA doesn't phase me a bit.
But to worry about a pat-down? That's not enough reason.
As I said, why not just be honest?
1. "I hate traveling - it throws off my constitution"
2. "I have terrible social anxiety and freak out"
3. "Travel is over-rated - I'm a homebody"
4. "I really don't have anywhere to go"
or whatever.
Just say it or be it.
I didn't have to travel a lot for work but even the 3 or 4 times a year I got on a plane was a PITA...I swore to myself I wouldn't use air travel a lot after I retired. I probably fly more than ever now due to the reasons that Dane stated above - family. I could be like some other family members (in my family) and pretend I am scared of flying as an excuse never to see my parents again...but I'm not gonna do that.
To each his own. But complaining about the price and stuff like that....that's sour grapes. It cost more to uber to the airport sometimes than to fly 1200 miles.
I wonder if rich folks are particularly averse to it because they are used to getting their way and in the security queue they are treated just the same as a street sweeper or janitor. And because its security they cant even complain or theyd be giving the staff an excuse to get even harsher.
Yes, of course this is accurate from my perspective. I cant speak for all 2%'ers though. 1%'ers are sedom dealing w/ TSA in a commercial environment, so they avoid all of this. As I said before, the difference between the top 2% and top 1% is HUGE. 2%'ers come into contact ocasionally w/ 1%'ers, so we see the chasm. Very few Americans who earn near median incomes ever come into contact w/ top 1%'ers...maybe at exotic car shows, charity auctions, art shows, estate sales, but its rare.
I am used to getting my way because the people who work around me (when I feel like working) are sub-contractors who I pay very well. Or, they are people I buy things from who know how much purchasing power I have. Yes, that does give me a different perspective of expecting higher standards of conduct. When thrown into the cattle pen, and losing that quality control ability, it is more frustating for me than others who are not in a position of power nearly as much.
At least I can admit it. I came from nothing, so I've seen both Worlds.
I've had public pat downs more times than I can tell you. I don't care about it all all, unfortunately it's part of flying these days, it's not like they're getting their jollies doing it - I'm sure there are a ton of things they'd rather be doing than that. I can't imagine being horrified over it. I never ask for the private room, it just takes more time and I want to get through it as soon as possible.
I'd rather them do pat downs any day than have a weapon or bomb on board ~ that's what would make me horrified.
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
