Johnny Jet

Uber in Foreign Countries
Uber in Foreign Countries 1200 900 Greg Ellifritz

Uber has been a complete game changer for me when traveling in foreign countries. By not using a cab, I avoid the overcharging “gringo tax,” reduce my chance of robbery, and avoid fumbling around with cash trying to pay the driver in a sketchy neighborhood. These articles below give you some strategies that will make using Uber even cheaper.

 

How to Save Money with Uber (quick and easy)

 

10 Uber Tips That Will Totally Improve Your Next Experience

 

Useful Travel Apps
Useful Travel Apps 1600 900 Greg Ellifritz

This is a list of some very useful travel apps. I would encourage all of you who don’t have Global Entry Status to download the “Mobile Passport” App.  In my international travels, I would estimate that only 10% of travelers coming back to the USA have Mobile Passport.

 

In many airports the Mobile Passport users get their own special immigration lane.  It’s not quite as fast as Global Entry, but it is much faster than using the paper forms like the rest of cattle class.

 

Highly recommended.

 

The 12 Apps Every Traveler Needs to Download

Subway Platform Safety
Subway Platform Safety 1200 600 Greg Ellifritz

Living in a city without a subway, I had no idea about the crime trend where people push victims onto the tracks.

 

Read about this kind of crime and how to prevent it in the article below.  And be careful on subway platforms.

 

My Somewhat Freakish Travel Habit Might Just Save Your Life

 

Faster Global Entry Processing
Faster Global Entry Processing 610 457 Greg Ellifritz

I enrolled in Global Entry about a year ago.  It was worth the hassle of traveling 90 minutes to the closest processing center for a 10 minute interview and fingerprint scan.  It’s allowed me to re-enter the USA much faster than my previous attempts.

 

The problem for most people is scheduling the interview with CBP officers.  There are limited sites with limited appointment windows.  Sometimes it takes months to get on the interview schedule.

 

CBP added a new feature called “Appointment Scanner.”  It monitors for open interview appointments that pop up due to last-minute cancellations. When they find an appointment that fits your requirements, you’ll receive a text message or email (or both – your choice). This alert has a link to the Global Entry scheduler website, where you can login and claim the appointment.

 

Read more about the program at the article below.

 

How To Get A Global Entry Appointment Faster

 

While you are on his site, you may also be interested in his list of credit card offers that will pay for your Global Entry Fee.

How Covid-19 is Affecting Air Travel
How Covid-19 is Affecting Air Travel 1340 500 Greg Ellifritz

This post is just a quick note to highlight some of the travel changes in the wake of Covid-19.  I flew domestically last month.  There were not many changes other than the fact that the airlines required masks and that there was no meal/drink service on board.

I’m flying internationally this week.  I’ll update you with more information after my trip.  Until then, here are some references to help you navigate travel in the pandemic age.

U.S. Airlines Are Now Banning This Kind of Face Mask

Don’t plan on flying if you are wearing a mask with an exterior vent valve.  Open chin bandanna face coverings are also prohibited.

 

The Odds of Catching Covid on a Flight Are Slim

“What Barnett came up with was that we have about a 1/4300 chance of getting Covid-19 on a full 2-hour flight — that is, about 1 in 4300 passengers will pick up the virus, on average. The odds of getting the virus are about half that, 1/7700, if airlines leave the middle seat empty. He’s posted his results as a not-yet-peer-reviewed preprint.

The odds of dying of a case contracted in flight, he found, are even lower — between 1 in 400,000 and 1 in 600,000 — depending on your age and other risk factors. To put that in perspective, those odds are comparable to the average risk of getting a fatal case in a typical two hours on the ground.”

 

Flying in 2020 and 2021: How Airlines Are Adapting and How Passengers Can Stay Safe

Some interesting predictions about upcoming changes in the airline industry.

 

This CEO has flown 33 times and spent 160 nights away this year. Here’s his safety routine

These practices seem a bit extreme to me, but if you are truly paranoid about catching the Coronavirus while traveling, here are some ideas that may help.

 

 

 

Ghost Flights?
Ghost Flights? 720 360 Greg Ellifritz

In the age of the COVID-19 Pandemic, it might be best for you to familiarize yourself with the term “Ghost Flight” and actively seek to avoid booking one of them.

 

How to Avoid Booking a Seat on a “Ghost Flight” That Won’t Fly