Winter Travel Tips: Staying Comfortable While Stranded in the Airport

Assuming that you are stuck in the airport with no way out, there are a few things that you can do in order to make yourself a little more comfortable by stashing a few items in your carry-on luggage. If you're stuck at the terminal, there is nothing saying that you will have access to any checked baggage, so you want to make sure that you have some things easily in hand.

WInter Weather Can Cause Travel Delays Even in Tropical Climates
One of the most important things to have on hand is some way to recharge your cell phone or electronic device once the battery dies. Pack your charging cords! If your device is one of the more modern ones, it likely has a USB charging cord. If this is the case, you are in luck, because you can pack along a hand-operated multi-function charger. I like the both the eton Microlink FR160 and the eton American Red Cross Rover because they are small, relatively inexpensive, and have weather radio as well as regular AM/FM radio. Of course, you need to have your USB charging cable with you to use that function.

While we're on the topic of power, it would not be a bad thing to pick up one of several types of travel power strips. These often have two or three regular 3-prong plugs for power, and there are some that have one or more USB charging ports, as well. If you've ever spent any time in an airport terminal, you know that power plugs can be at a premium, and having something like this can make friends for the duration.

When you're packing for travel and the weather is even the least bit questionable, I like to carry at least a full week of medications. I'm lucky in that my life doesn't depend on anything that the doctor has prescribed, but having my drugs makes everybody's life easier. I also always back some of my preferred pain reliever, and try to pack eye drops as well. Airplanes are notorious for being dry and that can make your eyes uncomfortable.

Comfort Can Be Key When Stranded at the Airport
For comfort, a travel blanket or light sleep sack can help keep you warmer in a drafty airport, and a travel pillow of some sort lets you have a soft place to rest your head overnight, while an eyemask and earplugs can help you get to sleep. I also recommend carrying a water bottle of some sort (I like Nalgene, but there are many manufacturers out there), so that you can fill it at the water fountain or bathroom sink and not have to get up or stand in line every time you get thirsty.

If you might be stranded for a few days, things can start getting a little "funky" if you know what I mean. However, Travelon and Sea to Summit have you covered for the most packable and TSA compliant soaps and shampoos. Add to that a travel towel and a refillable toothbrush and you're set!

Being stranded in an airport is never comfortable, but these handy tips can help you keep it civilized, if nothing else.

-- Thanks to WDWFG Guest Author, Geordon VanTassle! Geordon is a disaster preparedness specialist who enjoys traveling to Walt Disney World with his wife and children.

Have you been stranded at the airport? What would you have packed in your carry-on if you had only known? Leave me a comment below and let us know!