Consumer Reports helps us avoid travel nightmares

Air travel is back to pre-pandemic levels and summer travel is expected to break all-time records. So how do you avoid those travel nightmares like being stuck in an airport when you’re supposed to be on a beach somewhere?

There are so many things you can’t control: the weather, airline staffing issues, even lost luggage. But at least you can improve your chances of a smooth flight and experience by choosing the right airline.

José Duran is an avid traveler, who blogs about his trips around the world. And while getting there can be half the fun, sometimes traveling by plane isn’t fun at all.

“June of last year, I was in San Francisco, I had the last flight, the red eye back to New York and that flight ended up getting canceled and that created a whole cascade of events that got out of hand, they really canceled the us in the last minute,” Duran said.

Consumer Reports surveyed more than 17,000 of its members on nearly 33,000 flights, asking about everything from ease of check-in to delays, cleanliness, and
price!

The airline with the highest overall satisfaction score for cheap travel was Hawaiian Airlines. The big three: Delta, United and American were in the middle,
and Frontier Airlines was at the bottom of the list.

And it’s no surprise that members who flew business or first class were more satisfied than those who flew economy, where the top complaint from travelers was related to airline seats!

“26 percent of people on the coach reported feeling uncomfortable, reserved in the wrong seat, or not being able to sit with family!” Consumer Reports survey Tian Wang said.

And twenty percent of travelers had complaints related to flight schedules, such as delays, reschedules, and cancellations. However, most of the people surveyed did not formally complain to the airline.

“Whatever your air travel issues, it’s important to register complaints with the airline while you’re still at the airport. If you get stranded, you may be owed meals or a hotel room, or even money if you missed your flight!” Wang said.

You can visit the Department of Transportation Aviation Consumer Protection website for a list of what each airline offers in the event of a controllable delay or cancellation.