Are You Using the Web to Check-In For Your Flight?

You should.

Why?

1. Skip the Queue - When my uncle told me about checking in online last December, I tried it on a Jetstar flight to Singapore and was quite glad that I did. A dedicated web check-in counter is available at the airport which allowed me to skip the queue and save time.

2. Choose Your Seat - On my recent trip to Bangkok via Thai airways, I forgot to do so and I spent almost half an hour waiting. What's worse is that I ended up in the middle seat squeezed between two big guys. I forgot to mention that another benefit of web check-in is that you get to choose your seat.

The night before my trip back to Singapore, I made sure to use the online check-in facility. Good thing I did because I saw that I was once again assigned a middle seat. I was able to change my seat selection and check myself in which just two simple clicks.

3. Pre-Flight Time - I also noticed that instead of two hours prior, you can show up at the airport just an hour before your scheduled flight.



The photo above is the reminder I got stating that I have to be at check-in counter at least 60 minutes prior to the scheduled departure time.

This is what greeted me when I arrived at the airport at 5 in the morning.





The crazy long queues I skipped and was out of there in less than 10 minutes.

I normally fly budget and good thing is that they also offer this service.

1. Air Asia: It's actually better to check-in online because you avoid paying counter check-in fees which are imposed on domestic flights, they also have printing terminals at some airports to allow you to print the boarding pass yourself

Air Asia: http://www.airasia.com/my/en/myflights/mciguides.page

2. Cebu Pacific: If I'm not mistaken, they offered this service for a fee before but have since removed it.

Cebu Pacific: http://www.cebupacificair.com/travel-services/web-check-in.html

3. Jetstar: http://www.jetstar.com/sg/en/planning-and-booking/checking-in/web-check-in

4. Tiger's not offering the service yet but from the site, it should be available soon.

Tiger: http://www.tigerairways.com/sg/en/webcheckin_guide.php

5. PAL's not offering the service.

Louis' Tavern Cip Lounge

Citibank Singapore's PremierMiles card offers free airport lounge stays and I took advantage of it in Bangkok on a late flight back. I was able to breeze through check-in and immigration which was surprising cause their airport is always busy.

Suvarnabhumi airport is huge. There are plenty of shops to go to and a lot of restaurants to while away your time. After exhausting myself looking at the same duty free items over and over, I decided to head to the lounge.

I was greeted by a wide selection of finger food, congee, instant noodles, cereals, ice cream, drinks and spirits.







The lounge is huge encompassing two floors with different seating areas.









As you can see from the photos above, flight information is displayed to ensure that you don't miss your boarding call. The staff can also call the gate for you to confirm if the information displayed is accurate and when boarding has already started.

Wifi is free. If you don't have your laptop or a wifi-enabled device with you, there are a couple of computers that you can use.



World Papers are available as well as a Putting Green for recreation. I think there are also game consoles but I couldn't remember for sure.





Finally, since I have checked out early from the hotel and I've been out and about, I badly needed a shower. Gladly, they have showers available.