Quote from: Farm Boy on February 21, 2014, 12:34:14 AMHere's my main question. I've never flown before, so I have no idea how that works.
Airplane tickets, airports and rental car 101.
It's dead easy. If you have Internet access, you just visit a site such as
Cheaptickets.com (I use that one all the time). Type in the search for flights and you put your intended date of departure and whether or not it's a round-trip (for example, a round-trip ticket means you'll fly there and fly back home - you can put whatever return date you need, it doesn't need to be the same day or next day). Then you put your airport of origin (where you will be departing from) and the city to which you're going. The site searches through various flights and finds the cheapest one for you. You just follow the directions on the screen, click to purchase and give them your payment info. They email you the e-ticket (it has a barcode on it) and you print that off and bring it to the airport with you when you're ready to leave.
When you get to the airport, it's pretty easy. Most places now have self-check-in kiosks - so you just scan the barcode on your printout under the machine, it confirms all your flight data and you tell it if you're checking a bag (luggage). It then prints out your boarding pass (you'll need to show them that at the gate) and luggage tag. Attach the luggage tag to your suitcase and go to the Bag Drop area. Scan the barcode on your boarding pass or e-ticket and follow the prompts on the screen. A little conveyer belt then takes your bag away. Or they will have people serving at desks for your airline - you can probably opt to have a person help you if you get confused.
Then just go through security - they ask you to remove all your items from your pockets, put them in a tray and go through the metal detector. Then, once through security, look on your boarding pass and find your flight number (it usually has what gate you need to go to and your departure time on it) - look on the big computer screen boards and find your flight number - it will indicate your gate number, too - and sometimes they change the gate number, so listen out to the announcements on the intercom and check the board often.
Then go to your gate, sit and wait - they will announce when you start boarding. Show the attendant your boarding pass, get on the plane, fly. That's it. Repeat the above process at the airport when you depart, too. Keep your e-ticket handy at all times.
Quote from: Farm Boy on February 21, 2014, 12:34:14 AMI can drive to Cleveland in a day, and it would be much cheaper than buying a plane ticket.
You won't be able to drive yourself home. America is obviously different, but my surgeon wouldn't let me fly either for two weeks post-op due to concern about blood clots.
Quote from: Farm Boy on February 21, 2014, 12:34:14 AMI also don't have experience with renting cars or using taxis, so a plane plus extra transportation to figure out seems more daunting to me.
It's probably cheaper to rent a car if you're staying for more than a few days. It can be done online, too - book online using the websites of any of the major rental cars. They will prompt you to input where you'll be picking up the car - most airports have rental car facilities, so you'd just arrive at the airport after your plane lands and go straight to the rental car desk with your booking printout.
