Before You Board

• Get some rest: It’s tempting to stay up late in hopes of sleeping through a flight but crowded cabins are hardly a peaceful oasis. Get a full night’s rest before your flight and you’ll still have plenty of energy for business or pleasure when you land.
• Carry-on snacks: Stay healthy by packing your own snacks, such as a string cheese and nuts, along with an apple or banana. The combination of protein and high-fiber will keep you fuller longer and help you avoid the 1000-calorie airport combo later.

At the Airport

• Get a healthy start: No time for breakfast at home? At the airport, look for healthy options such as a whole-wheat bagel, yogurt or fresh fruit. For a heartier option, try an egg sandwich on an english-muffin, but make sure to skip add-ons like bacon or cheese.
• Eat lightly: If lunchtime coincides with your flight, avoid indulging in a cheeseburger or buffalo wings. Although these familiar favorites may seem like a good way to alleviate stress, they could actually make you feel worse. Look for lighter, low-calorie options such as a salad with fat-free dressing or a simple sub.

During the Flight

• Move around: Long hours in cramped airplane seats can wreak havoc on the body. Avoid crossing your legs and be sure to move around the cabin. Simple calf stretches can help blood circulation and reduce your chance of a blood clot.
• Hydrate: Don’t let a pressurized cabin and low humidity levels get the best of you. Drink water and avoid caffeine and alcoholic beverages. Stay hydrated by purchasing a water bottle. For a greener option, pack a stainless steel water bottle and fill it up at an airport coffee shop once you pass through security.

This post is based on an article written for our customer newsletter. Join the mailing list here.
For more ways to stay healthy and improve your next flight, check out tugo’s Top 10 Travel Tips.

Sources:
EHow: Healthy Airplane Snacks
Associated Content: Keep Healthy While Flying
WebMD: Keep Healthy While Flying

Retail options now include the basic tugo, the tugo + h2otugo, and just the h2otugo if you already have a tugo but want the added convenience of the accessory. Available at: goodtugo.com/retail

See the tugo + h2otugo in action in our new video: goodtugo.com/whats-a-tugo

Now you’re REALLY good tugo.

• Tip Pick for Packing- Find out what amenities the hotel already has, i.e., robes, hairdryers, shampoo, and don’t pack those items. This information is usually listed on the hotel’s website, and can potentially save you a lot of space in your luggage. The Ultimate Guide to Packing Light: 45 Tips to Lighten Your Load from Go Green Travel Green is pretty long, but has some good ideas and a valuable list of resources if you are prepping for a major trip and want to do it right.
• Tip Pick for Travel with Pal- Evelyn Hannon, blogging and tweeting as Journeywoman, suggests: Travelling with a pal? Carry 50% of her things in UR bag + vice versa. If 1 bag is lost, UR both still OK.
• Tip Pick for Business Travel- Share Contact Info: There’s nothing worse than flying into a city only to find your host has had to leave town unexpectedly. Minimize your chances of disappointment by sharing your phone numbers (definitely your mobile) with your host, clients and any assistants who may keep their schedule. From Business Trips: Make the Most of Every Minute on Forbes.com.
• Tip Pick to Get an Upgrade- If a flight is oversold and you are traveling alone, then dress in business / casual business attire and sit off on your own, but in the sight line of the airline agent at the gate. Sometimes we need to upgrade a passenger or two at the very last minute, and a well-dressed, solo traveler is easier to upgrade than one wearing sweatpants and sneakers. From Top 10 Ways to Get Upgraded on a Flight on About.com: Air Travel.
• Another Tip Pick to Get an Upgrade- The following has worked for me in the past: A smile goes a long way. If you are nice as possible to the check-in and gate agents then sometimes if a flight is oversold and you just happen to be one of the nicest passengers that a check-in agent meets that day, they may put a comment on your passenger record such as “nice passenger if you need to upgrade.” From Top 10 Ways to Get Upgraded on a Flight on About.com: Air Travel.

• Tip Pick for Your Hotel- From Evelyn Hannon, Journeywoman: Carry a biz card from ur hotel when exploring a new destination.a taxi can get you home. Also: Carry UR hotel’s business card with U. In an emergency U can call their front desk 4 help/advice.
• Tip Pick for Travel with Kids- A fun idea from Journeywoman: Allow kids 2 buy+write 1 postcard per day. Save. Makes gr8 show+tell travel album for family records.
• Tip Pick for Safety- This piece on Safe Travel Tips reminded me of a story I had heard previously from Rand McNally on the Road about what was dubbed the “Twitter Burglar.” Someone tweeted about going on vacation, and his home was then burglarized during the trip. While it is unconfirmed that there really was a connection between these events, it is a good reminder not to get too comfortable with the illusion of privacy these types of sites can give. Let everyone know what a great trip you just had, not are having, so you don’t unknowingly share that your home is unoccupied with someone that may take advantage of the fact. There is more information on the Twitter Burglar in the article from CNET News.
• Tip Pick for Foreign Travel- More from Evelyn Hannon, Journeywoman: Looking for a bathroom? Use the word ‘toilet’. That’s the term likely 2 B understood by most people in most places.
• Tip Pick for Remembering Your Trip- Another from Journeywoman: Always cc: yourself when emailing on the road. These notes become your journal at trip’s end.

And finally, not a tip but a quote: Focus on the journey, not the destination. Joy is found not in finishing an activity but in doing it. – Greg Anderson. From Twenty Great Travel Quotes on Taking off Travel Blog.

We hope that with these tips and resources you can enjoy your journey to its fullest.

A lot has happened in that year, and our blog has included some of the highlights, like in July when the tugo was featured on the Today Show, or in August when KLM Airlines’s iFly magazine included the tugo with such travel necessities as Dom Perignon and Chanel No. 5. Also prominent on our list of highlights were FOXNews.com listing the tugo as one of their “Five Travel Gadgets Worth Giving” and, most recently, a featured product on the Rachael Ray Show.

We look forward to the coming year as we get ready to launch our new accessory, h2Otugo, which will allow you to carry a water bottle, soda can, or potentially anything that fits that you want to have close at hand on your rolling bag while you travel. Stay tuned for more information!

Signing up for our newsletter (click here) is the best way to get the latest updates, including the h2Otugo scoop. We will also include travel tips, deals or specials, and information that we think you will find useful. We plan for a focus on the business traveler, but there will be a little something for everyone included.

Also look for a special deal in April to mark the one-year anniversary of our website!

I'm Not A Paper Cup

I’m Not A Paper Cup is a double walled and insulated thermal porcelain cup.  It’s eco-friendly and reusable, so no more wasting paper cups!

tugo

There’s nothing more frustrating than trying to carry a bag, a purse, a cup of coffee (maybe even hold an umbrella) all while trying to get into your car, hail a taxi or insert your bus or train ticket.  Make things easier with a tugo!  It’s unique design keeps your cup level to prevent sloshing.

24-7 Shopping Bag

These reusable shopping bags from Flip and Tumble are amazing.  The bag is perfect for carrying groceries, gym clothes, a pack lunch and more.  When it’s not full, roll it into a ball for easy storage.

Pioneer Portable Headphones

Every commuter needs a good pair of headphones; whether you’re listening to music, a podcast or the news.  These portable headphones from Pioneer are comfortable and offer great sound.

iPhone Power Case

This is more than just an attractive leather carrying case. With built-in rechargeable lithium-ion battery, this little wonder can power your iPhone for up to 30 extra hours.

Amazon Kindle

The Amazon Kindle is lightweight for easy carrying, battery charge lasts for a week and holds up to 1,500 books!

Moleskine 2010 Desk Calendar

This Moleskine 2010 Desk Calendar is clean and simple.

Tend Living Plant

Tend Living has created these beautiful plant arrangements in mini glass globes.

tugo

The tugo carries your coffee so you don’t have to!

Typographic Paperweights

With a never ending amount of papers to grade, these paperweights are a stylish way to keep things in order.

Alpha Bookends

What better way to keep textbooks in order than with these Alpha Bookends from Crate and Barrel?

Grid-It

The Grid-It keeps all of your electronics organized with the weave of rubberized elastic bands.  The slim design makes it a perfect fit for a laptop bag or travel case.

Inflight Comfort Kit

This Inflight Comfort Kit is essential for any traveler.  The kit features an inflatable jersey neck pillow, earplugs, padded jersey eye mask, wet wipes and 10 sheets of paper soap.

Indiana Leather Dopp Kit

The Indiana Leather Dopp Kit is just what every well-appointed man needs in his suitcase.

Bodum Travel Press

This thermo travel press by Bodum allows you to brew on the go.  The grip makes it easy to carry or try it with a tugo!

tugo

The tugo attaches to the upright handles of your travel bag and gives you the extra hand you always seem to need.

Spacepak

The Spacepak maximizes case space while achieving maximum compression so you can always carry on and avoid the baggage claim.

LUXE City Guides

LUXE City Guides are elegant handmade box sets that make a fantastic traffic gift.

…Or get one to upgrade your own holiday travel experience! We always hope our travels are smooth sailing, but we all know the reality of traveling during the holiday season. With a tugo attached to your bag, any layover or delay will include the extra convenience of a “third hand.” Anything that can make a this stressful situation more jolly will be appreciated by all!

New, new, new! The tugo just came out this spring, so you can be the first to give this new and unique gift to the traveler that has everything. The packaging and weight make the tugo easy and cheap to ship, too.

Available on our website: goodtugo.com or at these retailers.

See  “Why do I love my tugo?” for more reasons the tugo makes a thoughtful gift. Or leave your own comments below.

On the classic Seinfeld episode titled "The Airport," Elaine's seatmate doesn't like to check his bags, so getting to the bathroom is quite comical.

Ah, air travel. Where else do you end up in a confined space, sitting elbow to elbow with someone (or two people, if you are the unlucky middle seat!) you have never met for an extended period of time? This situation can lead to some extreme but extremely entertaining stories.

We want to know your worst airplane seatmate story! Leave a comment by 5pm PST on Wednesday 9/9/09, and we will select someone at random to win a tugo luggage drink holder!

Here’s an example to get you started. I once was flying from DFW to DEN and ended up sitting next to a chatty woman. Once the flight got under way, as she begins to tell me a long story, she reaches into her bag to pull out a roll of floss and proceeds to floss her teeth while turned in her seat to face me and tell her story! I have to say I can’t remember the details whatsoever because I was so preoccupied by watching for spray and generally being grossed out.

So that’s pretty bad, but there must be worse out there… let’s have ‘em!

Image by Getty Images via Daylife

Experts call it “dwell time.” It’s that time that passengers at airports spend once they’ve cleared security and are waiting for their flight and the average is 70 to 90 minutes. With an increased dependence on technology to do our daily work, business travelers need dwell time to be productive time. The best American airports for doing just that:

• Denver International Airport (DIA): We may be a little biased (we’re based in Denver), but we’d agree with this 2008 Business Traveler Magazine 2008 Award winner for best North American airport. With access to business center services and reasonable wi-fi costs, DIA allows biz travellers to stay productive. If you’d prefer a little down-time the airport can accommodate with shopping, dining and massage services.
• Minneapolis-St.Paul International Airport (MSP): This Northwest Airlines hub has one of the best on-time records in the industry. Ranked as the best airport for biz travel by CNN in 2006, the extras available at this airport will make sure the second leg of your flight is as productive as the first. Hypercharge stations scattered around the terminals will charge laptops, PDAs and cell phones faster than normal outlets and a full-service day spa will massage away all the travel kinks.
• San Francisco International (SFO): With an average security wait time (during peak hours) of five minutes, SFO makes it quick and easy to get to your gate. And with meditation rooms, business centers and outstanding food options, that dwell time is a little more tolerable.

Other airports recognized for the biz travel services include: Charlotte Douglas International (CLT) is a great alternative to Atlanta and includes free wi-fi, business center and a day spa; Greenville-Spartanburg International Airport (GSP) for free wi-fi and beautiful grounds; and Dallas-Fort Worth International (DFW) because it has comfy chairs, smart parking systems and fast trains between terminals.

What is your favorite airport?