We all know TSA pre check gets you through security faster, which in and of itself is #worth. I mean really, I can’t think of a bigger waste of time than getting to the airport two hours early just to wait in line forever to make sure Karen didn’t bring too much hair gel. Gross. That being said, I also never signed up for TSA pre check because it just seemed like this elusive thing that people more important than me had. I would gaze longingly at the line that always seemed to be filled with savvy business people in suits carrying one of those rolling suitcases that’s just the right size to fit into the overhead bin. Clearly those people travel a lot and need fancy things like TSA pre check. Meanwhile, I’m just over here in the line for (what I now fondly refer to as) peasant security having no idea what I’m missing because by the time I get to the front of the line I’ve forgotten to care about the people in the VIP lane. Then one day a magical thing happened to me. I started dating one of the business savvy men in the VIP line with the nice luggage (A has a bookbag, not a rolling suitcase, but that thing is like a Mary Poppins bag – it fits everything). Apparently sometimes when you have TSA pre check and you’re on a flight with someone who doesn’t, they get it for that flight so that the pre check having people don’t have to wait for their loved ones in peasant security. So nice of them. I am now a spoiled TSA pre check person and felt the need to share with you ALL the reasons that you need this so you don’t spend your life like me gazing longingly at the people in the short line. So here you have it, my top 5 reasons why you NEED TSA Pre Check:
1 – It’s not that expensive
I had it in my head that it was probably at least a couple hundred a year, if not more. Apparently that was just a myth I made up in my own head (probably because everyone in line has $400 suitcases, so I assumed this was a bougie perk). Negative. It’s $85 for FIVE YEARS. That’s $17 a year. A YEAR. I spend that at Starbucks in 2 days. Worth.
2 – People who are traveling with you may get the pre check benefits when you book together
This benefit isn’t a guarantee, but I will say that I have gotten TSA pre check every single time A and I have flown together, and we travel a lot. This post was partially inspired by the fact that, because we travel together so much, I haven’t bothered to sign up for myself, and now I’m traveling alone without pre check for the weekend and I hate my life.
3 – You don’t have to take off your shoes
This one might be my favorite simply for the fact that I fucking hate feet. I think they’re gross and weird and I don’t want to touch them or anything they have touched. How I’ve survived this long as a nurse I don’t know. Anyway, you can go through TSA pre check without taking your shoes off, which is magical. You don’t have to touch the floor where other people’s feet have been and you don’t have to be awkwardly barefoot in public if you forget how airport security works and forget to wear socks (ew). It’s a godsend. I also love this one because one time I was on a flight waiting in line for security and the line I was in was NOT moving. Like, no activity. I got annoyed and switched to another line. Only after I had made it all the way through did I realize that I hadn’t taken the bin with my shoes from line A to line B. I had to go all the way back through and run all of my bags and myself through security AGAIN just to get my stupid shoes. I was so mad. Case in point, leaving your shoes on wins.
4 – You don’t have to take out your laptop
This really isn’t hard to do, but it’s so annoying. Like, hang on, let me get through the initial check, fumble to put my boarding pass and ID somewhere other than my pocket, then plop my bag down to take all this crap out to place in bins, and then go through the scanner thing. This is where the line gets all bottlenecked and annoying. It literally makes me a mean person. None of that in TSA pre check. Leave your laptop in that bag and move right along. Which leads me to one more fabulous benefit:
5 – You ALSO don’t have to take out your toiletries
This one is right up there with the shoe thing for me. The worst part of packing for me is trying to decide which toiletries I want to take based on their size and what will fit in a clear plastic bag. I have none of that drama in TSA pre check. A has spent years traveling with a leather toiletry bag holding a full size bottle of cologne and toothpaste. No last minute shopping for travel sizes or sqeezing your shampoo into a teeny bottle. Take whatever you want and leave it in your bag. Technically you still have to follow the liquid requirements, but I’ve NEVER been stopped with pre check. I don’t know if they can’t see as well because it’s tucked in your bag, or if they just don’t care. Either way, take all the toothpaste you want and don’t worry about digging it out of your bag before you go through the line.
So, do you have TSA Pre Check already? Have you been living your life in the fancy business person line? Or have you, like me, been living a sad life in peasant security? Let me know in the comments!
Related: Four Things You Should Always Travel With
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