Travel tips to take advantage of when planning Memorial Day or Summer adventure that won’t break the bank

HOUSTON – Summer is almost here, and if you’re trying to get away from the intense Texas heat, we won’t blame you. But we will if you don’t take advantage of some money-saving resources by United Airlines!

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United Airlines says it expects Wednesday to be the busiest travel day, with more than 3 million people flying. In Houston alone, United says nearly 480 flights a day are expected going into the Memorial Day weekend, seeing more than 55,000 people a day just at Bush Airport.

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Here are just a few tips United Airlines shared to help make your Summer and Memorial Day travels a little easier and hopefully save a few extra dollars along the way:

Make group travel simpler than ever

United is the first major U.S. airline to allow members of its loyalty program, MileagePlus®, to pool their miles with family and friends into a joint account. Making it easier for family members of all ages—and groups to share and use miles for award travel as “mile pooling”.

Tips for navigating the airport:

Arrive at the airport 2-3 hours early to give you plenty of time

When navigating the airport, given the construction underway, remember that parking garages may be full at IAH. It is best to utilize the various parking lots located off-terminal and consider taking parking shuttles to the terminal.

Helping families travel together easily:

Children under 12 years can sit next to an adult in their party for free – including customers who purchase Basic Economy tickets with the United family seating policy.

In the app, United’s seat map feature dynamically finds available adjacent seats at the time of booking first reviews all available free Economy seats, and then opens complimentary upgrades to available Preferred Seats, if needed.

What do the experts say?

Here are some additional travel tips from Doug Shupe with AAA Texas to get some tips before you start booking flights or requesting time off work.

• Think about where you want to go and book the flight now – the sooner the better! This is because the cost of airfares is ALWAYS up in the summer. Consider flying out on a Tuesday, Wednesday, or a Saturday. Those tend to be the cheapest because you don’t have as many business travelers on those days,

• Consider working with a trusted travel advisor, to help bundle your vacation – packages include airfare and accommodations. And if you’re a AAA member, there are even more savings and benefits you may be eligible for. NOTE: You don’t have to be a member to work with AAA advisors, but Shope says it’s highly recommended.

• Don’t let high gas prices deter you; consider a road trip, as you can make your own schedule and you’ll save a lot more money than you would for airfare.

Bon voyage!