Introducing a special guest!!!

Hi Guys -

my dear friend Cara has written a little something about an airport that she has the pleasure of flying in/out of every week. beautiful Columbus, OH!!! i personally haven't been there...but after reading her notes... i'm on the first plane! :) as for me, i'm in SF right now...flying to Philly tomorrow morning. i know you were curious.

here she is....and here are her thoughts!!!

CMH aka Columbus, OH airport.
A typical thursday

1. Airport Access- a mess. There is one road and a gazillon stop lights. A pain in the ass, especially when President Georgey Porgey is in town and wants the entire road to himself.

2. Car rental return- not bad. You can walk to the terminal in about 5 min if you aren’t too lazy, can bear the cold and willing to dodge some hotel vans, or you can take the moving beltway that is a bit longer, but indoors. The Hertz ppl give you your receipt quickly and always ask if you filled the tank with gas.. and then look if you really did. Why even ask? In Cbus, Hertz does NOT have their magic board with your name on it when you are picking up your car. This can totally suck cause it means you actually have to talk to someone at 11pm on Sunday night when you are super tired and cranky. However, given the mood, this has great potential for getting an upgraded vehicle. Best cars so far at CMH hertz gold counter: Volvo S40 and Volkswagen Jetta.

3. Checking in. Normally very quick and painless even when checking bags. Normal wait time at the United ticket counter is approx 5-10 min or you can use those Easy Check-in Kiosks if youre not checking bags with no wait. They also have a premier/first class line, but normally that line is longer during business travel hours, but ppl stand in them anyway. I don’t understand this—is this “my line is better than your line” deal? or “I have to prove to everyone in the world that I have status.”?

I HAVE 35,000 miles dammit!! Do you know who my father is??!! (Abby- this incident might need to be added to the PHX airport review)

4. Terminal B Corridor After checking in you walk past several restaurants, shops and of course a bath and body works. (which I think is odd considering this is BEFORE security and the stupid 3oz liquid rule). I like that this corridor to the terminal B has many ATM choices, so you don’t get raped by the $2 surcharges from both your bank and the ATMs.

5. The dreaded Security line- the variable. Terminal B does have a premier/first class line, but again.. it tends to be longer than the “low rent” line at times. The TSA ppl are very strict about the 2 bag rule, unless you chat them up, and then they don’t care. Sometimes security will take 5 min, other times it will take 15-20.. which makes it hard to cut it close.. I have built in a 30 minute buffer for this, which basically means I go to the gift shop to get a water and read USWeekly (but not buying it!) for the remaining 15-20 minutes.

Terminal B in general: Not bad. It just sucks if you are at the furthest gate, and it is literally a ½ mile walk without moving beltways. Quiznos, Bar (where you are ALWAYS asked if you want a shot of jack for just $3.00 more), 2 gift shops/news stands, and then another bar with service that may take 5 min or 20 to get a quesadilla.. another variable.. so I tend to just go for the drink.

Flight availability/ Service: The downfall of flying in/out of Columbus- not very many direct flights except to Ohare (barf). Also since Cbus is a small hub, the aircrafts tend to be smaller, which means you have to gate check your roller bag. However, there tends to be less people on the flights and I’ve always been upgraded when I request it. BALLA!