By Dawn Gilbertson
Happy Friday! I returned from a whirlwind work trip to New York, London and the English coast to the earliest 100-degree day on record in Phoenix. Send hydration.
I'm happy to report that Global Entry worked like a charm at San Francisco International Airport on Sunday. I cleared customs and immigration in mere minutes.
The big travel news continues to be the impact from the war in Iran. Airlines are paying a bundle more for fuel due to skyrocketing oil prices and the upshot for travelers is higher fares. A parade of top airline executives this week said they are confident they can pass along their higher fuel bills because travel demand remains so strong. That's great news for investors, not so great if you're shopping for airline tickets. Tell me what you're seeing in ticket prices and how you're coping by writing to me at dawn.gilbertson@wsj.com (if you're reading this in your inbox, you can just hit reply).
In other travel news, Southwest Airlines is exiting Chicago O'Hare and Washington Dulles in June. Those were secondary metro airports for the airline. It has major hubs at Chicago's Midway and Baltimore/Washington International and will still serve Reagan National.
Disney announced another new cruise ship , the Disney Believe, coming in late 2027, and Capital One launched a stand-alone travel app.
Navigate airport security like a pro
Worried about all those snaking security lines flooding social-media feeds and the nightly news?
The good news: Those hourslong waits aren't at every airport, every day. The bad: You never know where the next trouble spot is going to be as TSA workers continue to go without pay due to the partial government shutdown. Airports in Atlanta and Houston were hit hard by worker call outs this week as the spring-break rush continued.
The best advice, of course, is to arrive at the airport as early as possible. It can save a trip. And if you breeze through security? Toast your good luck at an airport bar, buy an overpriced latte or hit up the airport lounge you can never get into.
Here are some other strategies to help speed or smooth the process:
-- Don't have TSA PreCheck? Check the website of the airports you're flying
to and from to see if they allow you to reserve a spot in the security
line for free. The list of participating airports isn't long, but
includes major airports in Phoenix, Seattle, Denver and Minneapolis. All
say the service is still operating during the partial shutdown. Make sure
you check which terminals it is offered in and note the operating hours.
-- Make sure TSA PreCheck is on your boarding pass. Do this before you get
to the airport. Look at your boarding pass as soon as you check in
online. If it's not there, get that fixed now. You don't want to be
messing with this oversight on the day of travel or, horrors, risk being
sent to the standard screening line.
-- Sign up for TSA PreCheck Touchless ID stat if your airline offers it.
Several major U.S. airlines already have it. You must be a PreCheck
member to sign up. There is a separate security lane at participating
airports and it can be speedier.
-- Don't have Clear? Now's the time to sign up if you travel frequently.
Check your travel credit cards to see if the annual fee is covered. Clear
reps are always hustling to sign people up at airports so you might even
be able to score a free trial on the spot and dodge that long line.
-- See if your airline ticket type or status includes a priority security
line. Major airlines including Southwest offer this service at select
airports.
-- Check airport security waits on airport websites. And know that at many
airports, you can clear security at any checkpoint in the terminal. So
pick the one with the best time even if it means a longer walk.
Do you have any great tips to add? Send them to me at dawn.gilbertson@wsj.com and I'll share the best ones next week.
This is an edition of the WSJ Travel newsletter, a weekly source of inspiration and advice for navigating your vacations and business trips, along with the latest travel news. If you're not subscribed, sign up here.
Notes From the Road
-- Did you know JetBlue offers business class and has a new lounge? I tried
both last week.
-- Want to surprise someone with a vacation? Good luck in this digital age.
-- A serious coffee fan hunts for the perfect cup in Vietnam.
One Good Tip 🎯
Don't leave that government ID at home just because you have TSA PreCheck Touchless ID or Clear and typically sail through security without flashing one. A reader learned this the hard way recently when Delta wouldn't accept her checked bag because she lost her wallet. The ID requirement is a federal policy and it applies at all airlines. Fortunately her bag was small enough to carry on.
Travel Math 🧮
The number of visitors to Great Smoky Mountains National Park in 2025, making it the busiest park, the National Park Service reported this week. That is more than the No. 2 and 3 parks (Zion and Yellowstone) combined.
And We Quote 💬
You Have Thoughts 🤔
...on the TWA Hotel at JFK:
-- "Your review of the TWA Hotel really stirred my ire. Let's begin with no
coffee in the room and having to get dressed and walk a mile to pay $5
for a cup of coffee from a vendor in the lobby. Or maybe I should begin
with the walk from the terminal to get to the hotel. And then let me
remember how far you have to walk to get to an elevator once you check in,
and if you are traveling with someone who has difficulty walking it is a
nightmare. Four of us arriving from a long international flight thought
this would be fun rather than continuing on a red-eye. What a waste of
money and time. " -- Paula James, California
-- "In the kindest, most respectful way, I would like to say you missed the
point. The TWA Hotel is about the architecture. The TWA
terminal-turned-hotel was designed by one of the most famous architects
of the 20th century, Eero Saarinen. It's an icon of an era." -- Frank
Johnson, North Carolina
-- "Thank you for your article on your stay at the TWA Hotel. A long time
ago, summer of 1960 after completing my freshman year at MIT, I had the
opportunity to take a summer job as a construction laborer building the
Eero Saarinen-designed structure. Dutifully, I drove the 45 miles from my
home in Rockland County to JFK. I did this as it was by far the
best-paying summer job available. I was paid union scale for NYC
construction workers and overtime if worked. I have also stayed at the
TWA Hotel when connecting to a JetBlue international flight. It was a
thrill to see. Thank you for rekindling these memories." -- Peter Svahn,
New Hampshire
(Responses have been condensed and edited.)
One Final Shot 📷
My AI-planned trip landed me in gorgeous Saltburn-by-the-Sea in northeast England last week. It was cold and windy but I'll take a beach walk in any conditions.
About Us
Dawn Gilbertson writes WSJ's Carry On column covering all things travel. You can reach her at dawn.gilbertson@wsj.com or on X at @dawngilbertson. Sign up to get an alert every time Dawn publishes an article.
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
March 20, 2026 08:25 ET (12:25 GMT)
Copyright (c) 2026 Dow Jones & Company, Inc.
