Are You Ready For New Orleans?

Tomorrow the first wave of MRI staff is leaving for New Orleans to ready the hotel for the IUC! Since the conference is just a few short days away, you are probably packing your bags and gearing up for Bourbon Street. To make your traveling eXperience as smooth as possible, keep the following travel tips (which we’re using for our trip too!) in mind: 

1) Be familiar with TSA regulations – Although some of the prohibited items are pretty common sense when it comes to carry on luggage (sorry, no axes or cattle prods!), you should read the rest of the regulations to ensure you get through the checkpoint as quickly as possible. Liquids, for example, must be less than 3.4 ounces if you’re not checking a bag and all your liquids must fit in a sealed one gallon plastic bag. If you have a last minute question, TSA has a mobile app  for your reference.

2) Roll your clothes – Folding your shirts and pants can leave a crease mark, plus it takes up more space in the suitcase. You can fit a few extra items in your bag, and possibly even take it with you as carry-on avoiding the dreaded checked baggage fees. If you haven’t heard of this packing technique before, there are several tutorials online.

3) Call your bank and credit card company – If you don’t travel frequently, your cards could be flagged for suspicious use. Simply giving your bank or credit card vendor a call to let them know when you’re out of town, and where you will be, can prevent unwanted and unnecessary travel troubles.Especially for our international travelers!

4) Snap a picture – Once you arrive at the airport, take a picture or make a note in your phone of your car’s location. When you arrive back home, you’ll be tired and ready to get home as soon as possible, but may not remember the section you parked in. Making a quick note at the beginning of a trip will help the conclusion go smoothly.

5) Get to know Louis Armstrong International Airport- take five minutes to look over the airport maps, hotel shuttle info and rental car counter details. If you think navigating your home airport is relentlessly confusing, it will be even worse at an unfamiliar airport. Flight status updates often include the anticipated arrival gate, so checking the maps at your destination airport can help you get through the baggage pickup, find the rental car counters or shuttle pickup locations, and get to the hotel as soon as possible.

We can’t wait to spend the 2014 International Users Conference with our valued clients. See you in New Orleans!