A Great Cure for Those Long Layovers

I’ve been traveling for three days now, from Houston to D.C. to New York for a business meeting and then a one-night layover before the 15-hour flight from JFK to Africa. I was 3 ½ hours into a blissful, Ambien-fueled slumber when the flight attendant decided to wake me up to see if I wanted a snack. I guess the fact that I had my seat fully reclined, was covered with a blanket, wearing a blindfold and, probably, snoring, somehow made her think I was craving airline salmon. Who the hell serves salmon in the middle of the night anyway? I was so aggravated at being woken up that I couldn’t fall back asleep. Needless to say, I was feeling pretty crappy by the time I hit Johannesburg.

I had seven hours to kill in Johannesburg before my connecting flight. I could have tried to pass the time in a pub or napping on a bench, but I had a big complication – my luggage. Though I had checked my gun in with the security office, the girl at the SAA counter was adamant that I not check my bag. “It will be there too long”, she said. “They will go through it for sure if we leave it down there that long.” With such a glowing endorsement from the nice ticket lady, I saw no choice but to keep my giant Filson duffle and two carry-on bags (I don’t pack like a chick – it was mostly TV gear and still cameras) with me. With sleep and security my priorities, I dragged my gear across the street to the airport hotel and got a day room.

Most major airports have a hotel attached, and every one I’m aware of offers day rooms. The downside of that convenience is that hotels at the airport are never cheap, and day rooms aren’t much cheaper. But I like having a secure place to store my gear, a comfortable bed, and a hot shower. I slept like a champ in my Johannesburg hotel room. I had a little trouble waking up when my alarm went off, but by the time I showered and changed into some clean clothes, I felt like a million bucks. The room, at least to me, was worth every cent.

Day rooms are great, but they don’t always make sense. Here are a few of my day room guidelines:

• If you only have a few hours to kill, you’re better off toughing it out in the terminal
• It’s rarely worth taking a cab to a distant hotel to try and save a few bucks unless you have more than 7 or 8 hours. Convenience is one of the things that make day rooms work – taking a cab back and forth just  wastes valuable sleeping time
• If you know you have a long layover, book your day room in advance to save money. I usually do, but my last day room cost me more than a full night in the same hotel nine months prior because I walked in without a reservation
• If you check your bags all the way through, be sure to pack clean clothes (or at least some clean socks and underwear) and a few toiletries in your carry-on so you can freshen up after your nap
• Turn off your cell phone when you go to sleep! Those damn things work everywhere and some idiot is almost sure to call and wake you up right when you get into a deep sleep. That’s why I am writing this at 3:00 AM instead of sleeping.