#1 find a hotel that is literally across the street from the terminal. quickly book a room for the night before- don't be skimpy, you want to be comfortable. we happened to choose a hotel run by the swiss company mövenpick. i would highly recommend it for this reason alone: they leave a toblerone candy bar in the room for you! if you don't have toblerone in your life you aren't really living. just saying. how much more delicious can a hotel room be?! in addition, their staff was friendly, the room was incredibly clean, the beds were comfortable, the tea and coffee selection was awesome, there was a rubber ducky on the bathtub and the room price was right. i'd give them a 4 out of 5... my only issue was paying 21 euro to park my jeep for the night- seriously?!
#2 go to the terminal the night before to check-in. you can print your boarding pass and often you can turn in your checked bags so you can simply head straight to security in the morning. this is important because it allows more time to sleep. need i expound further?!
#3 go to a bakery and get yourself some freshly baked treats for the early morning breakfast you'll have to scarf down while running out the door (i know you're going to be running late, that's always the case when you have to be somewhere at an odd hour. trust me.) the hotel breakfast never seems to start early enough!
#4 get the coffee pot/tea pot ready so when you wake up all you have to do is hit the button while you drag your half asleep ass into the shower (if you're like me you don't truly wake up until about halfway through the 3rd cup- i know, i know, i need to cut back... whatevs.)
#5 don't open the window in search of fresh air while in the hotel across the street from the airport. do you have any idea how terrifying it is to wake up to a helicopter taking off 20 feet away?! (add time served in a combat zone and you've got an ugly situation on your hands. again, trust.)
#6 plan a fun morning in the town said airport is in. lucky for me, it was nurnberg. score. *too bad the flight was so early 4 hours was the length of time i had to kill before ANYTHING was open. not to worry, i've got a plan for that too. you'll have to wait until the next installment!
where is the next place you are going to be traveling?
happy travels. ciao!
