The head of London's airport is advising Christmas travellers to forget the gift wrapping, allow extra time, and stay positive ahead of what will be the busiest air travel period of the season this weekend.
President of the London International Airport Mike Seabrook anticipates the biggest surge of people flying into and out of London will come Friday and Saturday.
"The flights are virtually full," said Seabook. "A lot of people actually get out of London over Christmas and head down to resorts and all-inclusive and just kind of escape the madness of Christmas. That seems to be more popular this year than it has ever been."
Roughly 1,500 people pass through the airport on a busy day, with year-to-date passenger load records up 2% in 2017.
Those bringing gifts for family and friends on their flight are asked to hold off on wrapping them.
"If you are flying out of here prior to Christmas, one of the things you do have to remember is you can't wrap your Christmas gifts. So if you are taking them somewhere just bring them in a form that security can easily inspect them if required," said Seabrook.
He also recommends travellers check-in and select their seat through their airline's online system, confirm flight schedules 24-hours prior to take off, and ensure all valuables are in carry-on bags instead of checked luggage.
"If you adhere to this list you will probably be in good shape," said Seabrook. "At this time of year, at the international airports, they are busy, they are congested. So give yourself a little bit of extra time and try to keep a positive frame of mind because it can be a stressful time for air travel."
For people flying to sunny destinations, Seabrook noted the airport has a unique service that allows for travellers to ditch their winter woollies before boarding the plane.
"We have a coat check program here that if you are heading down to Florida or the Caribbean, just prior to security you can leave your boots and coat," said Seabrook. "It's $3 or $5 and we put them in racks for each airline departure then we roll out the racks with you come back in and your coat and boots are waiting for you. It's pretty slick."
