Holiday Travel: How to Avoid the Drama

— -- Picture all the Kardashians together on a plane. Now, picture them in coach. No, I can't either but I suspect there might be a teeny bit of drama. Your family holiday trip will be different.

Or will it? Sometimes there's a fine line between a great travel experience and a flight from hell but there are things you can do to ease the drama and sometimes even save a buck or two.

1. Airport arrival drama

You leave the house at the usual time and suddenly notice the drive is taking … longer … than … usual. If you think that's bad, wait until you reach the airport and try to find a parking space. Then, whoops, how did the line at security get that long? You'd be surprised how incredibly easy it is to miss a flight.

Less drama: Leave twice as early as usual to get to the airport during the holidays. If you think that's harsh, you'll be shocked to learn that Southwest suggests passengers arrive at most airports 90 minutes before departure; if leaving from Atlanta, make that two hours and from Baltimore, three. By the way, these are not suggestions for holiday travel or peak summer dates, just your average run-of-the-mill flights.

2. Security drama

Your children have a meltdown because they are afraid of the security process but you're too busy to comfort them because you're watching a TSA agent rip apart all that beautiful gift wrapping you slaved over.

Less drama: First, have the "security talk" with little ones. Explain what will happen but remember, kids take cues from parents so the more matter-of-fact you are, the better they'll handle it. The good news is, little kids can leave their shoes on but so can you if you sign up for PreCheck: $85 for five years of faster, pre-9/11 security.

As for the wrapped gifts, don't. Bring them unwrapped or ship them ahead. And while we're at it, do not bring gifts of wine or home-made jams or jellies or salsa, or even a tub of peanut butter for the kids because none of that is allowed through security. If it's not in a checked bag, it will be dumped.

3. Boarding drama

Very few airlines offer blanket invitations to families to board early, not like they used to, which is bad news for those seated near cranky toddlers who sometimes enjoy working off frustrations by kicking the seats, repeatedly. In one extreme case, an unhappy little girl was so wound up she thwarted all attempts to buckle her up and the entire family was booted from the plane.

Less drama: This is where a fee can be worth the money and then some; Southwest's EarlyBird seating is just $12.50 per person and gets you in the A line. Other airlines offer bundles that include cuts-in-line plus better seat selection or a free bag or another perk. Fees range from cheap to oh-my-gosh but check ahead and you might see something in your price range.

4. Luggage drama

The fun begins when everyone in a family of four requires a checked bag; the price of your trip just jumped $200. But the real drama kicks in when one of those bags goes missing (or “mishandled” as they say in airline lingo).

Less drama: If everyone can make do with a carry-on bag, that's a win because most airlines don't charge a cent for small bags. You could always compromise; take one checked bag that everyone can share plus carry-ons and you still save $150.

But the real beauty of hand luggage is portability; if your flight is delayed or canceled and you have to sprint to another terminal, a carry-on keeps up. Just don't overload it. The baggage police are out in force and if a carry-on is deemed too big or too heavy you may be sent back through security to check it, pay the fee and, ultimately, waste a lot of time waiting around at the baggage carousel.

I suppose the Kardashians have entourages to do the waiting for them. On the bright side, we lesser-known mortals don't have to fight our way through airport paparazzi.

The opinions expressed by Rick Seaney in this column are his alone and do not reflect the views of ABC News.