Tips & Advice · 6 min read · July 11, 2025

Hate airport queues? Here's how to skip them this summer

From picking the right flights to sneaky travel tricks, these 10 steps can save you hours of hassle before, during and after your flight.

Short on time? Let us summarise this guide for you.

Hate airport queues? This guide offers 10 practical tips to breeze through your journey this summer. From choosing quieter destinations and flight times to avoiding baggage delays and prepping your travel documents, each step helps reduce stress and waiting time. Highlights include avoiding Europe post-October 2025 due to new biometric checks, flying mid-week afternoons, using hand luggage only, and even staying at an airport hotel the night before. Plus, know your rights if delays hit.

Before you book your trip

Step 1: Pick a hassle-free destination

It matters a lot where you're going, because airport delays aren't just here, they're worldwide. If you go to (most of) Europe, you'll be going through the 'other countries' passport queues, and that's going to hold you up at both ends of the trip. If you go somewhere with airport or rail strikes, that could spoil your trip. And if you go somewhere experiencing extreme weather events or even a volcanic eruption, that could hold you up too.

We recommend heading to Europe this summer while it's still relatively easy. The EU is due to roll out its new Entry / Exit system (EES) in October 2025, a new automated passport checking system that will, in theory, speed up getting through the airport. But in reality, the initial rollout will cause delays. Travellers have to provide biometric data (fingerprints and a photo) the first time they use the tech, which will take longer than the current passport checking system. So expect queues at the airport next summer if you're heading to Europe.

Planning a trip for after October? Take a look at our 6 favourite holiday spots where you won't have to worry about EES queues.

6 places to go to avoid EES

The EU's Entry/Exit System kicks in later this year. Want to avoid the delays? Travel to these destinations instead.

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Step 2: Pick the best date and time

Fly when it's less busy. Tuesdays and Wednesdays tend to be quieter, and most queues tend to be in the morning. So if you can fly mid-week and mid-afternoon, it's likely to be quieter.

Of course not everyone can fly whenever they want – school holidays fall when they do and you may need to make full use of your leave Saturday to Saturday. But if you have the option, don't just default to flying first thing on a Saturday when everyone else is and the queues are at their worst.

Google has a handy tracker for many airports that shows how busy they usually are every hour of every day. You can check before you book that you're not heading there during rush hour.

And picking the right time to fly is doubly important if you're going somewhere with queues at the other end. Spain often has queues during high season, so don't fly in or out of Spain on a Saturday if you can avoid it.

Step 3: Pick your flights

You might just want the cheapest tickets, in which case your choice is going to be straightforward. But if you want to minimise the chances of getting stuck in a queue, there are two things you can do.

One is pick your airport. Check out the news, see which airports are experiencing the worst queues, and if you live somewhere that has multiple options, pick accordingly.

The second thing you can do is pick the right airline. Some will let you jump the queues for a fee, or if you buy more expensive tickets. Some have much more generous hand-luggage allowances as well, so if you think you can make the trip with just a cabin bag, see which airline will make that easy.

Before you head to the airport

Step 4: Check your flight isn't cancelled

Check that your flight is actually going ahead. Your airport or airline website will have up-to-date information, and there's no point setting off in a rush if the flight's been cancelled.

Step 5: Check in online

Check in online before you go, and have your boarding passes ready on your phone or printed out.

Step 6: Take hand luggage if you can

Don't check bags if you don't have to. Lots of airport delays are people waiting for baggage or arguing with staff whether their bag is just over or just under the size limit, so skip that whole palaver and take a rucksack instead.

Step 7: Don't forget your...

Don't forget your passport, visa, driving licence, money, boarding pass – the list goes on. Take a look at our handy checklist so you don't forget a thing!

Ultimate holiday checklist

We've done a lot of travelling and packed more than our fair share of suitcases. We've got the know-how and it's only right we share it!

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At the airport

Step 8: Don't turn up too early

Check how long your airport and airline recommend. It's on their website and normally updated on their social media if it changes. Most airline desks don't open until three hours before departures, so there's no point getting there sooner than that. If you do, you'll just be part of the problem as the airport fills up with people waiting around with nothing to do until their check-in desk opens.

Consider downloading the Waze app to help you pick the best route to the airport. If you're driving to the airport, this free navigation app shows real-time road conditions and helps you find the ideal routes to avoid traffic or unexpected hazards along the way.

Or, take a look at our handy guide for when to arrive at the airport.

Gate expectations: When to arrive at the airport

Never miss a flight again – here's when to arrive at every major UK airport for every flight.

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Step 9: Treat yourself to a lie-in

Save yourself a lot of hassle and queuing by driving to the airport the night before, parking up and sleeping at an airport hotel. Roll out of bed in time for your flight, enjoy a leisurely breakfast, check what the queues look like and go through check-in whenever it looks like it's about to start filling up.

Then on the other side, you might want to treat yourself to an airport lounge. Our research shows that most people spend more on snacks, drinks, wifi and shopping while they hang around for a flight than a lounge would have cost them. And once you're in the peace and quiet of your lounge, the food and drinks are free.

Step 10: Remember to tell everybody else

Make sure you tell your whole party! If you have everything ready and your liquids in a see-through bag, but your kids have buried their iPads at the bottom of the suitcase, you're all getting held up while they dig them out again. So make sure everyone you're travelling with knows what they need to do.

What to do if things go wrong

If your flight is delayed or cancelled, you may be entitled to compensation. If you get stuck at the airport, you're usually entitled to food and drink. If you're stuck overnight, you're entitled to a hotel. If the delay is substantial, you're often entitled to compensation and/or a refund.

The best guide to your rights if your flight is delayed is the one at Money Saving Expert.