One of the biggest hassles that can come with traveling is losing your luggage. This is particularly aggravating if you have items essential to your trip that cannot be easily replaced at your destination. Follow these tips to help you avoid the frustration of dealing with missing bags and suitcases.

Labels Are Your Friend

One of the simplest things that you can do to make your luggage easier to find is to label it very clearly. Use a stick-on label featuring your vital information, and also include a tag to hang from one of the zippers. It’s also smart to slip a business card into your suitcase so that you have identification on the inside as well. If there are any old luggage tags from previous flights, remove them to minimize the risk of a mix-up. The more clearly your luggage is marked, the easier it will be to retrieve.

Document Your Luggage in Case of Loss

Take a picture or two of your luggage so that if you have trouble finding it, you can show the photo to the baggage claim attendant. Having distinctive baggage is also very helpful. This can make locating your lost luggage much easier. It’s also a good idea to make up a list of the items that are in your bags so that you can share that with the attendant as well. Additionally, in the unfortunate event that your bags are stolen, this will help you remember what exactly is missing.

Carry Essentials With You

While there are sometimes larger items that can’t be included in carry-ons, you can make your life a lot easier if you take most essential items right on board with you. This particularly applies to prescription medication, eyeglasses, credit cards and other things that you will need on a daily basis. You can also avoid heavy losses by traveling as light as possible.

Get Travel Insurance

One of the advantages to buying travel insurance is that you can get reimbursed for your luggage and its contents if it goes missing. The extra expense is often a good investment, especially if you have a lot of valuable items among your things. If your actual luggage never does turn up, don’t be afraid to insist that the airline refund your baggage fees.

Avoid Short Layovers

If you can, book direct flights so that there is less opportunity for your luggage to get lost in the shuffle. If you must have a layover, however, make sure that it’s long enough to give your bags time to move forward to your next destination. It’s also a good idea to arrive nice and early to check your bags. That way, if there are any complications, it won’t cause a problem with your flight.

These are just a few things that you can do to minimize the risk of losing your luggage and lessen your stress if it does disappear. With a little preparation, you can give yourself a much less stressful travel experience.