Research by London Luton Airport (LLA) reveals that the storyline of the UK's favourite festive film (27%) Home Alone may not be as far-fetched as previously thought.

Ahead of LLA’s busy festive season when 800,000 passengers will be welcomed through its doors, the stats reveal over a quarter (27%) have done a ‘McAllister’ and had to dash through the airport to their gate. 

Nearly a fifth (18%) have been late for the airport and 13% admit to sleeping through their alarm or hitting the snooze button.

And despite over three quarters of those surveyed (78%) making a list and checking it twice ahead of their trip, half (51%) have still managed to leave an essential item at home - with 3% even admitting to (temporarily) leaving someone behind accidentally.

Nearly one in five travellers (18%) admit that they are likely to forget or misplace an essential item whilst travelling during the festive season, with 30% of those surveyed revealing they have even lost something whilst at the airport. 

Items most frequently left behind include travel adaptors (15%), sunglasses (14%) and toiletries (11%) - as well as Christmas presents (16%), seasonal snacks (14%) and Christmas cards (14%) during the festive season.

In response to the data, LLA has recreated some iconic scenes from Home Alone to remind passengers to plan, pack - and set that all-important alarm - in advance to make their airport experience as smooth and simple as possible and ensure nothing (or no-one!) is left behind.

The film sees Kevin McCallister lookalike Tyler Stringer playfully make his way through the airport, getting a shock at duty free after applying aftershave on his face, dancing with mannequins in the airport’s retail stores and teasing a member of the Aelia duty free team with a fake tarantula.

As London’s simplest, friendliest airport, LLA is offering a limited number of wake up calls for sleepy travellers, alongside free (often forgotten) travel essentials, available from airport information desks for a limited period in December*. 

Forgetful flyers will be able to pick up complimentary items, whilst stocks last, including toothbrushes and combs, as well as sleep masks and wireless phone chargers. 

Clare Armstrong, Head of Guest Experience at London Luton Airport said: “Following our busiest ever November, everyone at London Luton Airport is ready for an exciting festive period. This is always a special time of year for everyone at the airport, as we welcome so many people who are heading off to spend time with loved ones or in search of sunnier climes. Of course, Christmas comes with additional pressures – and additional items to remember – meaning travellers are more likely to forget things. We hope our campaign will offer a simple and friendly reminder to passengers about how to plan ahead, what to pack and, of course, to set that all-important early morning alarm. Should anyone travelling from LLA manage to forget any key travel items, our award-winning guest experience team will be on hand to help with some travel essentials and ensure a simple and friendly passenger experience for all over Christmas and the new year.”

London Luton Airport has pulled together some top festive travel tips to help journeys go as simply and smoothly as possible:

- Festive favourites - Nearly one in four (39%) travellers didn’t know that several popular Christmas items are not allowed in hand luggage, with jams and chutneys (16%) and snow globes (13%) - classed as liquids - among the items that should be packed in your hold luggage. If you are bringing presents, please don't wrap them in advance because airport security staff might have to unwrap them for you to check what's inside.
- A list-mas miracle - With 44% of flyers admitting that they are more likely to forget something because there is more to remember when travelling during the festive period, write that all important checklist in advance to ensure your key travel documents, confirmations, medication and gifts are ready to go.
- Silent night - One in five (22%) admit that lack of sleep plays a big part in forgetfulness before travelling abroad, so try to get seven hours of sleep before flying so you are wide eyed and feeling fresh ahead of your trip.
- Present panic - With 16% admitting they have accidentally forgotten to pack Christmas presents before flying, the unthinkable could happen to you too. Do not panic! With over 40 shops and restaurants at LLA you can pick up any last-minute gifts or festive treats to save your holiday. 
- Ho Ho Go! - So you can breeze through airport security and commence your festivities, book a slot with LLA’s Prebook Security, which is currently available between peak times, 3am - 3pm, and can be pre-booked up to an hour before you arrive at security. 

LLA will provide a limited number of travel essentials items that will be available to passengers w/c 23rd December at the airport’s landside information desk.

-ENDS-

Notes to Editors:

*Passenger numbers cover 20th December – 6th January

**Survey of 2,000 nationally representative British adults who travel by plane, carried out by OnePoll between 9th – 11th December 2024

**Survey of 2,000 nationally representative British adults who travel by plane, carried out by OnePoll between 13th – 16th December 2024

***Top 10 most forgotten items:
1.    Travel adaptor (15%)
2.    Sunglasses (14%)
3.    Suncream (12%)
4.    Toiletries (11%)
5.    Charging device (11%)
6.    Plane snacks (10%)
7.    Weather appropriate clothing (6%)
8.    Medications (6%)
9.    Luggage locks (5%)
10.    Printed boarding passes (4%)

****Prebook Security is currently available for those arriving at security between peak times, 3am and 3pm, more information here.

About London Luton Airport

London Luton Airport (LLA) is one of the UK’s busiest airports, carrying over 16.2 million passengers in 2023. The airport is operated by a consortium, of which the majority shareholder is AENA, the world’s largest airport operator, and InfraBridge, a leading infrastructure investment manager. Airlines include easyJet, Wizz Air, Ryanair, Tui, FlyOne, Sun Express and El Al.

The Luton Airport Express is a new dedicated train service that allows passengers to travel from central London to the LLA terminal in around 30 minutes. The Luton Airport Express runs from St Pancras International to Luton Airport Parkway station and connects seamlessly with the DART, an electrically powered people mover that connects to the airport terminal in less than four minutes.

In 2024, LLA was named European Airport of the Year (10-25 million passengers) by ACI EUROPE. 

Last year, LLA also became only the third major UK airport to achieve Level 4 of the globally recognised Airport Carbon Accreditation scheme, demonstrating that it is ‘transforming its operations to achieve carbon reductions in line with global climate goals’. With a maximum score of 100 and a five-star rating, LLA has been ranked as a sector leader for three consecutive years in the Global Real Estate Sustainability Benchmark (GRESB) benchmark of sustainability governance management and performance of major infrastructure assets worldwide.

To learn about the progress London Luton Airport is making across its sustainability programme please click here.

Further information on London Luton Airport can be found here: https://www.london-luton.co.uk/

Contact Details:

London Luton Airport Press Office
T: 01582 395333
E: pressoffice@ltn.aero

London Luton Airport – PR agency:
E: LLA@tinmancomms.com

URL: https://mediahub.london-luton.co.uk/news/19122024/avoid-doing-a-mccallister-this-christmas-at-lla