Apple Airtags can be a great tool for travelers to track their luggage and other important travel gear. I’ve got 10 critical Apple Airtag mistakes often made by travelers.
More and more often, travelers use trackers in luggage and other travel items to keep track of the location of their luggage and other gear while on the go. Based on my personal observation while traveling and that of others, the most used tracker appears to be the Apple Airtag.
Airtags can be used to find luggage at airports when airline information isn’t accurate.
I have personally used Apple Airtags in a variety of travel situations for years and highly recommend them. A typical problem regularly encountered by air travelers is that the announced baggage claim carousel isn’t correct. In Madrid, Spain just a few years ago, upon deplaning, my airline sent me a text message telling me our bags would be at a particular carousel. When we got to the carousel, it was empty and our flight wasn’t listed. I got another text message that the bags were at a different carousel at the other end of baggage claim. As I headed to the new carousel I used the “Find My” app on my iPhone. It said that our bags were in the opposite direction. I reversed my course and within a few minutes found our bags.
As we exited baggage claim to get our ride to the hotel, another text message arrived, finally with the correct carousel. We were leaving by the time other passengers from our flight were arriving.
While I’ve successfully used Apple Airtags for years, I’ve heard from travelers describing problems they’ve had when using them. Here are the top nine mistakes I’ve found for travelers using Apple Airtags.
Don’t stow your AirTag too deep in your checked luggage or it may make it impossible to track.
Stowing Airtags in luggage and other bags:
Too often travelers place their Apple Airtags too deeply within their checked luggage and other bags. That makes it difficult for AirTags to be located. It’s particularly troublesome when the battery inside the Airtag is low in power. Always place Apple Airtags close to the outer cover of your luggage. Often the inside of the sides of your luggage will have pockets in which you can slip in an Airtag. Many pieces of luggage have liners under which you can place an Airtag which will be located just under the inside of your luggage outer covering. When you place your Apple Airtag in those locations, it’s a good idea to hide the Airtag to the extent possible to prevent thieves from quickly finding it.
Unreasonable Expectations:
Travelers that expect regular and instant step-by-step tracking, particularly in areas not frequented regularly by people carrying Apple iPhones, are not going to fulfill their expectations. Airtag location transmission, like any Bluetooth tracker location transmission depends on people being in close proximity to the Airtags to read their location and make it available in Apple’s “Find My” app. Travelers must remember that determining Airtag location depends on Apple’s “Find My” network crowdsourcing.
Never attach an Airtag to the exterior of your luggage as it’s far too vulnerable there to loss or damage.
Airtag exterior attachments:
Too often, I see Apple Airtags hanging from some kind of holder, often soft silicone, attached to the handles of travelers’ luggage. This is a major mistake. It isn’t just that hanging Airtags to the exterior of your luggage make them seriously vulnerable to relatively easy theft, but considering airport baggage systems, having the Airtags on the exterior of your bags can easily cause them to be crushed, cut off or knocked off your luggage. Put your Airtags inside your luggage, close to its exterior, never outside.
Prepare for Airtag battery replacements:
Even if you keep a log of when you replace your air tag batteries, it’s really hard to predict when the batteries will die. When you travel, be sure to take spare Airtag batteries in case one or more of them indicates it needs a battery replacement. Remember that your spare lithium batteries for your Apple Airtags must be packed in your carry-on or personal luggage.
Critical tip:
Apple Airtags and other Bluetooth tracking devices typically require CR 2032 batteries. At least in the U.S., these batteries typically come with a Child Secure bitter coating. Almost all the time, to get the Airtags to work with batteries containing the new Child Secure coating, the coating must be removed from the battery. In order to ensure that you can do so while traveling, bring alcohol sanitizer wipes in your bag and clean off the coating thoroughly.
Third party companies are making compatible “Find My” trackers with highly useful shapes and sizes.
Apple Airtags aren’t the only Apple compatible trackers:
Sometimes the bulk and shape of Apple Airtags are problematic for travelers using them in their checked luggage, carry-on bags, backpacks and other travel bags. Fortunately, it’s possible to purchase flat credit card look-alikes that are actually electronic trackers compatible with the “Find My” app locating Apple Airtags. Personally, I use the Ridge Tracker Card. It’s MFI certified, and has IP 68 water resistance. When I need flat, unobtrusive Airtags, I use the Ridge Tracker Cards. They’re rechargeable and the charge lasts for about six months. They are charged with the same magnetic chargers used to charge iPhones.
Battery replacement or charging:
If I don’t remember exactly when I last replaced the battery in my Apple Airtags and I’m about to depart on a lengthy journey, I replace the batteries in all the air tags that I’ve put in my various travel bags. I also fully charge my rechargeable Ridge Tracker cards prior to leaving on my journey. The moment the “Find My” app alerts me to an Airtag or Ridge Tracker Card with a low battery, I replace the Airtag battery and recharge the Ridge Tracker Card battery.
Additional critical tip:
One place that I’ve used an Airtag that most people should consider, is using one while they travel in a rental car. This can help in multiple scenarios. If a car stolen, the Airtag can help police and your rental car company locate your car even if it doesn’t have a GPS system that can be communicated with by the police or one that is inoperative. If you park your rental car in an unfamiliar location and forget exactly where it’s located, using the “Find My” app, unless the car is parked in a desolate area, “Find My” will lead you directly to your car. In addition, if you find your car missing because it’s been towed, you can use the Airtag you’ve put in the car to help you find it.
Don’t forget to share access to your Airtag location data with at least one of your traveling companions in case your iPhone fails.
Share access to Airtag location data:
Don’t forget to share AirTag access location data with at least one of your traveling partners if any. Your iPhone could be lost, stolen or run out of battery power. If one of those scenarios occurs, by sharing access to your Airtags your traveling partner will be able to help find your Airtagged bags.
Another critical tip:
You can share your Apple Airtag data with many airlines including United, American, Delta and JetBlue. To share the data, open the “Find My” app on an iPhone, then on the Items tab, tap the AirTag of the missing item and choose Share Item Location and give it to the airline.
None of these tips are foolproof, however, they will give you the best possible chance to track your luggage and other items successfully and even keep an eye on your rental car.
(I’m back from a short hiatus. Thanks to those readers who reached out to me concerning the last few weeks of my absence.)
After many years working in corporate America as a chemical engineer, executive and eventually CFO of a multinational manufacturer, Ned founded a tech consulting company and later restarted NSL Photography, his photography business. Before entering the corporate world, Ned worked as a Public Health Engineer for the Philadelphia Department of Public Health. As a well known corporate, travel and wildlife photographer, Ned travels the world writing about travel and photography, as well as running photography workshops, seminars and photowalks. Visit Ned’s Photography Blog and Galleries.
