After dealing with a middle seat, a screaming baby, and a weather delay, you get to your destination—but your luggage doesn’t! It happens to 10,000 people every day, but that doesn’t have to be you.

Step 1: Fly on a weekend

Pick a weekend flight. Because fewer people fly on weekends, baggage handlers aren’t so frazzled and are less likely to make mistakes.

Step 2: Avoid connections

Avoid connections. Having a layover almost doubles the odds your luggage gets lost. And in a tight connection, your bags may not follow you to the plane.

Step 3: Remove old tags

Remove anything that might confuse automatic bag screening machines, like pieces of old luggage tags from previous trips.

Step 4: Personalize your bag

Jazz things up a bit! Put a big ribbon, stickers, or tape on your bag—anything to personalize it. Thousands of people unknowingly walk off with the wrong bag.

Step 5: Check in early

Check in early. Most lost luggage is checked within 30 minutes of takeoff. It also takes longer for a bag to get to the plane than for you to get to the gate.

Step 6: Check the airport code

Ask for the code of the airport you’re flying to, then compare it to the tag they put on your bag. Most lost luggage is incorrectly tagged.