Tourists descended on an ancient town in Thailand this week after UNESCO named it a world heritage site, prompting officials to consider banning visitors from climbing the 1,500-year-old ruins.
12.09.2023 - 09:43 / insider.com
Have you ever made awkward eye contact with someone in a blue vest in front of the Clear line? Maybe you mistakenly entered the line and even signed up.
That's what happened to me and my husband. When we found ourselves in the wrong line years ago, a Clear employee (or ambassador, as they're called) offered us the chance to sign up for a free trial of Clear Plus, and we decided it was worth a try.
At that time, neither of us had ever heard about Clear or how it differed from TSA PreCheck. The ambassador was upbeat and friendly, walking us through the speedy process of signing up, scanning our irises, and collecting our fingerprints.
I inquired about the airports that offer Clear services, and he rattled off what seemed like every major city in the United States.
Clear Plus is an expedited security check available at 51 airports across the United States. Additionally, this service is at several stadiums in the US, allowing Clear members to bypass the identification lines and proceed straight to the front of the line.
Members can also bring one adult guest through the stadium line or children under 18 years old for free. For $189 per year, roughly $15 per month, you can breeze through lines in just a few minutes.
While some think Clear is similar to TSA PreCheck, it's not exactly the same.
TSA PreCheck operates as a security checkpoint that confirms your identity and conducts a background check beforehand. If you have TSA PreCheck, you will speed through security in a shortened line and don't need to take shoes off or take electronics out of your bag.
But Clear functions as an identification service, and, unlike TSA PreCheck, there is no background check required for a Clear Plus membership. Rather than using physical identification like a passport or ID, Clear uses biometric data — your eyes or fingerprints — to confirm your identity.
Travelers with Clear must still pass through the TSA security checkpoint. After arriving at an airport or stadium, you use the Clear kiosks to scan your boarding pass and eyes or fingerprints. An ambassador will then escort you to the front of the security line once the check finishes.
If you have Clear but don't have TSA PreCheck, you'll only move to the front of the regular TSA line. This detail holds significance because, while many think PreCheck comes with Clear, if you don't have both, you'll find yourself taking off your shoes and pulling out your liquids before going through security.
Still, many people find the privilege to jump to the front of the line to be valuable at busy times.
To apply for a Clear Plus membership, you can either sign up online or enroll at a kiosk. If you sign up online, you'll need to visit one of their kiosks anyway to complete the
Tourists descended on an ancient town in Thailand this week after UNESCO named it a world heritage site, prompting officials to consider banning visitors from climbing the 1,500-year-old ruins.
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