Airtags Use on Trips.

Many use it, some abuse it (tracking women or vehicles worth stealing), and many don't. They have been proven to work, so your decisions. I think you need to all have the same phone type, however. I may be wrong, but don't think Airtags work for Android. Also, in some cases you can see your bag, but still can't get to it if the airport can't also locate it (as some poor guy found put over Christmas. All his kids' presents were sitting in the Montreal Airport for weeks despite him driving there, showing where it was, and getting no where with officials until he contacted local news). Others reported similar during the luggage mayhem in Europe last summer.
I am old school and will stick what has worked for me in the past.

We have them and they are great for letting you know that your stuff is actually on the plane, a definite sense of relief. They also told me every time I left the hotel room that my suitcases were left behind; so yes they work for all your reasons listed above and I would recommend them.

Douglas there have been a ton of threads on the Forum about AirTags.

Here's one

https://community.ricksteves.com/travel-forum/tech-tips/airtags-in-your-bags-they-work

I keep one in my luggage and one in my purse/day bag and they are great! Last year when I went to Germany, coming back we had a short connection and I was worried about my luggage getting on. And unfortunately, the bag tracking app on Delta was not working. However, I was able to confirm using the Find My app and the Airtag that my luggage was on board.

I've also used it when parking in a large lot - I just take the one out of my purse and leave it in the glove compartment, which makes it easy to find. And a friend of mine bought one and inserted it in a dog collar (she got the collar on Amazon) for her dog, who gets out frequently. She said it's so easy to find him now.

FWIW, the issue Maria described has been fixed by Apple, and I do think it is rare regardless. I find them very helpful, not just when traveling but at home.

I use them, along with having other devices linked to my appleID for tracking. (Phone, iPad, AirPods)

Of course, it doesn't prevent things from getting lost, but there is peace of mind knowing where things are. I have used them to see if luggage is loaded or unloaded. I've never lost/left behind my day bag, but I have an Airtag in there, just in case. Some people use them in wallets or on key chains.

The FindMY app lets you not only see their location but also play a sound on the AirTag. I have the app set to notify me when I've left some trackable things behind (backpack, airpods, iPad)—it triggers about a block from my house, or a similar distance when traveling.

I've never used them to track a person. For that, I've used location sharing embedded in iMessage or WhatsApp.

Mardee, glad to know the fixed the A Droid compatability. Not all of us are Apple users🙂 But I don't think they can fix uncooperative staff. The point I was trying to make is that they don't solve all circumstances, and in my opinion, shouldn't replace learning travel smarts (and how to read a map).

Tile works for Android, I believe.

douglas, I've used them. As long as you understand how they work and their limitations. The AirTag has to be within bluetooth range of another active Apple device to keep status up to date. So it will tell you the last location it was near an Apple device, which may not be where it is currently, if nobody with a iPhone has been nearby in a while.

I would definitely use it for small children.

We use them also. Considering how inexpensive they are compared to other electronics, we think they are a bargain.

Yes. I used them on two trips last summer and plan to use them again for my two trips coming up. One in suitcase, one in personal item (backpack) and one in my purse. Useful for all the reasons you listed. I think they are well worth the price.

We also use them, for our bags. We do carry-on, but sometimes they get gate checked, so it's nice to have a back-up for locating the bags. And if you are doing a non-RS tour, there is a lot of bag transfer going on that you, personally, are not doing. We had friends last summer who returned from Greece through Toronto and it was a nightmare of lost bags...they were able to show the baggage claim people that their bag was sitting on the tarmac, using the Airtag info.

While flying domestic US last week, I saw the United tarmac luggage personnel scanning each bag as it came up or down the belt. And my United app (logged in) told me where my bag was. Do they ever make a mistake? Of course. But putting an air tag in a bag, and assuming it will go near an Apple machine to report its location seems just as speculative.

Do you pay for a home burglar alarm system, even in a fully-developed, high-income suburb? Do you lock your car in the driveway? Do you leave your purse in the car while at the gym? Have you noticed that your car advertises that it is unlocked, by not retracting the mirrors?

Maria, sorry for the misunderstanding. They still cannot be used by Android phones (and probably never will, since it's a proprietary item made by Apple). But Tile is similar and can be used by Android users. I was talking about the ability to palm one off on someone and then stalk them. https://www.apple.com/newsroom/2022/02/an-update-on-airtag-and-unwanted-tracking/

Tim, I'm not sure why you would say it's speculative when people all over the world are using Airtags successfully. I've never NOT been able to track the devices, even in the rural area I live in. I'm sure there are occasional happenings where the signal can't be picked up, but I imagine they are few and far between.

Thanks for the info.
I am more interested in the alert if someone misplaced a day bag than anything else. I would be nice to get an alert if you get too far away from it.

But the secondary benefits are interesting

And a question back to one of the posters…. Do you pay for house insurance?

Yes, you do get an alert that something was left behind. You can name the tags; I have mine named as luggage and purse and use them in those items. Last year, my luggage was at my sons home and every time I left his apartment, it told me I forgot my luggage via my apple watch.

You can also turn off the alerts if you want; I just chose to leave them on.

I use them for travel and they work well for me. I have also used them when shipping items with UPS. I had the family silver shipped home and put the air tag in the box and I could track it the entire time.

Embarrassingly, I lost mine in my house. Only later did I discover that you can have it make a sound. That would have made it really easy to find! I don’t think tiles have that feature, do they?

One thing I use my Airtag for is for physical keys for lodging. I use AirBnBs and sometimes they give me a physical key instead of a punch code to get into the door. So I put my Airtag on the key using a Belkin Airtag keychain holder. This way if I lose it, I have a much better chance of finding it.