A flight expert shares 3 ways to avoid crowds, delays, and cancellations this holiday season

• As November approaches, travel chaos is on the minds of those going home for the holidays.
• Flight expert Gilbert Ott shared three tips for avoiding crowds, delays, and cancellations.

Holiday travel typically comes with crowded airports and delayed flights. That's why Insider spoke to expert Gilbert Ott about his top tips for avoiding the chaos this holiday season.

Ott flies more than 200,000 miles a year and has been blogging about flying for the last decade. Ott's blog, called God Save the Points, covers everything from airline news and flight reviews to travel tips and money-saving hacks, such as how to best use credit-card points.

Book an early, direct flight

To avoid delays, Ott's advice is simple — book early, direct flights.

"If it's one of the first flights of the day, most of those planes are parked overnight at that gate. They're not arriving that early and getting cleaned and changed," he said.

Of course, other variables can cause delays, like tech issues, missing crew members, or weather conditions. But earlier in the morning, there's been less time for things to go wrong that could delay strings of flights, according to Ott.

In the same way, direct flights are more reliable than connecting flights because there's less room for error.

"Just ask yourself, 'How can I minimize the screwups?'" he added.

Don't check bags

To avoid a long check-in line and crowds at baggage claim, Ott recommended only bringing carry-on luggage. To minimize your packing list, Ott said it's smart to purchase toiletries at your destination. And if you're visiting family for the holidays, Ott suggested leaving some clothes there so you have less to pack next year.

"I keep clothes at my parent's house so that I can keep it really basic with what I bring," he said

Practice good airport etiquette

No matter how crowded an airport is, you can always do your part to make things run smoother by practicing good airport etiquette, which starts at the TSA security checkpoint, he said.

To keep the line moving as quickly as possible, Ott said you should remove everything you may need to remove at security, from big jackets to the contents of your pockets, before you get there.

"When I go to the airport, I take my belt off before I get there. I have it in my backpack, knowing I'll put it on as soon as I get through PreCheck," Ott told Insider. "So keep the jewels and the watch in your bag. Then when you get to the other side of security where you're not holding people up, you can do the glamour."

Once you get to your gate, Ott said you shouldn't get in the boarding line until your group is called. If you get in line too early, you could cause a delay.

"People don't realize that flights are bound by air-traffic control restrictions. So if you get everybody on board quickly, you can often get released into an earlier slot sequence faster and land early," he said. "But if they have to push people back, those minutes count. Next thing you know, you're waiting for the next available slot to roll through, and that means you land late."

When you're at the airport, Ott said it's important to remember that there's an order of things, and every action against that has consequences.

So if you're standing at the front of the boarding line before it's you're turn, Ott has a message for you: "Stop taking up space. We're all going to the same place."