A self-service kiosk at the airport is a standalone terminal where you check in yourself, with no queue at the desk. The whole process takes about two minutes: enter your booking code or scan your passport, choose a seat, and the kiosk prints your boarding pass. This guide walks you through using a kiosk step by step — and when the traditional desk is still the better choice.
🖥️ How a kiosk works
- Pick a language on the screen — most offer English and often several others
- Identify yourself: booking code (6 characters), ticket number, a passport scan, or the QR code from the airline app
- Choose or change your seat on the cabin map — free with some airlines, paid with others
- Print your boarding pass and, if you have a bag, the bag tag too
🧭 Step by step
- 1. Find a kiosk with your airline's logo — usually right beside the check-in desks
- 2. Tap the screen and choose "Check-in"
- 3. Enter your booking code or scan your passport
- 4. Confirm the flight and passengers, pick a seat
- 5. Print the boarding pass and the bag tag
- 6. Attach the tag yourself and drop the bag at the bag drop desk
Even if you completed online check-in in advance, a kiosk is still handy for printing a paper boarding pass — which is mandatory in some countries or with some airlines.
🧳 Kiosks and bag drop
Along with the boarding pass, the kiosk prints a self bag tag. Loop the tag around the suitcase handle with the barcode facing out, then leave the bag at the designated bag drop desk or automated belt. This is far faster than checking in separately at a staffed desk.
If you travel with hand luggage only, you can walk straight from the kiosk to security — no bag desk needed at all.
⚠️ When a kiosk won't work
- International flights where visa or border documents must be checked — you're often sent to a desk
- Group bookings or complex multi-leg itineraries
- Travelling with a child, a pet, or special baggage (sports equipment)
- If there's a problem with the booking or the ticket isn't confirmed yet
If the kiosk "can't read" your passport, don't try five times — go to the desk. Often the issue is a visa or validity check that only an agent can resolve.
🛫 How it works at Georgia's airports
At Tbilisi and Kutaisi airports, kiosks mainly serve low-cost carriers (Wizz Air, Ryanair) — for terminal layouts and the passenger flow, see the Tbilisi airport guide and the Kutaisi airport guide.
First-time flyers should arrive early and try the kiosk calmly — the whole logic of the journey is covered in the first-time flyer guide.
A self-service kiosk saves time and skips the queue — just keep your booking code and passport handy. For more on the pass itself, see the boarding pass explained guide, and find a cheap ticket in the Travel365 flight search.
Tags
