По прилёте в другой город я всегда сначала проверяю, есть ли сообщение от родных.

По прилёте means upon arrival or after arriving.

This is a common Russian pattern:

• по + noun
• used with events such as по приезде, по прибытии, по окончании

So:

• по прилёте в другой город = upon arriving in another city

Compared with после прилёта:

• по прилёте sounds a bit more fixed, compact, and slightly more formal/bookish
• после прилёта is also correct and often feels more neutral in everyday speech

So both are possible, but по прилёте is a very natural written-style choice.

Yes. Прилёт is connected with flying.

• прилёт = arrival by air / landing / arrival of a flight
• приезд = arrival by transport in general, often by train, car, etc.
• прибытие = arrival, more general and often more formal

So this sentence suggests the speaker has flown to another city.

If you wanted a more general idea of arriving, you could say:

• По приезде в другой город...
• По прибытии в другой город...

Because в другой город shows direction/destination.

Compare:

• в другой город = to another city
• в другом городе = in another city

Even though the sentence is about arrival, Russian still keeps the idea of motion/destination after прилёт:

• прилёт в город = arrival to a city

So:

• по прилёте в другой город = upon arriving in another city / upon arrival to another city

Because Russian often uses the present tense to describe a habitual action.

Here the speaker is talking about something they do regularly:

• я всегда сначала проверяю = I always first check

So the meaning is not I am checking right now, but this is my usual routine.

Also, проверяю is imperfective, which fits repeated/habitual actions well.

If this were about one future occasion, you might see:

• По прилёте в другой город я сначала проверю...
• When I arrive in another city, I’ll first check...

Yes, it could be omitted.

Russian often drops subject pronouns when the verb already makes the person clear:

• По прилёте в другой город всегда сначала проверяю...

That is grammatically possible.

But я is still very natural here because it:

• makes the sentence clearer
• gives a nice rhythm
• slightly emphasizes the speaker’s personal habit

So including я sounds perfectly normal.

Сначала means first, at first, or first of all.

In this sentence:

• я всегда сначала проверяю = I always check first

It tells you this is the speaker’s first action after arriving.

Word order in Russian is flexible, so you could move it for emphasis:

• Я всегда сначала проверяю...
• Я сначала всегда проверяю... (less neutral)
• Сначала я всегда проверяю...

The version in the sentence is very natural.

Есть ли introduces an indirect yes/no question.

Here:

• проверяю, есть ли сообщение = I check whether there is a message

Important points:

• ли means whether / if
• it is used in indirect questions
• it is not the same as если, which means if in the sense of on the condition that

So:

• есть ли сообщение = whether there is a message
• если есть сообщение = if there is a message (conditional)

That is a very important difference.

The singular сообщение is natural here because it means something like:

• whether there is any message
• whether a message has come

Russian often uses the singular in this kind of general, non-specific statement.

It does not necessarily mean exactly one message in a strict mathematical sense. It just focuses on the existence of a message from family.

If the speaker wanted to emphasize multiple messages, they could say:

• есть ли сообщения от родных

But the singular is completely normal and idiomatic.

От родных means from one’s relatives / from loved ones / from family.

The word родные literally comes from the idea of people who are one’s own, close, related. Depending on context, it can mean:

• relatives
• family members
• loved ones / close people

So in this sentence, от родных most naturally means:

• from my family
• from my relatives
• from my loved ones back home

It is a warm, personal word.

Because the preposition от requires the genitive case.

Base form:

• родные = relatives / loved ones

After от:

• от родных = from relatives / from loved ones

This is the normal case pattern:

• письмо от друга = a letter from a friend
• звонок от мамы = a call from mom
• сообщение от родных = a message from family/relatives

Because that part is a subordinate clause.

Main clause:

• я всегда сначала проверяю = I always first check

Subordinate clause:

• есть ли сообщение от родных = whether there is a message from my relatives

Russian separates this kind of clause with a comma, just as English often does with whether-clauses:

• I check whether there is a message.

So the comma is required.

Yes. The original sentence is natural, but there are more conversational alternatives.

For example:

• Когда я прилетаю в другой город, я всегда сначала проверяю, есть ли сообщение от родных.
• После прилёта в другой город я всегда сначала проверяю, есть ли сообщение от родных.

These feel a bit more straightforward in everyday speech.

The original version with по прилёте is still correct and natural, just slightly more compact and a little more polished in style.