The entire experience of traveling can be hectic and overwhelming. Flying can be stressful, from the early stages of planning your itinerary and packing suitcases to the airport and the flight itself. Even if you are a seasoned flyer, it always feels like you could’ve done something to prepare yourself better for the airport, flight, or trip. If you’re ready to step onto your flight, equipped with all the tips to make your travel easier, fasten your seatbelt and get ready for takeoff.
The Best Times to Fly to Avoid Turbulence
There are certain days and times that are better to fly on than other flights for a few reasons. If you are sensitive to airplane turbulence, morning flights would be better for you. As weird as it may sound, this is because morning flights mean it’s not as hot out. Heating from below creates unstable conditions like storms, winds, and bumpy flying, which directly leads to high turbulence. Best to only book during the morning then.
If you’re looking for cheaper flight fares, then it’s best to look for flights on certain days. International flights are usually cheapest on weekdays versus the weekend.
Middle Seats Are the Worst
Most of us know that amazing feeling of getting on a plane and finding out there’s no one sitting next to us. But it usually feels like we must leave this miracle up to chance, and we sit there impatiently while everyone boards, hoping for the best but expecting the worst. Fear not – we have a little hack that’ll increase your odds of having an extra seat next to you.
The catch is that you need to fly with a plus one to get this trick done. While most of us pick seats directly next to our traveling companion, this is a mistake. One of you should always book the window seat and the other the aisle seat of the same row. That decreases the odds of someone sitting between you since no one likes the middle seat. And if things don’t work out, you can just swap with the middle guy and still get to sit next to each other.
The Truth About Airplane Blankets
Many of us have become hyper-aware of germs in recent years. But we still want to fly comfortably. But there’s one flight comfort you should forego if you’re not looking to get sick during the trip (and who is?). Here’s our protip: skip out on that blanket flight attendants offer passengers at the beginning of the ride. To put it mildly, those aren’t guaranteed to be the cleanest pieces of cloth you’ve touched.
Instead, bring a warm sweater, wear long pants, and wear socks or bring a pair in your handbag. If you have space in your carry-on or backpack, you can also just pack your own blanket. There are some thin but effective ones out there made specifically for those of us on-the-go with limited space.
Never Ask the Flight Attendant for Ice
On every flight, there is a point when flight attendants walk around and take everyone’s drink order. When you’re thirsty, a glass of nice ice-cold refreshing water sounds like the perfect choice, right? Well, think again. Flight attendants revealed some industry secrets and said there’s a reason why they wouldn’t order any drink with ice themselves. Apparently, the ice is made from the plane’s water tank that is hardly ever cleaned.
It’s probably best to take their advice since they’re the experts there. Next time you’re asked for your drink order, opt for a drink with no ice.