How Not to Have a Terrible International Flight

Can Certain Decisions Make Your International Flight Terrible?

It seems like there are only two things you read about airplane travel. It’s stories about how great business class and lay-flat seats are when you’re flying across an ocean, or it’s how terrible flying is at virtually any other moment. From the delays to the small seats to the inedible food, it’s a wonder anyone ever boards a plane at all these days, right?

Well, even though flying today isn’t always a parade of roses and bliss for every passenger, there are some legitimate choices you can make that can actually make your trip way better or way worse than it might otherwise feel. While you can’t entirely avoid problems like delays, overbooked flights, and bumpy turbulence during the flight, not every flight needs to be wrought with terribleness.

In fact, there are some decisions you can make before you even book your ticket that can make a world of difference when it comes to starting or concluding your vacation on a high note. Are these decisions foolproof for ensuring you have a great flight? Well, no, there isn’t any technique that will always get you a great flight experience.

However, there are some pretty simple things you can do to smooth things over along the way. It’s always a good idea to hope for the best, but you can actually tilt the odds a little in your favor by making some specific decisions as you search for flights and make your reservations. After a few flights, these habits will become routine, and you’ll always get the best possible experience without having to work extra hard for it.

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Choose Your Flight Time Carefully

There are some nice benefits to taking redeye flights, especially if you’re keen on maximizing the amount of time you have for exploring your destination country. If you’re flying halfway across the planet and have some jetlagged days ahead of you, why not take a redeye flight and sleep your way to your destination?

Well, just because you can maximize your time in this way doesn’t mean it’s the best traveling choice for everyone. If taking a redeye flight makes you feel like dog poo, it probably doesn’t matter how many extra hours you get to explore your destination. They won’t be fun hours, and you’ll feel like trash for at least a few days because of your crappy flight.

Rather than trying to force yourself to sleep during a redeye flight when you know, you won’t be able to relax anyway, just book the early morning flight that will have you landing on the other side of the world in the evening. You’ll get to France or Vietnam or South Africa or wherever it is you’re going, and you’ll roll right from the airport to your hotel, keen on a good night’s sleep.

Just spend the time on the airplane reading or watching videos, and don’t worry about all the time you’re “wasting” sitting on an airplane when the sun is up. You could be doing “better things” with your time. It’s much better to feel better when you land at your destination than to feel like trash just to get a dozen extra hours and another guided tour during your vacation.

Buy Your Seat In Advance If It’s That Important To You

We’ve all read the story about the parent who has a child and tries to get some unsuspecting passenger to switch seats because they weren’t seated with their child. Nobody likes to be asked to give up their seat, especially when that person has chosen their seat specifically for its location. I’m one of those people who fight tooth and nail to get an aisle seat, and I’ll always buy my seat in advance to secure an aisle seat.

The only time I leave it to chance is if the flight is three or fewer hours in duration. If it’s any longer than that, I’m going to the bathroom at least four times (I’m already gonna have to go to the toilet like three times on a three hour flight anyway). I must have an aisle seat, and I’ll switch an entire ticket just to get the right seat. It’s that important to me.

If you, too, have a desire to sit in a particular seat, it will always be worth it to pay for your seat in advance. These days, many economy-class tickets don’t come with the option to pick a free seat. You have to opt for premium economy or business class to get a seat included in the fare. But if you’re buying bargain basement back-of-the-plane economy, you might need to cough up a few extra dollars to choose your seat.

If you don’t, and having a specific seat is important to you, do yourself a favor. Go and buy that seat. You’ll be so much happier you did, especially when you’re six hours into your 12-hour flight across the Pacific, and you’re able to rest your head gently to the right because you’re in a window seat and don’t need to worry about balancing yourself in a middle seat.

Just Accept That Airplane Travel Requires Patience and Time

You can reduce a lot of the stress that comes with getting on an airplane and flying across the world by making sure you have plenty of time to do everything. Unless you’re a veteran traveler of a particular route and have absolutely everything about your travel time to the very second, it’s honestly better to leave yourself more time than not enough time to get to the airport and get everything done.

I once had a friend who regularly flew from Los Angeles International Airport to San Francisco, and he could time his arrival at the airport to the minute. The flights were always the same on the same days. He wasn’t stressed because he always did the whole trip the same way every time. I don’t recall him ever missing a flight either.

But unless you’re at that level of comfort on a particular route, just don’t take the risk of messing up all your travel plans because you want to cut things really close. Sure, you might find yourself doomscrolling on your phone for an extra hour at the airport while you wait to depart, but does it really matter as long as you’re on time for your flight?

And the same wisdom can be applied to all the other facets of your travel. Does it take an hour to reach the airport? Don’t leave with 55 minutes to spare. You know it’s gonna take an hour and ten minutes that morning just because you left late and someone got in a fender bender in front of you somewhere and hosed up the traffic. When in doubt, leave early for your flights. It just makes everything so much easier when you’re not rushing for a flight.

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