After spending the past three years of my life flying back to back weekends for college visits, and now, traveling to and from school all semester, I have learned and acquired some knowledge and tips to survive being a frequent flyer. Although flying isn’t always ideal or fun, here are 25 tips and tricks to make the process a little more manageable and pleasant.
1. Wear your college attire when you fly.
I take so much pride in being able to show off where I attend college whenever I travel. Not only is a huge “Coe College” written on my sweatshirt a great conversation starter, but it also gives me the opportunity to brag about the place I love and call home.
2. Always take the free food, even if you’re not hungry at the time.
Save it for later, you’re bound to be hungry…or bored…later on in your flight.
3. Bring a reusable water bottle.
The only thing worse than flying is being dehydrated while doing so. Just make sure you sit in the aisle seat…
4. Pack snacks.
I never understand why people don’t bring food when they travel. What are you supposed to do with all your free time? Eat, duh. Packing snacks from home also saves time and money when you’re running to your next plane during your layover.
5. Keep frequently used items in your jacket pocket or an easily accessible pocket in your carry-on.
Items such as chapstick, gum, gum wrappers (always keep the gum wrappers so that you have a place to spit out your gum during your flight), and headphones are most likely going to be used for the duration of your air time.
6. Wear sandals.
Security is an easier process when you wear shoes that can easily slip on and off. Or if you’re not a fan of sandals, Crocs are the perfect and most fashionable substitute.
7. Take off jewelry and metal items before getting into the security line.
Instead of rushing to take all of your accessories off in the chaos of security, remove those items from your body beforehand and then put them on later when you are settled and seated at your gate.
8. Don’t feel like you are in a rush through security because of the people behind you.
Just because they may not have timed their day out correctly and are now frantic, doesn’t mean you have to be. Feeling rushed through security adds 10x more unneeded stress to the flying process (unless you are actually running late, then hurry the heck up and get to that plane).
9. Always double check you are at the correct gate.
Even if you went to the gate your ticket and the monitor said to go to, it is better to be safe than sorry. Once you arrive at your specific gate, double check the screen above the gate's flight desk just to be sure.
10. Always have a ponytail on your wrist and deodorant in your carry on.
11. To relieve more stress and time, check into your flight and print out your boarding passes beforehand.
12. Arrive at the airport at least an hour early (and hour and a half if you have bags to check and boarding passes to print).
It is always better to be early rather than late. Plus, if you get to the airport early, you won’t have to run like a maniac to make your flight and instead, can treat yourself to an overpriced airport coffee and magazine (unless you are a broke college student; then just walk by the coffee shop, smell the beans roasting and stand in the magazine shop while illegally looking through all the latest Hollywood gossip while you wait for your flight).
13. Bring your charger in your carry-on and fully charged portable chargers (preferably, more than one).
14. The window seat is the best for sleeping or enjoying a nice view of cotton candy clouds and ant people.
15. The aisle seat is best for stretching your legs and going to the bathroom.
16. The middle seat is best for free cuddles, snoring neighbors, no armrest, and squished legs…avoid the middle seat at all costs.
17. Wear a watch to keep track of time.
No, I don’t mean look at the time on your phone. Wrist watches are easy to quickly check and also add to the “image” of a seasoned flyer. You're welcome.
18. Wear layers.
Airplanes can either be an oven or a freezer, so wear layers of clothing you can take off.
19. Selfies with sleeping neighbors are an absolute must.
20. If you are on a long flight and are sitting in the window seat, don’t drink coffee or soda.
21. Actually, pay attention to the safety information and demonstrations.
I’ll be the first to admit that I do not listen to the safety presentations at the beginning of all my flights. However, you truly never know when you are going to go down, as scary as that sounds, so at least have some idea of what to do in case of an emergency. At the very least, plan what filter you are going to use on Snap Chat when you decide to inform the world of your B-lining plane.
22. Always sit by the cute boy or girl on the flight…always.
23. Sort through and organize your pictures on your phone during your flight.
To make the time pass quicker, and to actually be productive and effective during your free hours of leisure time, go through all of your photos, delete the ones you don’t want, and organize the rest into specific albums on your phone.
