ALL travellers know what it’s like to experience the scrum once your gate has opened, or what it’s like to board a plane — only to realise you’re seated next to a dreaded armrest hog.
Here’s the Skyscanner guide to handling those less-than-desirable travel dilemmas.
When boarding:
1. Board when called forward
They call forward seats in groups first for a reason — it avoids a scramble to get through the gate. If your seat hasn’t been called, sit back, relax and dip back into your book. You know it’ll take a minimum of 15 minutes to board the families with children first anyway ... Or are you the one travelling with the kids?
2. Be prepared
Everyone boarding the flight knows that they will need to access their passport and boarding pass at some point during the boarding process, whether it’s at check-in or at the gate. There’s no excuse for fumbling around and wasting others’ time, especially when you’re at the front of the queue. This is why people carry travel wallets!
On the plane:
3. Have patience
Some travellers will always take a bag that doesn’t quite fit into the overhead compartment (and they will delight in taking the extra five minutes to play luggage Tetris while everyone else waits).
There’s no getting around this: smile politely, and offer to help if they’re struggling. If you’re the person that takes that oversized bag, consider buying a new one, or use the space under the seat in front of you.
4. The middle seat gets the armrests
There’s no advantage to having the middle seat — you don’t get the sky views of the window seat, and you don’t get the easy access of the aisle seat either. So let these unlucky folks have the armrests for that time.
But know your boundaries, and don’t wander over to their side of the seat.
5. Talk to your neighbours
You will probably be seated next to these people for a while, and a little interaction makes the journey much more pleasant. On that note, if you’re not in the mood for talking, pop on your earphones (you don’t have to listen to anything, but these act as a social “quiet time” signal).
6. Ask before you recline
No one enjoys being stuck in a confined space for any amount of time, and it becomes much more unpleasant when you take away even more of the seat space. Your seat should never be reclined during a food or drinks service either.
If you do fancy napping, ask your neighbour if they would mind first — they will be much more likely to say yes, especially if you followed our tip #5 too.
7. Respect personal space
This is a public space, albeit a small one. If you’d like to stretch, don’t invade on a fellow passenger’s space — head to the front of the aircraft and walk it out.
Leave personal hygiene regimes in the bathroom, and if you do like listening to music make sure you’re the only one that can hear it.
Everyone has their own way of relaxing during travel time: just don’t let your way effect someone else’s.
On the ground …
8. Walk in the ‘fast’ lane
This is the unspoken rule of public transport, but it also applies on airport escalators and walkways. Observe the signs in the airport and see whether you’re in the right ‘lane’ or not. Likewise, your suitcase can’t walk; so make sure that’s on the same side as you.
And always …
9. Get things wrong
It’s natural to get things wrong when you’re travelling, but what matters is how you handle it. Apologise, and try to reconcile the situation, whether there’s a language barrier or not. You can avoid some situations with research, but for the rest — let it go. Even the most well-travelled globetrotters get it wrong sometimes — and the best know how to handle it.
And please, mind your feet!
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