Travel  by air. A necessity for getting from one place to another in a timely fashion. Quite often it is tedious, exhausting and needed. And quite unfortunately, there are so many people that make this vital part of travel an absolute nightmare. So here, I have written some tips on how to fly, knowing that you won’t be that person annoying fellow flyers – that’s something to take pride in!
First off the bat. Carry on luggage. Nothing makes me quite so mad as seeing other flyers with huge carry-on bags! Especially when they push their way through to be sure that they can fit all 5 of their bags in the overhead compartments, leaving little room for the people who follow the rules and remain considerate of other people on the flight to store their bags. So, rule number 1: When organising your carry-on bag (usually you’re allowed 1x carry-on baggage and 1x personal item equalling a total of 10kg) don’t go over the size/weight limit of your carry-on bag. Store your carry-on in the overhead compartment, and keep your personal bag at your feet. Also, don’t push other people’s carry-on in the overheads around, it’s rude, there could be breakables in their bag and you wouldn’t like people handling your bag like that either.
During the flight:
1. Never, EVER take your shoes and socks off! Taking shoes off and leaving socks on is fine, but please, for the love of god, keep your feet covered! And within your space! There is almost nothing as frustrating as having someone’s bare-feet resting on your arm rest.
2. Never wake a fellow flyer up! There are two important things that aren’t certain when travelling. Sleep and food. On every flight I take, after small talk to the people sitting next to me, I tell them that if they need to get up during the flight and I’m asleep to climb over me, and if the food is coming around, wake me up (admittedly, I’m not very good at the latter, but most airlines will put your food aside if you sleep through meal-time). While these requests may seem odd to someone who hasn’t travelled long distances before, it is a completely normal request and frequent flyers really do appreciate an understanding from other travellers.
3. If you are flying with small children, please refrain them from running around the cabin and unnecessary screaming. This point doesn’t really need explaining, just don’t do it.
4. Generally, don’t be rude and inconsiderate of the other people you are sharing the plane with. It’s really that simple.
Finally, when the flight is over, unless you have a quick flight transfer, there is absolutely no need to push and shove to get off the plane. Everyone WILL be getting off, people don’t get left behind!
The above annoyances I’ve listed are the things I find so many people doing way too often! If anyone has any other flying nightmares/pet peeves I’d love to hear them!
Have a good week, happy travelling!