Smart Way Trave and Tour

Wouldn’t you just hate it if you were flying to another city and just wanted to relax for a couple of hours in your flight but your co-passenger, sitting next to you, has been constantly moving and elbowing you every time you are almost about to doze off? Or may be the screams of the kids playing in the aisle woke you up? Annoying… isn’t it? Some people absolutely have no idea of what airplane etiquette are. Flying with the best customer service for a memorable experience deserves some respect from you too. Don’t you think, it is wise to make the mid-air journey comfortable for the flight attendants and your fellow passengers? You may have been indulging in behavior that just cannot be classified as sophisticated. Testing everyone’s patience in the flight can absolutely be a deal-breaker and might get you into trouble if things get out of hand. Avoid the humiliation by following these airplane etiquette tips.

Etiquette On Airplanes

Reclining Seats: We all want to get comfy when the flight takes off. Avoid inconvenience to the passenger seated in front of you or behind you by reclining your seat a little too much. You will consume the leg space of the passenger behind you and you will intrude the space of the passenger seated in the front by spreading your legs under their seat, so much that your feet just bumped into theirs! It is advisable that you recline only half the capability of the seat to recline.

Elbow Room: I am sure all of us have at least once been seated next to someone who has rudely elbowed you for some arm space. Make sure you are not occupying theirs. There is one arm rest to be shared between two seats. You can do without it. But if you are using it, make sure your elbow does not touch the next passenger’s body. Ideally, your arm should occupy half the vertical length of the arm rest without crossing it.

Need a Shoulder?: Once I was traveling alone and this old gentleman seated next to me fell off to sleep. Halfway through the journey, his head slipped off onto my shoulder while he was sleeping. I was tortured for 15 minutes wondering if I should wake him up from his sleep or just push him away. When you are sleeping, have control over your body. You are not on your bed and you are traveling with a complete stranger.

Screaming Kids: Ugghhh…. Why don’t parents just put a duct tape to shut up their children? Okay, I am not serious about that but it would be nice if they taught their children to behave well while at public places, especially when traveling in an already congested aircraft. Kids will play understandably. However, children keeping everyone awake throughout the journey is absolutely rude. You won’t be seen as a good parent. Let us all pledge to our children!

Angry Parents: Many parents try to cover up the embarrassment by shouting at their kids to keep quiet and sit down. This is even worse. First, you don’t teach your children how to behave on an airplane and then you pretend to be a good parent by publicly humiliating them. Such parents are often heard screaming and lecturing their kids about good manners. Please, do it at home. Airplanes are just not the place for you.

Newspapers: Yes, newspapers can be a hassle too. No, not to you but your co-passengers. Imagine, you come and sit with a newspaper stretched on both sides. I get it, you have to increase the gray matter. But, for God’s sake, save them to read while you wait to board your flights, not in the aircraft itself! While reading a newspaper, you tend to spread your arms to accommodate the newspaper’s width, thereby, occupying your next passengers’ seats.

Talk Too Much: Then there are those passengers who just do not stop talking. They may be traveling with someone or alone. If they are alone and seated next to you, they will make your ears their new friends. Such people talk about anything and everything under the sun and unflinchingly share their family life details with you even if you are not interested. Are you one of those people? Refrain from talking to another passenger unless they show interest and you don’t mind.

Frequent Trips to the Bathroom: If you drink a lot of fluids, especially on board to keep yourself hydrated on a long journey or generally make frequent trips to the bathroom, ask for an aisle seat instead of a window seat while taking your boarding pass. Else, you would be troubling those seated around you every time you get up to use the restrooms.

You Blast Music: This is a huge faux pas! If you like to listen to music, keep it on low else it will be audible to everyone on board in the quiet flight. Nothing is more frustrating than rock music, that does not even belong to your iPod, reaching your ears like a little mosquito humming it.

Looking Out: The sky is absolutely wonderful when you are thousands of feet above the ground. But, if you are one of those who absolutely cannot do without staring out of the window, please request for a window seat before boarding the plane. It is absolutely annoying to have someone leaning over you to watch the sun in the flight.

Eyeing Another’s Journal: This happens to me all the time. When I am reading an article about how to make your guy happy or save big this month, I generally catch another passenger eyeing my copy of the magazine and reading the article secretly over my shoulder. It is very embarrassing, for both the people. I don’t want you to know what’s going on in my life and I am sure you don’t want to be the person who cannot afford a magazine to read.

Being an ex-frequent flyer, I could literally go on and on about some really disturbing etiquette of people ranging from taking off your shoes for the entire flight to smell the bad odor emitting off your feet, knocking down everyone while carrying your luggage into the flight, throwing garbage around and of course the fussy people who travel in economy but act like they belong to the business class. I hate the tantrums. Well, okay sometimes I throw them too for bad service. You caught me. But let’s practice flying comfortable to survive a long haul flight without causing any problems of inconvenience to others around.