Plane Hacks to Make Your Flight More Comfortable

If you’ve used our Reward Flight Finder (RFF) to discover the best deal for your Avios, chances are you’ll want to continue being a savvy traveller up to and after take off. Use our tips below to help make your journey that bit more comfortable.

Seat Wisdom

Reduce turbulence

Once you’ve decided on the best deal for your Avios using our Reward Flight Finder (RFF), you’ll want to start considering your seat. If turbulence makes you sick, or anxious, opt for a spot nearer the wings, as this is where the plane is more stable. 

Avoid the middle seat 

The aisle gives you elbow room and an easy exit to the loo. The window gives you a view and an extra headrest. The middle seat is no one’s favourite. If your flight’s pretty full and you’re lumbered with a middle, set an alert on the Expertflyer.com website or app.

It will let you know if someone switches seat or flight and an aisle or window becomes available. If, on the other hand, there’s a good choice of seats, you can still avoid sitting near the loos, or the bulkhead (where babies in cots are stationed) by checking out your plane’s configuration on SeatGuru.com

Gamble on an extra seat 

Our Reward Flight Finder (RFF) might have helped you bag the right flight but we know a spare seat beside you is the next Holy Grail. If you’re travelling as a pair and book the aisle and window seats in a row of three you have a better chance of the middle seat remaining free if the flight isn’t full. This is because solo flyers naturally try to avoid the less popular middle seat. 

Carry on baggage...

Bring your own headphones

Screaming babies, passengers sharing their life stories, we’ve all been there... avoid the flight from hell by investing in a good pair of noise-cancelling headphones to use while reading or watching movies and some decent earplugs to help you sleep. An upgrade on the airline-supplied versions can make all the difference. 

Create your own kit 

When you’re not upgrading to Club World on your BA reward flights you can still pamper yourself with your own business class amenity kit to give yourself a lift. BA’s The White Company kit includes lip balm, moisturiser, a soft eye mask and relaxing pulse point oil. In addition, we recommend adding face wipes, toothpaste and toothbrush, deodorant and moisturiser.

A change of underwear will also help you feel fresher after a long-haul flight. A lighter outfit is worth considering if you’ll be arriving in a hotter climate and will prove particularly handy in the rare event that you end up waiting for lost luggage. 

Plan boredom busters

Though you’ll have an extensive inflight entertainment system if your BA reward flights are long-haul, you may still want to mix things up a little.

Download shows you know you love that will keep you engrossed. You’ll also want some reading matter for when devices must be stowed for take-off and landing. If you’re travelling with someone, a pack of cards is another way to break up your binge-watching.  

Pack snacks 

The meal service on flights has to work around take-off and landing. You’ll also be thrown off your usual meal times when you travel across time zones.

Packing snacks will help you to keep hunger at bay. Just remember that to take into account allergies, most flights are now strictly nut-free. You may also want to avoid anything too salty as your hydration suffers in cabin air. 

At the airport...

Bust the queue

Turning left is not only for when you have upgraded to business class. It can also give you an advantage at an airport. Because most people are right-handed they tend to veer in this direction, so, when faced with a choice at security, head left and you should find shorter queues.

And if our Reward Flight Finder (RFF) has helped you bag a trip to Florida, it’s good to remember the same applies to theme parks. Head left from the gate at the start of the day and you should find it less crowded.

Freeze your drink

When is a drink not a liquid? When it’s frozen, of course. We all know you can’t carry liquid through security but strangely, if it’s frozen solid, and your BA reward flights are taking you through US airports, you can. This is one way of avoiding airside prices and ensuring you have a favourite drink with you. Just make sure it's still solid when it’s checked.

While a slushy or a frappe coffee might be nice once you’re on board it isn’t going to cut any ice with security staff.

Charge up 

Free charging stations for your phone, tablet or laptop are now available at many airports. If you’re really stuck or need an option nearer your gate, look out for a TV. Most nowadays have USB ports in the back, which you can use to revive your device before you board your flight.

This tip also helps in a hotel if you’ve forgotten a plug adapter. Consider also investing in a portable charger so you’ll always be able to get some juice on the move. 

On the flight...

Get wiping

We’re all a lot more used to hand sanitising since the pandemic. Keeping antibacterial wipes handy to clean touchpoints like your tray, TV screen and armrests, and using hand sanitiser for loo visits, will cut down your chances of picking up all sorts of bugs. 

Turn down ice; don’t drink the water 

We’re used to avoiding ice in drinks in countries where the local water is unreliable but the same attitude should apply on planes. Flight attendants avoid drinking tap water, hot coffee and tea on planes, and you should too. 

Water and ice come either from a plane’s water tanks, which may be cleaned infrequently or from caterers where it might have been stored unwrapped or unrefrigerated for some time.. Recent testing has uncovered bacteria. 

Our advice is to avoid having ice, and never drink water aboard a plane unless it is sealed in a bottle. For the same reason avoid washing your hands in the bathroom. Use hand sanitiser instead. 

Go fizz free

The cabin pressure at higher altitudes combined with the bubbles in fizzy drinks can make your guts swell. This can make you uncomfortably bloated or, worse still, embarrassingly flatulent. 

Following these tips will definitely increase the comfort of your next international flight. Be smart with your travel choices and you’ll go far (sorry for the long-haul flight joke there!). And if you really want to, you can always upgrade your British Airways reward seats using Avios. 

On my next big trip, my ultimate goal is to do one major long haul trip with carry-on baggage only. The packing cubes and packing compression bags are the way forward I think. That and not bringing 5 pairs of shoes everywhere I go.

But no matter how much you choose to pack, remember some of these essential long-haul flight tips and your journey will be a lot more comfortable.