How to Be Comfortable in Economy on Your First Long-Haul Flight
Are you about to go on your first long-haul flight and don’t know what to expect? Does the idea make you preemptively cringe in discomfort?
It’s ok. Long flights don’t have to be as awful as you may have heard. With a little prior knowledge and prep you can even enjoy it!
Another important thing to consider: not all long-haul flights are the same. Your flight experience will vary depending on which airline you’re flying with and where you pay to sit.
There are some common amenities, though, and, rest assured, the horror stories that you heard from your friend or the news are outliers, not the norm.
Let’s talk about what to expect on a long-haul flight in economy or premium economy, full-service airline vs budget airline experience, and useful tips for making your long-haul flight as comfortable as possible.
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What to Expect on Your First Long-Haul Flight
You’ve heard all the horror stories about long-haul flights: seat recline nightmares, temperature fluctuations, and the snoring foghorn or screaming infant next to you.
While we can’t promise these won’t happen, we can give you advice and suggest tools to help make these situations less crappy.
Like, did you know that you can look up your seat on the plane on Seat Guru, and it’ll tell you if it has no recline, how close it is to a restroom, or if it’s a window seat without a window. Yes, that last one exists unfortunately!
You’ll have no say in who’s seated next to you or the temperature of the plane, but proactively bringing ear plugs, just in case, and dressing in layers allows you to adapt to whatever the flight gods dish out that day.
We’re not making any promises about what will or won’t happen on your first long-haul flight, but knowledge is power, so let’s talk about what to expect.
Will There Be Meals?
Food and drinks are always available on long flights, but what you should be asking is if that food is included in your ticket price or not.
This varies by airline and by seat class, but here’s the gist:
- First class and business class get better food than economy and usually include alcoholic or premium drinks for free.
- Premium economy gets the same food as regular economy. They just get it first.
- Alcoholic and premium drinks cost extra for premium and regular economy.
The type of food, whether you’re getting a sad, cold sandwich or your choice of chicken or vegetarian microwave-heated meal, depends on the airline.
Full-service airlines typically provide a heated meal and a cold meal for long-haul flights.
For example, if it’s an overnight flight in the 6-8 hour range, you’ll get a hot dinner shortly after takeoff, a cold breakfast before landing, and sometimes a snack and drink service in between.
Budget airlines may not include food in your ticket.
Some require you to preorder your food and pay separately before the flight. Others require you to add a credit card to your profile before takeoff or else they can’t charge you for food or drinks during the flight.
They usually have some extras onboard, but they can and do run out of items, especially if you’re in the back of the plane. You’ll be stuck without food if you didn’t bring your own or didn’t add a payment option to your profile.
Will There Be Entertainment?
Entertainment on long-haul flights depends on your airline.
Full-service airlines have seatback screens with movies, tv shows, and games. Some include wifi, and others have wifi available for an additional fee, depending on your fare class.
Budget airlines typically don’t have entertainment. You need to bring your own, and it’s usually safest if it doesn’t require wifi because they probably don’t have that either.
I highly recommend you bring your own entertainment regardless of what seat or airline you booked, just in case.
Even on a full-service airline your seatback screen could be broken, leaving you with 8 hours to fill by twiddling your thumbs unless you have a backup book in your bag.
Why, yes, this has happened to me before on a flight across the Atlantic, but I was prepared with backups!
Which Airline You Fly Makes a Difference
Not all long-haul flights are equal. There’s a big difference between a budget airline long-haul flight and a full-service airline long-haul flight.
For the higher price tag, full-service airlines include several amenities that cost extra on budget airlines. Neither is better than the other. Both get you across an ocean or continent. It’s all about your expectations.
So long as you’re prepared and know what to expect, both options can be a pleasant ride.
Some people can’t imagine flying in a middle seat in economy with no food or wifi included. Others can’t imagine paying for an aisle seat, wifi, and food when they can bring all their own amenities and save $300 in the process.
It’s a comfort and budget decision. Choose wisely.
In my experience, it’s worth paying a little more to ensure you’re comfortable enough to sleep (or at least rest) on an overnight flight. However, if it’s a long flight but all during daylight/waking hours, then I rarely pay for extra comforts.
When you arrive in the morning after an overnight flight, you’ll want to go out and explore right away to not lose any sightseeing time. If you’re groggy or cranky from lack of rest, you won’t enjoy it. You might end up napping away most of your first day in your new destination. What a waste!
On the other hand, if you’ve been on a plane all day and arrive in a new place around dinner time or later, you’re going to eat a meal and go to bed. You have all night to sleep off any discomfort from the flight.
Amenities: Budget vs Full-Service Airlines
We’re not talking luxury, first class seat amenities here. That’s a different topic altogether. But just because you’re not booking a first class seat doesn’t mean you won’t get any amenities for a long haul flight.
Predictably, you get less for free on a budget airline than you do on a full-service airline. It’s the key difference between the two business models.
Here are some common items that budget airlines may charge for that are usually included for free on full-service airlines.
- Meals and/or drinks (water is always free)
- Headphones
- Wifi
- Comfort pack: pillow, blanket, eye mask, ear plugs
I prefer to bring my own travel pillow and eye mask, but the airline-provided options will do in a pinch. Better than nothing!
Plane food is never great (unless you’re in first class), but I think budget airline plane food is worse than full-service airline plane food. I’d bring my own food on a budget airline rather than pay them to provide something.
Headphones are hit or miss. Most airplane seatback screens still require using wired headphones, which is a problem in today’s wireless age. Airlines usually provide wired earbuds, but you can also pick up a wired-to-wireless adapter if you’d rather use your own wireless set.
Low Budget Doesn’t Have to Mean Budget Airlines
You might be thinking that you’re already scraping together all your pennies to afford this trip, so your only option is a budget airline. We fell into that thought trap, too, when we were young and cash-strapped due to student loans but determined to travel.
Here’s the thing, though: it’s not true.
Learn how to find flight deals and use points and miles.
- Flight deals can turn your $800 flight into a $300 flight.
- Points and miles could get you a free flight or cost you just the taxes and fees, so in the neighborhood of $100 or less.
- Use your regular, every day spending to earns points and miles. This is a not a rich person only tactic!
- Speed up your earnings by learning how to stack tactics. Use a shopping portal, a special promotion, and credit card rewards to earn triple on one transaction.
Traveling on a budget doesn’t have to mean sacrificing comfort. You just need to be smarter about how you earn and spend.
7 Tips to Survive a Long-Haul Flight
- Know your seat. Extra leg room, a bulkhead in front of you, no recline seats, and proximity to the restroom can all impact your long-haul flight experience, for better or worse.
- Get comfy. Function over fashion. If you can’t sit comfortably in those pants or shoes or top, then don’t wear them on the plane. Don’t forget temperature considerations as well. Are you going to get too hot or too cold? Dress accordingly.
- Move about the cabin when you can. Mind you, there is no brisk walking on a plane, but you can usually mosey slowly up and down the aisle(s) for 5-10 minutes every couple of hours without being in the way of drink or food service.
- Bring your own entertainment, just in case. I was unlucky enough to have a broken screen on one of my full-service airline long-haul flights. Nothing the flight attendants can do about that, and they’re not going to hold up the flight for a tech to fix it. I just had to deal, and that wasn’t a problem for me because I always have a book, games on my phone, and my laptop.
- Sleep if you can. Rest if you can’t. I’ll be forever jealous of people that can sleep on planes, but I’ve made my peace with the fact that it’s not in my skillset. Even if you’re not actually sleeping on the plane, resting with your eyes closed is better than staring at a screen.
- Eat and drink in moderation. There’s nothing worse than being too full, stuck in jeans, and in a middle seat on an airplane. Don’t load up on snacks that’ll make you sick, and don’t order so many drinks that you’ll have a hangover when you get off the plane. Drink plenty of water.
- Ear plugs or noise canceling headphones are always a good idea. You want to be able to hear announcements from the pilot, but, honestly, if it’s important enough, someone will get your attention. Ear plugs help if you’re seated next to a snorer or a baby that’s not having a good time. They also help if you don’t like the dull background noise airplanes make. Have them on hand, just in case.
Happy travels!
About the Author: Rachel Means
With six-figure student loan debt and only 10 PTO days per year, Rachel started traveling the world. A decade later, she’s paid off her loans, changed careers, and been to 42 US states and 17 countries. She’s an expert at planning and budgeting for travel and loves to help others do it, too! Read her full story here.
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