17 hour Long Haul flight. Any advice

The Nal · 21-10-2019 2:03pm

Alun wrote: »

I'm in the same boat in 2 weeks time heading to NZ with Emirates. 7.5h to Dubai, 13.5h to Sydney and then 3.5h to Christchurch. Not looking forward to it at all. I'm a nervous flyer at the best of times, so am thinking of asking my doctor for something to relax me. Does anyone have any experiences of going down that route?

I took a sleeping tablet before and felt like shít. Never again.

Doctor will give you Xanax or Valium or something yeah.

Alun · 21-10-2019 2:07pm

The Nal wrote: »

I took a sleeping tablet before and felt like shít. Never again.

Doctor will give you Xanax or Valium or something yeah.

That's what I was thinking of. Had a couple of valium a few years ago when I went for a job interview a few days after a family bereavement. I can't remember much about the interview, but I did get the job

Tefral · 21-10-2019 2:16pm

+1 on what everyone is saying here.

I would advise on bringing a pack of baby wipes with you and spare socks, undies and teeshirt.

Nothing nicer than going into the toilets and giving yourself a bit of a "shower" with the baby wipes and putting on clean clothes. 5mins and you feel as fresh as a daisy.

Water John · 21-10-2019 2:26pm

Yes, did similar in April, but Dubai-Auckland. Again not a lover of planes but it went ok. Flight from Dubai was delayed, on the plane sitting for 2 hours then flew 4 hours later. Think that actually helped. The Dubai-Auckland jet was an A380, really lovely if that what you get.
All flights had entertainment module and screens. Time passed without a bother.
Had a bad cough on return and only slept less than 2 hours in total.
Time now to apologise to those near me.
You'll think afterwards a 6-7 hour flight is a short hop.

If you are a reader, bring a Kindle.

Rowley Birkin QC · 21-10-2019 2:38pm

Tefral wrote: »

+1 on what everyone is saying here.

I would advise on bringing a pack of baby wipes with you and spare socks, undies and teeshirt.

Nothing nicer than going into the toilets and giving yourself a bit of a "shower" with the baby wipes and putting on clean clothes. 5mins and you feel as fresh as a daisy.

spurious wrote: »

I like to set my watch to the time zone of my destination as soon as I get onto the plane and then behave accordingly as regards sleep etc..

Kevin Irving wrote: »

Noise cancelling headphones are worth their weight in gold.

These are the three essentials.

mlem123 · 21-10-2019 2:40pm

1. Headphones
2. Neck Pillow (I have an inflatable one so it packs up small)
3. Hand sanitiser (planes are gross)
4. Baby wipes/cleansing wipes (because planes are gross AND you can freshen your face/body)
5. Toothbrush and toothpaste
6. FLIGHT SOCKS (imo the most important item - your ankles/feet will swell and can become quite uncomfortable)
7. Downloads movies or series or music
8. Book/magazines
9. Hand cream/moisturiser (flying can dehydrate you - I even sometimes put on a creme face mask on long haul flights lol)
10. Reusable water bottle (fill up before boarding)
11. Sucky sweets (I'm partial to werthers)
12. Scarf (it can be a light summer one but you can throw it over your head or around your shoulders if you get chilly)
13. Eye mask

Homelander · 21-10-2019 3:09pm

I can never sleep on planes so I just break the flight up into distinct stages - like read for an hour, then watch a movie, then play the 3DS for an hour or two, and keep the cycle going until the flight's over. If you can't sleep though it is extremely painful on long haul. I wouldn't drink if I was arriving at my destination in the afternoon or early evening, but if it's a night arrival I'll knock back a fair whack of drinks while watching movies on the second half of the flight to pass the time. Finally I would absolutely advise against sleeping pills. You will feel like absolute crap after waking up and barely functional.

Snow Garden · 21-10-2019 3:43pm

Get those farts out too. Do not try and hold them in or you will have bad stomach pains.

On stopovers, have a nice meal if possible but also walk around as much as possible (this is why I bring a small light rucksack).

Poly · 21-10-2019 3:49pm

Pick your seat in the aft cabin. people don't often select seats here for some reason. Best chance of getting two or more seats to yourself

grogi · 21-10-2019 3:50pm

Cushtie wrote: »

Hi Folks. I have a long Haul flight coming up in a few weeks. 17 hours London to Perth with Qantas on 787.

Longest flight I've ever been on was about 4 hours.

Any advice from the seasoned travellers on anything I should bring m do to make the flight more bearable.

Thanks

a) change all your watches (phone, laptop etc) to destination time before the boarding. Plan your activities on the plane according to the destination time - try to sleep during night hours, wake up during morning hours. This will cut the jet-lag...

b) get a pair of ANC headphones. Bose and Sony have best noise cancellation, but I have found MPow (got H12 and love them - https://www.amazon.co.uk/Mpow-Cancelling-Headphones-Bluetooth-playtime-Black/dp/B07X53FNKF) and Anker (SoundCore Space NC) are not that far behind for a fraction of price. You'd be surprised how much difference the noise makes.

c) get out of the seat as much as possible. I try to be out of the seat for at least 25% time of the flight. Stretch etc.

d) drink. water. don't be shy asking for more.

raglan · 21-10-2019 5:00pm

Hi,

Flew with Emirates earlier this year to Dubai then onto Auckland. I am not the best flyer as I do be thinking of what could happen and listen to every noise and any sign of turbulence my heart rate goes up

But this journey I was making with 3 young kids, husband and mother so it added to my thoughts. Obviously hindsight is great and I wish now that I didn't get as stressed thinking about the whole journey but I was thinking of all sorts of things as you do when you travel with others. I don't sleep on planes, just can't but I have to say the journey was much better than I expected travelling long haul with kids. A lot of time kids slept, or were busy munching on snacks and looking at films /cartoons, staff were great with them and they got a gift on each journey. It was no bother to them. I myself found it great and time didn't feel as long , I simply counted down the time with films....as I don't sleep. Plenty of legroom, some flights had empty rows which was great, a few were completely full. Only annoyance was passenger in front pushes her seat way back ....I don't know but I think its just good manners to check with passenger behind as I could have had a drink on my tray etc....To counteract this I would have to push my seat back but didn't. I would do the trip again no bother personally but my Mum found it hard going coming home. We all had the dvt socks and walked up and down occassionally. Hope this helps. The entertainment screens are great, something for everyone.

ELM327 · 21-10-2019 5:06pm

Snow Garden wrote: »

Get those farts out too. Do not try and hold them in or you will have bad stomach pains.

.

Great advice for life in general.

Snow Garden · 21-10-2019 5:22pm

ELM327 wrote: »

Great advice for life in general.

It's no joke on a long haul flight :P

https://www.huffpost.com/entry/fart-on-planes_n_58e7d466e4b05413bfe2bb2b?guccounter=1&guce_referrer=aHR0cHM6Ly93d3cuZ29vZ2xlLmNvbS8&guce_referrer_sig=AQAAACZSy9NwIqeyzhdXH_9DUhs1MmVpGVFhgmNWRD5FSLGy97aar6cDuLKqpqgshhfsfwMDQLVXXJ0VahTvJrCrHbGTaABzNoAe0M16I0-wsOOHCjlvwVBs4FbGNv0FRG4MVhBTuCr2Jpq-uwWj3MjxXqz7bGkwPFh8ew9dyzNe5jPC

In a 2013 paper on in-flight flatulence, researchers from the University of Copenhagen noted that holding back a fart can lead to discomfort, pain and more bloating.

Cushtie · 09-11-2019 7:58am

Hi all. Just wanted to come back to say thanks for all the advice given on this thread.

I took most of it and I must say because of that the long flight and the return flight was not as half as bad as I expected.

Major takeaways for me were.

1. The noise cancelling headphones. Worth their weight in gold.

2. Comfy clothes. Wore a tracksuit bottoms and comfy trainers plus flight socks.

3. Aisle seat. Could get up and down as much as I liked without bothering other people in row.

4. Was with Qantas. Lovely staff. Down the back near the galley they had plenty of snacks, drinks, water and encouraged passengers to help themselves. They also had no problems with passengers hanging about to stretch the legs.

I was really lucky with Jet Lag. Did what others suggested and put myself in destination time as soon as got on board. Arrived around mid day local time and stayed up till about 9pm that evening. Woke following day fresh as a daisy.

Other people I was travelling with were wrecked for a few days after.

Was lucky on the return flight. Had picked aisle seat and middle seat was empty. Lovely Australian girl was sitting in inside seat. Had lovely chats and it certainly helped pass the time.

Cheers again everyone for your helpful advice.

Gael23 · 29-12-2019 8:09pm

Would you choose to travel this flight rather than through Dubai?

Cushtie · 30-12-2019 3:40pm

Gael23 wrote: »

Would you choose to travel this flight rather than through Dubai?

Hi, I sent you a PM but for the benefit of other posters. I have never gone to AUS before this so can't say if the stop off would be better or not. I think for a solo traveller or couple without kids the non stop is a good option. It's a bit of a slog with kids I'd say

However, My sister was on the same trip with her kids but had a stop over in Singapore I think.They left Perth about 8 or 10 hours before me but we ended up on the same flight back from Heathrow to Ireland. So I suppose there is a bit of time saved both ways without the stop over.

Rodin · 30-12-2019 3:42pm

Cushtie wrote: »

Hi Folks. I have a long Haul flight coming up in a few weeks. 17 hours London to Perth with Qantas on 787.

Longest flight I've ever been on was about 4 hours.

Any advice from the seasoned travellers on anything I should bring m do to make the flight more bearable.

Thanks

Emergency seats at a bare minimum.
Worth paying the extra.

JohnCleary · 31-12-2019 5:54am

Rodin wrote: »

Emergency seats at a bare minimum.
Worth paying the extra.

Some airlines won't sell them and keep them for passengers with infants.

If you can purchase them, this is a must and will be the best money you spend.

Failing That, business. Seriously, worth every penny. We don't even consider long haul economy anymore. There are fair deals to be had if you shop around. This year we got return Dub - Bkk. Turkish was almost half the price if Qatar business class (but eek booked 8 months in advance)

grogi · 31-12-2019 9:56am

JohnCleary wrote: »

Some airlines won't sell them and keep them for passengers with infants.

If you can purchase them, this is a must and will be the best money you spend.

Failing That, business. Seriously, worth every penny. We don't even consider long haul economy anymore. There are fair deals to be had if you shop around. This year we got return Dub - Bkk. Turkish was almost half the price if Qatar business class (but eek booked 8 months in advance)

No Airline ever will put infants, children or people with disabilities at the emergency exits.

Caranica · 31-12-2019 1:16pm

grogi wrote: »

No Airline ever will put infants, children or people with disabilities at the emergency exits.

Think they might have been thinking of bulkhead seats?

Charles Babbage · 31-12-2019 9:10pm

JohnCleary wrote: »

Some airlines won't sell them and keep them for passengers with infants.

If you can purchase them, this is a must and will be the best money you spend.

Failing That, business. Seriously, worth every

People under 16 are not allowed in emergency rows as they are unable to assist with the doors etc.

JohnCleary · 01-01-2020 6:00am

grogi wrote: »

No Airline ever will put infants, children or people with disabilities at the emergency exits.

Sorry, meant bulkhead... d'oh.

A few years back we couldn't find any airline willing to presell exit / bulkhead seats hence the move to business and never looked back.

The OH did say that last year she looked at economy whereby she could book the exit/ bulkhead, but after it was all added up it just made more sense to fly business... can't remember the airline.

I'm talking about long haul flights here (2 x 8 hour flights)

beggars_bush · 01-01-2020 9:43pm

JohnCleary wrote: »

Sorry, meant bulkhead... d'oh.

A few years back we couldn't find any airline willing to presell exit / bulkhead seats hence the move to business and never looked back.

The OH did say that last year she looked at economy whereby she could book the exit/ bulkhead, but after it was all added up it just made more sense to fly business... can't remember the airline.

I'm talking about long haul flights here (2 x 8 hour flights)

You can book a normal seat with most airlines and then contact them to request a bulkhead seat. Has worked for us on the last two trips (travelling with a child). However, the bulkhead is where the infant bassinet is usually located so it's an infant space.

Vic_08 · 02-01-2020 12:50am

JohnCleary wrote: »

Some airlines won't sell them and keep them for passengers with infants.

If you can purchase them, this is a must and will be the best money you spend.

Failing That, business. Seriously, worth every penny. We don't even consider long haul economy anymore. There are fair deals to be had if you shop around. This year we got return Dub - Bkk. Turkish was almost half the price if Qatar business class (but eek booked 8 months in advance)

Are you going to say how much "almost half the price of Qatar business" is in actual currency? Way out of most people's budgets or what they are willing to fork out for a flight I'd assume.

A good deal for business* is going to be at least 4 times the price of economy on the same flight, often 10x is closer to the going rate.

Better than that is usually only possible by taking a non-connecting flight to an obscure airport that a major carrier or partner airline is offering cheap rates on connections through hubs. A much longer trip with at least 1 extra sector than necessary each way as well as the cost and time spent on short haul cattle class.

*proper lie-flat seats with partial privacy minimum, not the rubbish large regular seats marketed as business by some airlines.

JohnCleary · 02-01-2020 1:54am

Vic_08 wrote: »

Are you going to say how much "almost half the price of Qatar business" is in actual currency? Way out of most people's budgets or what they are willing to fork out for a flight I'd assume.

A good deal for business* is going to be at least 4 times the price of economy on the same flight, often 10x is closer to the going rate.

Better than that is usually only possible by taking a non-connecting flight to an obscure airport that a major carrier or partner airline is offering cheap rates on connections through hubs. A much longer trip with at least 1 extra sector than necessary each way as well as the cost and time spent on short haul cattle class.

*proper lie-flat seats with partial privacy minimum, not the rubbish large regular seats marketed as business by some airlines.

Still worth it.

Can't even remember the exact figures.... Do a search yourself for prices if you're interested.

The thread title asked for advice... I gave my advice. A 17 hour flight will be a pleasure if flying business. I'm actually looking forward to my 11 hour flight (and 8 hour layover in IST) next week

TimeToShine · 02-01-2020 2:23am

JohnCleary wrote: »

Still worth it.

Can't even remember the exact figures.... Do a search yourself for prices if you're interested.

The thread title asked for advice... I gave my advice. A 17 hour flight will be a pleasure if flying business. I'm actually looking forward to my 11 hour flight (and 8 hour layover in IST) next week

To be fair for most people it most certainly is not worth it and they wouldn't even waste their time checking, I suspect that if you were to furnish us with actual figures that would only confirm it. I'd hazard a guess that the OPs flights in business class would run him about €8k vs maybe €1300 economy.

JohnCleary · 02-01-2020 2:35am

TimeToShine wrote: »

To be fair for most people it most certainly is not worth it and they wouldn't even waste their time checking, I suspect that if you were to furnish us with actual figures that would only confirm it. I'd hazard a guess that the OPs flights in business class would run him about €8k vs maybe €1300 economy.

I'm sitting waiting for breakfast so had a look.

4600 return for 2. DUB- BKK. Dec 5 - Jan 6, so busy period. This would have been approx 1600 economy.

Booked on Turkish website. Booked back in March 2019.

Checked Qatar a while back and it was 8k.

You'd be a fool not to book business at that price. Prob one of the cheapest business we've gotten for that flight (been flying this route business for 9 years now, I think)

Vic_08 · 02-01-2020 2:41am

JohnCleary wrote: »

Still worth it.

Can't even remember the exact figures.... Do a search yourself for prices if you're interested.

I did and have done so for my own trips before, like I said 4x economy is a good deal, checking way in advance (autumn 2020) €450 vs €1900 return for a random date DUB-BKK

Flying only LHR-BKK return on the same flights as that DUB-BKK via Heathrow costs €2900, you get a €1k discount for starting in Dub in business. Economy on that flight is €150 more from Dub, it would be cheaper to buy the connecting flight separately.

JohnCleary wrote: »

The thread title asked for advice... I gave my advice. A 17 hour flight will be a pleasure if flying business. I'm actually looking forward to my 11 hour flight (and 8 hour layover in IST) next week

And I expanded on that advice; relatively few would be able to afford or justify €1500 to upgrade to business, as you hadn't actually provided any figures I thought a little context might be helpful.

I am not denying for a second it is a world apart from an economy flight, my personal opinion on 17 hours straight in cattle class is I'd rather stay at home or at least break it up somewhere in between I wanted to go to.

skooterblue2 · 02-01-2020 2:50am

May I suggest Quaaludes? As per the Wolf of Wall Street?

martyoo · 02-01-2020 2:50am

JohnCleary wrote: »

I'm sitting waiting for breakfast so had a look.

4600 return for 2. DUB- BKK. Dec 5 - Jan 6, so busy period. This would have been approx 1600 economy.

Booked on Turkish website. Booked back in March 2019.

Checked Qatar a while back and it was 8k.

You'd be a fool not to book business at that price. Prob one of the cheapest business we've gotten for that flight (been flying this route business for 9 years now, I think)

That's a great price. We got Aer Lingus business class from Dublin to Miami return for €750 each this Christmas and it was well worth it.

17 hour Long Haul flight. Any advice

Comments