Simple solutions for a stress-free flight
Because it's all about the journey, right?
Hello, I’m Narina – and this is NE Where, a weekly travel-focussed newsletter for curious people. If you have a friend who might enjoy reading about exceptional women who travel, or off-the-radar parts of the world, or who’s looking for ideas for an unforgettable trip to Bali, then please consider sharing NE Where with them by hitting this button:
Dear NE-One
How’s your weekend been? Mine’s been…. pretty mental, really. This past week was all over the show, and I’m still stuck deep in my head, rolling logistics around and trying to piece together a complicated puzzle of travel movements.
Writing work aside, I spent much of last week fine-tuning last-minute travel plans; packing up, stocking up, moving out of and preparing our house for the various Airbnb guests who’ll stay there in the coming months (the first of who arrived yesterday). Also, I packed for what, starting on Tuesday, will be a three-step journey through chilly South Africa before, on Sunday, Mark and I board a plane bound for Bangkok.
Well that was the plan (with freshly-bought flights, just-booked Bangkok accommodation and my bag for Asia literally already packed) until Mark opened his emails on Friday morning and received a can’t-turn-down assignment in South America… So now our Bangkok plans are on hold for a month while Mark heads off without me, and we reconnect in Asia in mid-August.
To keep track of things I’ve had a deluge of lists at my side. Yes I get that dopamine kick, but also – and I write this now with an entire notebook of lists beside me – lists are how I try to keep my unpredictable life vaguely manageable. Being organised, I’ve learned, is the key to stress-free travel… and stress-free travel means that even when your focus is the destination you get to enjoy the journey. In theory, anyway…
With that in mind, here are five travel “stresses” – and the simple hacks, learned through experience, that I use to make my journeys smoother:
Stress: I can’t get comfortable on the flight
Solution: Get smart with seat selection
The price of a pre-selected seat is usually exorbitant, and so when Mark and I fly together we select our seats as soon as online check-in opens. We then choose an aisle seat for one of us and a window for the other – and cross fingers that the seat between us will remain empty. Often it does and that extra space is such a luxury – but if someone has booked that middle seat then we simply ask if they’d like to switch with one of us so that Mark and I can sit together. And of course, we give them a choice of window or aisle. (Nobody’s refused us yet.)
This hack doesn’t work when you fly solo, of course. When I’m on my own I always book a window seat and create an ever-shifting against-the-window sculpture with my inflatable pillow, sarong, airline pillow(s) and blanket. Comfort comes in phases.
Here’s the one Amazon buy that’s changed the way I travel.
Stress: I have to empty my bag to find my boarding pass
Solution: Use a small bag for documents and phone
One of the most useful things I’ve ever bought is a… what is it called? It’s not quite a moon bag or bum bag, because it’s shaped more like a pouch; and kinda like a deep pocket. Anyway, whatever it’s called, it’s worn around the waist, which means that my passport, wallet, phone and boarding pass are always easy to access. and because I wear my hand luggage on my back, my hands are always free and I don’t need to set down a bag (and potentially forget it) when I reach for my passport / boarding pass / wallet / phone.
Stress: I carry so much stuff
Solution: Use one bag for everything. But…
Not having to carry armfuls of bags makes navigating airports so much easier. Assuming I’ve checked in one piece of luggage, here’s how I navigate the hand-luggage situation: I have one bag, which holds everything I’m taking onto the plane. However, inside it there is a nifty fold-away zip-up shopping bag – that zip is important because it keeps the bag’s contents from rolling around the plane. Just before boarding I shift everything I’ll need during the flight into this shopping bag and that goes under the seat in front of me (bonus: smaller bag equals more leg room) while the other goes into the overhead compartment. I’m being an anorak here, but I’ll say it anyway: splitting into two bags just before you board means you get into your seat with minimal fuss.
Stress: I have a travel emergency
Solution: Travel with your phone fully charged
It’s happened to us a few times: staff at the check-in desk insist that before they will issue our boarding passes we must show proof of an onward flight out of our destination country – and so at times like this we’ve been really grateful to have enough battery power (and data credit) to book an onward flight. It also helps to have sufficient battery power if your boarding pass is on your phone, and if you’ll be using your phone to hail an Uber or to navigate to your hotel once you land.
Looking for your next read? Author Mark Eveleigh is setting aside 20% from every copy of Driftwood Chandeliers sold during June, and he’ll be giving it to the widow of the Balinese healer who provided so much inspiration for his novel. I interviewed Mark about Driftwood Chandeliers here.
Stress: How to I get outta here?
Solution: Book your transfer before you fly
If you’re landing in a city you’re not yet familiar with – particularly if you’re landing late at night – you’ll save yourself a lot of hassle by booking your hotel transfer before you leave home. Whether that’s via the hotel you’ll be staying in, your Airbnb host or a cab company, its’ really convenient to have someone meet you and whisk you off to your accommodation (but before they do, get them to assist with recommending an ATM to use, and a local SIM card to buy).
What are your travel hacks? Please share your tips for stress-free flights by dropping a note in the comments box, or clicking on this button:
Travel logistics aside, this next week is going to be pretty special. I’ll be hanging out with my precious nieces, checking out a new(ish) beachfront boutique hotel, flying across the country and then driving to a multi-day fun family wedding (which will also be a family reunion) before Mark flies to South America and I take a two-day road trip home with my parents. Because there is so much going on in the coming days, the next time NE Where will land in your inbox will be 9 July… and I have something pretty awesome lined up for that. I can’t wait to share it with you!
Until next time,
Narina x
In a reading kinda mood? Put the kettle on…
Ordinary Women, Extraordinary Lives: Rolling with the rhythm of bikepacker life
Mary Anning: The woman who chipped at rocks and uncovered the mysteries of our planet
Author interview: Mark Eveleigh on his novel Driftwood Chandeliers
Notes from Bali, and how it became “home”
Dervla Murphy: The solo adventurer considered the greatest female travel writer of all time
Packing up and moving on: The one thing that’s changed the way I travel
How the people got their spots: an unusual story about culture, tradition and conservation
A rhythm of daze: the intriguing mathematical labyrinth of Bali’s calendars
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