For those of you who travel frequently and have for years, you’ve probably noticed that flying is not just getting harder and more expensive (those 6,000 hidden costs they charge for everything now), but the perks that used to be part of the journey are only reserved for 5x-priced business class and 10x-priced first class seats.
There are small things you can do to alleviate the strain for those longer-legged trips.
1. Bring a comfy and quiet headset. BOSE has some great ones on the market that are soft, plush and diffuse the noise coming from crying babies and the talkaholics who are traveling in groups.
2. Bring your own Mug with High-End Tea and Coffee (in other words, high quality stuff that Airlines tend not to serve). This sounds like a small thing, but it can make a difference. The drink cart comes through the aisle and they’re ready to pour you tasteless coffee or cheap Lipton-like tea, but instead you can ask for 2-3 hot waters in cups. Then, take out your fun, homey mug like you have at home, pour those 3 cups of hot water into it and take out your high quality Jasmine Green, Lapsong Suchong or if you’re really a tea snob, a strainer and some loose white tea you bought from your favorite tea shop.
3. Grab the Best Seats in Advance: while you can’t always get an exit row early, you can go to sites in advance to find out the lay of the land before you select your seat. Find a seat with more legroom and if you travel on business as much as I do, look for the seats that have embedded power in the backs of the seats so you can be productive on your laptop for the entire flight.
4. Find a Fabulous Blow Up Pillow: while this isn’t a new revelation for any of you who travel frequently, it’s amazing how few people bring them. You can bring a blow-up pillow or the more cushy soft material ones that you can easily clip or hang around your carry-on luggage. It really helps reduce aches and pains in your neck following a flight.
5. Pack Savory Treats & Wine in the Airport Before you Board: We all know that food choices even for longer flights are barely worth eating or remembering if you do. You can spice it up by adding the “feeling” and perception that you’re dining elsewhere by buying a small bottle of wine in an airport shop that may be better than what you can buy online (and probably cheaper too). Add a dark decadent chocolate to that bottle of wine, and it makes that processed powdered cookie they’ve given you easier to look at….and toss.
Renee Blodgett is the founder of We Blog the World. The site combines the magic of an online culture and travel magazine with a global blog network and has contributors from every continent in the world. Having lived in 10 countries and explored nearly 80, she is an avid traveler, and a lover, observer and participant in cultural diversity.
She is also the CEO and founder of Magic Sauce Media, a new media services consultancy focused on viral marketing, social media, branding, events and PR. For over 20 years, she has helped companies from 12 countries get traction in the market. Known for her global and organic approach to product and corporate launches, Renee practices what she pitches and as an active user of social media, she helps clients navigate digital waters from around the world. Renee has been blogging for over 16 years and regularly writes on her personal blog Down the Avenue, Huffington Post, BlogHer, We Blog the World and other sites. She was ranked #12 Social Media Influencer by Forbes Magazine and is listed as a new media influencer and game changer on various sites and books on the new media revolution. In 2013, she was listed as the 6th most influential woman in social media by Forbes Magazine on a Top 20 List.
Her passion for art, storytelling and photography led to the launch of Magic Sauce Photography, which is a visual extension of her writing, the result of which has led to producing six photo books: Galapagos Islands, London, South Africa, Rome, Urbanization and Ecuador.
Renee is also the co-founder of Traveling Geeks, an initiative that brings entrepreneurs, thought leaders, bloggers, creators, curators and influencers to other countries to share and learn from peers, governments, corporations, and the general public in order to educate, share, evaluate, and promote innovative technologies.
