#lifehacks: plane travel

Before I start, please look at videos about how to pack your luggage, how to get good deals, and how to spend your flying miles. There are so many good channels out there that deal with such matters marvellously.

This post is for older people travelling by plane long distances. I will mention a few tips in random order.

• Arrive at the airport at least three to four hours early because the problem isn't checking in but how many millions of passengers are waiting to get through security.
  
  If fast lane security is possible, buy it, but even these lanes are not full-proof.
  
  
• Use the extra time you have before the flight in a lounge. The prices for these lounges can be very steep, depending on the airport, but you have to minimize your stress before going on a flight. Having fewer people around you and less noise is always good. 
  
  
• If you have checked-in your luggage, carry at least two days' worth of clothes. Two swimsuits are a must if you are going anywhere warm.
  
  
• This next tip is for anyone who is short. After passing through security, I transfer all of my electronics and purse into my carry-on luggage. Then, I put clothes into my small backpack, place the backpack under the seat in front, and pull it out later on and use it as a footrest. For some reason, having my legs raised helps me get into a relaxed/sleep state during long flights Especially, if I can turn a bit on my side.
  
  
• I wear silicon earplugs with noise-cancelling headphones. Reducing the amount of noise during the flight is one of the game changers for arriving in good shape.
  
  Obviously, if you can sleep that would be wonderful, but I cannot. So quiet is almost as good.
  
  
• I order a special meal. This usually arrives first. So I can eat, close my eyes, and pretend to sleep while the whole process goes on with everyone else.
  
  (The engineer in me makes it hard to look at the flight crew serving drinks and food because they so often do it without any love, as if feeding cattle, and some of them are so inefficient.)
  
  
• I drink a lot the day before a trip, not so much on the day I travel, and then drink a lot on the day after I arrive. Maybe this goes against common practices, but it usually means that I do not have to go to the toilet so often during the trip.
  
  
• I eat before going on the plane. Sometimes, the airline food can be very poor quality, so it is better to wait to eat until after arrival.
  
  
• I have a small spray bottle of water that I spray my face with every 30 minutes or so. If you breathe in while spraying, you moisturize your nasal passages. This reduces the damage dry air does and, therefore, potentially reduces the chance of catching airborne illnesses.
  
  
• After sitting down, I wipe down my seat and the table in front of me with disinfectant. Someone who knows their stuff told me that the air is actually very clean; it is the surfaces that are not.
  
  I carry a package of wipes, as well as one small container of liquid disinfectant. I have a second small container in my check-in luggage for the trip back.
  
  
• At the beginning of the flight, I go to one of the toilets near my seat. I always wipe down the toilet seat before using it. I also wipe down the sink and surfaces around the sink with paper towels before I leave the toilet, which means all surfaces are dry. Each time I leave the toilet, it looks like it was not used. I continue to use only this one toilet throughout the flight.
  
  I do not have any scientific data, but my experience is that people are less likely to leave a mess behind in a clean toilet than they are if it is already messy when they come in.
  
  
• Finally, I leave my seat as orderly as possible. I put the blanket and pillow on the seat. I bring a bag to put my garbage in and place everything there. I also wipe down the surfaces for the next passenger.