How to survive a long hour flight

Taken en route my flight to Kuala Lumpur from Perth

Going places are fun. As an avid adventurer I always get excited when it is time to visit new places.

However, while catching flights used to be an exciting thing, it is now my least favourite part of travelling. Especially when I have to sit on a long hour flight by myself.

I travel a lot between Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia and Perth, Australia and every time I fly I have to sit on board an approximately 5 hour 40 mins flight. Because I fly on a budget, I also tend to book the flight that has no in-flight entertainment system, or I have to pay extra for one.

So before I fly and if I am flying alone, I always prepare a couple of things and activities to help keep myself occupied, and to stop myself from counting minutes – which to my experience, only make time move slower. Here is my guide to surviving a long -hour flight:

• Prepare a few movie selections to watch

This is of course taking into consideration that you have your laptop or tablet with you. It also helps to ensure they are fully charged. A movie typically last around 1 and a half to two hours, so you will probably need around 2 to 3 to get through your flight, depending on how long your flight is. I usually watch a movie and about 2 episodes of my favourite series at the moment.

If you are not sure about what movie to watch, here are a few selection of my favourite evergreen movies:

10 Things I Hate About You starring the late Heath Ledger

American Gangster starring Denzel Washington (runs for 2h56m)

Catch Me if You Can starring Leonardo DiCaprio and Tom Hanks

The Shawshank Redemption starring Morgan Freeman

My Sister’s Keeper starring Cameron Diaz

21 Jump Street starring Channing Tatum and Jonah Hill

• Read a book

A book is a great way to let your imagination wander outside of the tight airplane seat you are sitting in. I would suggest going with something that keeps you wanting more, that way you will be so focused on getting to the end of the book that by the time you almost reach the end, the cabin crew will be preparing the cabin for landing.

For me mystery and crimes keeps me going. My most recent airplane read was The Gift by Louise Jensen. I read a quarter of it on my flight to Perth and used the entire flight home to finish the book.

On another flight I was on with my partner, he introduced me to Yuval Noah Harari’s Homo Deus, the second book that followed his first bestseller – Sapiens. If you are into discovery, this is going to keep you glued.

• Test your wits on the classic words puzzle

This is probably the oldest trick in the book but it works better than mobile phone games that not only drains your battery, but also some of them cannot function without Wi-Fi.

I personally love crossword puzzles and all the other forms of word games. My sister is an avid fan of Sudoku and she can spend endless time figuring it out.

You can get word puzzles or Sudoku books at any bookstore or if you forget about it, the airport almost always have one. Just remember to bring a pencil and eraser. Not only does it kills your boredom, it also allows you to exercise your brain.

• Bring a notepad and a pen

Use the time you have to brainstorm ideas or express your creativity. I am bad at drawing but I love writing. On the other hand, flight time is the best time to come up with your list of goals and dreams and a vision board of how to achieve them because you have no other distraction and you also have the best view – the sky.

A pen is also handy whenever you travel. You can use it to fill out landing forms, take notes of your arrival details and you can lend them to strangers and make new friends!

Well, here is my guide to surviving a long-hour flight that most of us, mostly me, often dread.

I would love to know other creative ideas that you have and wouldn’t mind sharing! Feel free to leave them in the comment section just below the post title.