Not only the interns have a lot to say when asked about how to make long distance flights more comfortable, also our Intern China Office Managerās travel the world a lot and know a few good tips and tricks, which they love to share with you. Soā¦
ā¦hereās what the Office Managers say:
Jack Fairhead (Office Manager Qingdao):
Long flight tip from me: The night before the flight: Change your seat! Most airlines allow you to choose your own seat up to 36h before departure. Login to the flight website and choose a seat where no one is. I had got 4 seats to myself last time I went back to England to see my family for Christmas. With 4 seats, you can make yourself a quite comfortable bed without having to fly 1st class.
Thereās another tip I really want to share with you. Jetlagās always a thing a lot of interns are afraid of before coming to China, so hereās my perfect way to avoid jetlag, proven by me never getting one: Set your watch to destination time straight away and then only eat at the times that you would normally, as if you were already in the destination country. The stomach controls the body clock! š
Philippe Touzin (Office Manager Zhuhai):
– Donāt sleep the night before your flight or get a little drunk. This way, you will be tired when you get on the plane and itās much easier to fall asleep.
– Try to get an emergency exit seat while checking in, you got much more space for your legs there and canāt get any cramps so easily. And also check in early, best online, so you can make sure to get the emergency exit seat.
– Bring your own water (empty bottle you fill up after you went through all your security checks).
– If youāre a guy: try to flirt with the stewardess to see if you can join the āmile high clubā.
– Try to do some stretching exercises on the airplane.
– Bring warm and comfy socks and a good travel pillow (an actual pillow not the blow up ones).
Jenny Hofmann (Office Manager Chengdu):
Our Chengdu Office Manager Jenny wrote down a long list of things which are indispensable for her on long flights, make sure to copy it and donāt forget anything, youāll have an amazingly relaxed flight:
– Take your earplugs and eye mask, as well as a good travelling pillow!
– Wear comfortable clothes and warm socks, it can be really cold at night on the plane.
– Take an empty water bottle and fill it up at the airport. Itās a good way to fight dehydration and lazy stewardesses on board.
– Take skin lotion with you (not more than 100ml), keeps your skin moist and add a nasal spray to the package, your nose will thank you.
– Walk around on the airplane if you have a chance.
– Donāt let your neighbors start an annoying conversation, take music and books with you.
And our special guest:
Morgan Dolan (Management Trainee in Zhuhai):
–Ā Ā Ā If possible try and flight at night. Sleeping on long haul flights is definitely easier when the crew have turned off the lights and all your fellow passengers are doing the same.
–Ā Ā Ā Make sure to hydrate and drink lots of water. You may have to get up several times but your body will thank you. Coming off the plane tired and dehydrated in a foreign country is unpleasant to say the least.
–Ā Ā Ā Avoid the food and bring your own snacks. Unless you are in 1st class, airline food is too salty and bad for your health.
Try and see if our Office Manager’s tips are better than the intern’s! Come and visit us in Zhuhai, Chengdu or Qingdao and tell us if you want to add something to our list. You can apply now via email or directly through our website! We are looking forward to receiving your application!
Long distance flights are an annoying thing, especially if you can image so many other things you could do while sitting 10Ā unknown hours on an airplane, not knowing what to do. Many friends of mine were never on a flight longer than 3 hours. While staying in Europe, you can get to most destinations without having to spend a lot of time, even to countries like Tunisia you only need three hours.
So for those of you, who have never been on a long distance flight and for those, who dread them everytime they come up somewhere in the near future, our whole Intern China Team sat together and thought of their best tips for long flights. We hope you enjoy reading and have a relaxed flight to China! Soā¦
ā¦what do the interns say?
Dani Fernandez (Zhuhai):
1) Her first and most important tip is to not get a lot (or best any) sleep the night before your flight. You will be so tired during the flight, that youāll just fall asleep, even though the seat might be uncomfortable.
2) Take your favorite entertainment options with you, and best more than one (e.g. books, music, games).
3) Choose an aisle seat, so you can stretch your legs a little more (and itās a lot easier to get up in the night to walk around a little or go to the toilet).
4) Take a scarf, hoodie or jumper on board with you, in case the airline doesn’t give you a blanket and you don’t want to wear an uncomfortable jacket/coat for the whole flight.
Hanna Sand (Qingdao):
1) Most important thing for me is to have a good and fully charged battery for my netbook (tablet or laptop will do as well I guess ;)) and a hard-drive fully loaded with TV shows and films. The thing is, after finding my seat on an airplane, the first thing I do is check out the on-board TV. Itās a serious process because I start making a ‘schedule’ for the whole 12 hours (or however long I will be on the airplane). Sometimes I work out a really good programme and then I just fall asleep, which is the best thing that can happen really. But normaly it isnāt that easy, so I have my TV programme. After being happy with my plan for the next 12 hours, being able to watch all the movies I didnāt have time to see in cinema, the person in front of me starts moving their seat to the back which makes watching movies uncomfortable or I realize that the screenās quality is actually not best or well, I never end up watching on board TV because something always happensā¦and thatās when I remember that I took my netbook, its 9.5h battery and a bunch of TV shows and films with meā¦Have a good flight! š
1.1) In addition to my tip above, donāt take sad movies with you, if you cry easily. Your stewardess and your neighbour in the seat next to you will be slightly confused if you look at them with red, teary eyes.
2) Choose your own seat! Itās possible with most airlines to log in online up to 36hours before departure and choose your own seat. Like Dani, I would choose an aisle seat since itās easier to stretch legs, move around and go to the toilet.
3) Wear comfortable clothes! Nothing is worse than short skirts and tight pants on an airplane.
4) Order a special meal before your flight, if you need one (e.g. Vegetarian, Halal, Low carb, Vegan). Just getting a piece of bread in 12hours, while everyone else is eating is not sooo funny. (Therefore, Veggies, donāt fly with Aeroflot, they donāt like Vegetarians and ordering a special meal doesnāt helpā¦).
Lisa Samani (Qingdao):
1) Our fashionista-intern Lisaās most important tip is to not wear high heels on the airplane or any uncomfortable clothes at all, since you want shoes and clothes you can pull and carry your luggage with. You should also not wear any make up. Itās bad for your skin and the on board air is very very dry. So best just take some lotion with you that keeps your skin moist.
2) Bring your own food! Airplane food is not always good, and if youāre a vegetarian for example and forgot to order a special meal, you wonāt be able to eat much.
3) Sleep on the airplane, but not before your flight! And remember to take a tooth brush with you, nothing is more disgusting than waking up in the morning and not being able to brush your teeth. š
4) Change your seat. You can always change your seat when all passengers are on board and if you see a free row at the back: Go for it!
Jonathan Libis (Qingdao):
1) Jonathan is not really concerned about long distance flights, since he can sleep almost everywhere. He only advises you to bring your MP3-Player and something easy to read. Just try to sleep and wear comfortable clothes.
And todayās special guestā¦
Frank Lenhardt (Co-Founder of InternChina):
1) The first and most important thing for Frank is to book and choose your seat in advance, so you donāt have to sit somewhere in the middle. Even AirChina allows you to do so, so donāt waste your chance to get a good seat!
2) Here is Frankās ultimate luggage trick: If you have too much luggage, let your parents or friends wait with your actual carry-on baggage. Then go to check-in and ask them if you could ā because itās sooooo much more convenient ā also drop of your hand luggage. They wonāt know that itās actually your parents having your hand luggage and you got a few more free kilos!
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