My husband and I went to Europe for the first time a couple months ago, and let me tell you, we were not prepared for that 12-hour flight. It was our first international flight and I knew the flight would be long, but I assumed it would be like any other flight I’d been on. I thought I’d be able to buy snacks and use the Wi-Fi, maybe buy a bottle of water, but that was not the case.
So, after my first international flight experience, I wanted to put some international flights tips together so that you don’t have to make the same mistakes and so you can hopefully be as comfortable as possible on your first international flight!
Tips For The Airport
1. Check Your Passport
Check your passport at least a couple weeks before your trip to make sure it’s still valid. If not, make sure to get it updated as soon as possible. And of course, on the day of, make sure to take it with you.
2. Check In to Your Flight
Like most domestic flights, make sure to check in to your international flight 24 hours before departure. Once you check in, you’ll be able to see your boarding information, and possibly select your seat if you haven’t already.
3. Get to the Airport Early
For international flights, the general rule is to arrive three hours before you’re set to board your flight. International terminals can be incredibly busy, so it’s best to give yourself plenty of time to get through the airport.
We arrived about two hours before our flight and we were able to check our bags and get through security within an hour or so. But, the Air France counter was right next to us when we were checking our bags, and the line was insane and not moving at all. So, just make sure to give yourself ample time to check your bags and go through security just in case.
Tips For the Plane
1. Take Food With You
Please, please, please take food with you! Even if you don’t think you’ll eat it, take something with you just in case. My whole plan for our flight was to buy snacks and food a couple days before we left, and I just didn’t have the time. On the morning of our flight, all we had at home were bagels and cream cheese, so I packed one for each of us. And of course, we ended up eating the bagels an hour after takeoff. So, please take food with you and take lots of it!
Most airlines do give you food during international flights, so you do have that option. On our flight, they gave us one meal and two snacks a couple hours apart so they do give you food throughout the trip. But, the food isn’t very good and it really just keeps you from starving.
For example, on our international flight to Italy, we had a microwave pasta dish at about 2 hours in, a small sandwich around the 8 hour mark, and then another small sandwich around the 10 hour mark. Maybe this sounds like enough food for you, but having snacks or food of your own can help bridge those gaps between meals or let you skip the airline food altogether.
Helpful Tip: If you have any food allergies, I highly recommend taking your own food. On our flight back from Italy, we had a vegetarian pasta and then the other two meals were ham sandwiches and I’m allergic to pork. And they didn’t have any alternatives. So please, make sure you have food you can safely eat. No one wants to start or end their trip hangry.
2. Take Water or Something To Drink
Building on the food discussion, make sure to take water or something to drink with you on the plane. TSA doesn’t let you take water bottles through security, so you’ll have to buy water once you’re in the airport or bring a reusable water bottle.
If you decide to take a reusable water bottle, it will have to be empty while you go through security. But once you’re at your gate, you can fill it up at a water station or ask a restaurant to fill it up for you. And if those options aren’t available, you can just buy water bottles and pour them into your reusable bottle. But, this will at least ensure you have some water and that you don’t start your trip dehydrated.
For our international flight, I thought we’d be able to buy water bottles on the plane, but that wasn’t the case. We got a cup of water with each meal, so after the salty microwave pasta, I was parched. At one point during the flight, I found a flight attendant and asked for like four cups of water and tried to pace myself so they’d last.
So, make sure to take water with you on the plane so you can stay hydrated and aren’t dying of thirst the whole time.
3. Wear Comfortable Clothes
This may be a given, but you’ll definitely want to wear something comfortable on your flight. Think leggings, t-shirt, comfy tennis shoes. Anything that will keep you relaxed and unrestricted if you need to lay down or curl up in your seat.
I would also recommend bringing a sweatshirt or hoodie with you as well in case it’s cold on the plane. The hoodie can also turn into the perfect pillow if you need something to lean your head on.
4. Take Your Glasses, Contact Case, and Contact Solution
This one is for my contact wearers. If you wear contacts, make sure to take your contact case, a travel size contact solution, and your glasses with you on the plane. Sleeping in contact lenses isn’t the greatest feeling, so bringing these three things can help with that.
If you take your contact case and solution with you, you can take your contacts out while you sleep and then put them back in later. Or you can wear your glasses during the flight and put your contacts back in before you land at your destination.
This can help prevent that awful dry eye feeling that can come from sleeping in contacts and can help keep you comfortable if you keep dozing off.
5. Take Medications and Toiletries With You
You’ll obviously pack any medications and toiletries you need for your trip, but make sure they’re also with you in your carry-on just in case.
For example, if you get migraines or back spasms, anything that can just hit you out of the blue, make sure you have whatever you need in your carry-on and not just stowed away in your luggage.
When it comes to toiletries, you won’t need shampoo or body wash (obviously), but it might be nice to have your toothbrush and toothpaste or some deodorant. Whatever you need to feel comfortable, make sure it’s nearby in your carry-on and within reach in case you need it.
6. Charge Everything and Bring a Portable Charger
Another thing I assumed was that the plane would have electrical outlets since it was such a long flight, but again, not the case. So, make sure all of your devices (phone, laptop, headphones, tablet, etc.) are fully charged before your flight.
You can bring a portable charger with you as a backup, but make sure that’s fully charged as well. You wouldn’t want your phone to die mid-flight and then realize that your portable charger is also out of battery.
Helpful Tip: If you use bluetooth headphones, bring a regular pair that can plug into all of your devices as a backup. That way, if your bluetooth headphones run out of battery, you have another option and can go right back to whatever you were watching or listening to.
7. Bring Stuff to Do
It’s always better to have it and not need it, than not have it, and need it. That’s going to be my philosophy going forward with any international flights.
So, bring stuff to do. Bring more than you think you’ll even get to. Bring books, TV shows, podcasts, movies, coloring books, whatever you like to do to pass the time, make sure you have it with you. And make sure you have plenty of it.
My husband and I both planned on sleeping for most of the flight. Our wedding was the night before, we stayed up until 2AM, we were almost certain we’d sleep through most of it. And then we didn’t.
I think I slept for maybe an hour, and my husband maybe slept for two hours. And neither of us brought anything with us to pass the time on the flight. So we both sat there listening to the music we had on our phones for hours. And let me tell you, your favorite playlist quickly loses its luster at about hour three.
So, bring lots of stuff to do even if you plan on sleeping the whole time. And if you don’t get to all of it, then you have tons of stuff to do on your flight home.
8. They May Not Have Wi-Fi, Download Everything Before The Flight
Continuing my list of assumptions, I thought international flights had Wi-Fi and that was not the case. So, all those TV shows, movies, and podcasts I was talking about in my last step, make sure to download them to your devices before your trip.
Also, this means you can’t access email either. So you may want to take screenshots of your travel itinerary or travel reservations ahead of time, just in case you want to reference anything during your flight.
9. Upgrade to A Bigger Seat (if possible)
If you can, if there’s any way it’s even remotely in your price range, you may want to upgrade to a bigger seat. Especially if you or your travel partner are taller, sitting in a small seat for hours at a time can become quite uncomfortable when your knees are hitting the seat in front of you.
And if you can’t afford a bigger seat when you purchase your ticket, you can also ask at the gate before your flight. Sometimes they’ll have a bigger seat available at a lower price, so it’s always worth asking.
And that’s it for my travel tips for your first international flight! If you’re traveling soon, I hope you have an amazing trip. And for anyone else, feel free to share your travel tips for international flights in the comments below!