Updated on November 27, 2024
No matter how exciting your destination, long flights are pretty boring! Although we’re happy to suffer the inconvenience for our dream vacation, there are ways you can plan ahead to make your flight a little more enjoyable. Here are 15 ways to pass time on a long flight, which will make your journey fly by!
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How To Pass Time On A Long Flight
If you’ve got a long flight ahead of you and dreading the hours dragging, try out these 15 ways to pass time on a long flight.
Watch A Movie
I’m not exactly a huge film fan, but if you’re stuck on a plane for hours, this is one of the best ways to pass the time. Most airlines now have a good selection of movies available to watch. If you have something specific in mind though, why not download a couple of movies or boxsets ahead of your journey that you know you’ll enjoy.
Read
Sitting on a plane is a great opportunity to catch up on that reading you just never get time for. Lose yourself in that book you’ve had on your shelf and the time will literally fly by! Airports also have a fantastic selection of magazines of all genres, so treat yourself to something to flick through if you prefer some light reading.
Listen To An Audio Book
If reading isn’t your thing, download an audio book ahead of your flight. Listening to an audio book is a great way to enjoy a book on a plane and will make the time pass quickly. I love listening to non-fiction titles as audio books; if you’ve not listened to one before you really need to give it a try!
Journal
I always travel with a notebook on hand, and a long flight is the perfect time to make use of it. It’s a great time to catch up with your journalling or to jot down any ideas that spring to mind mid-flight. When else do you get several uninterrupted hours to daydream?
Plan Your Trip
A long haul flight is a great opportunity to fine-tune your travel planes. Since you’ve got your notebook on hand, crack out your travel guide and make some last minute adjustments to your itinerary.
Listen To Music
One of my favourite things to do on a flight is to just sit back, close my eyes and listen to music. There’s something relaxing about forgetting everything and losing yourself in a carefully curated playlist. Make sure you compile and download your playlist before you travel, then when you listen to it again it will evoke all of your travel memories!
Craft
Crafting might not sound like an obvious choice for a flight, but it is one that I really enjoy. I typically travel with a crochet project that is all in the same colour to avoid travelling with scissors. So long as you check the airline requirements, you may be able to travel with thread cutters, which will give you more craft options.
Video Games
Those incredibly addictive mobile games are a great way to pass time on a long flight. Just make sure you pack a USB charger in your hand luggage so your phone isn’t dead when you arrive at your destination!
Get Creative
Several hours on a flight is a great opportunity to let out your creative side. Grab a colouring book or a sketch pad and doodle your way through the flight. It’s a great way to unwind while passing the time.
Exercise
We all know that regular movement is good for us on a long flight. You can pass some time by pacing the aisle, or doing some stretches. Although space is pretty tight on a plane, getting up for a little stroll is refreshing and gets the blood circulating.
Take Care Of Your Skin
During a flight, your skin gets pretty dry. Taking a trip to the bathroom is a great change to re-hydrate your skin with some moisturiser. Or if you are looking for some in-seat skincare, try out a facial spritz, eye pads or a sheet mask if you’re brave enough!
Sleep
Sleeping on a plane is never easy, but getting in some z’s makes the hours pass quickly. An eye mask and ear plugs are travel essentials for sleeping on a plane. Check out our guide to the best eye masks to help you sleep on a plane.
Set Goals
One of the things I love to do on a long flight is to use the time to set goals. We’re usually so busy every day that we don’t get a lot of time to reflect. When there’s a long flight stretching ahead of us, its a great chance to assess, plan and set goals without distraction.
Catch Up On Admin
Airplanes aren’t exactly renowned for their excellent connectivity. That being said, you might be surprised how much admin you can get crossed off your list while being offline. You can get ahead by writing emails in advance or bring a copy of that document you need to review and jot down your feedback ready for when you’re next online.
Get To Know Your Neighbour
Talking to the stranger sat next to you might sounds like your worst nightmare. But if you’re looking for ways to pass the time, striking up a conversation is guaranteed to work. Besides, you might be surprised and strike up an unexpected friendship with your travel companion.
15 Ways To Pass Time On A Flight
So these are my 15 favourite ways to pass time on a long flight. If you’ve got a long flight coming up, be sure to bookmark this page or pin it so you can revisit these tips!
What if your favourite way of making the time fly by? I’d love to hear about it! Let’s connect on Instagram and send me a DM with your number one way to pass the time on a long flight!
Until our next adventure,
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Hello, I’m Hannah! I’m a writer and photographer who loves experiencing the wonders of Yorkshire. My guides will help you escape from your daily routine by showing you that you don’t have to go far to find an adventure.
These are all great tips! I do love the idea of crafting to pass the time. If the movies on the plane are good I usually use this time to catch up on everything I haven’t had time to watch yet 🙂
I always find crafting on a plane is a great conversation starter! Everyone who walks by stops to ask what I’m making and who it is for! Plane journeys are about the only time I watch movies but I have to really get into it otherwise I won’t watch until the end. I’m definitely more of a reader!
Great article. I always have a notebook with me in my carry-on, but I rarely ever make use of it during a flight. I normally try to put some ideas down while waiting at the airport, though. I normally find it quite easy to sleep on a plane and I try to adjust with the time zone.
Oh I hadn’t thought about doing planning at the airport. Normally before I get on a plane my priorities are eating like I’m never going to see food again and keeping glued to the gate info in case I somehow manage to miss my flight! I’m always envious of people who can sleep easy on a plane! I’ve never really mastered the skill!
What perfect timing. Our next flight is in 2 weeks. I will make sure to share this with our daughter who is always looking for something to do.
Have an amazing trip! I imagine flying right now is a very different experience! I hope the tips come in handy for your daughter!
Long flights are brutal, but these are such useful tips!!!
They really are aren’t they! I’m used to flying long haul about twice a year but I still struggle with them every time! I’m glad you found the tips useful!
Love all of your tips! My favorites ones are those geared to being productive and sleep.
I’m glad you like the tips! I love to feel productive on a flight as it is such a long, uninterrupted time where I feel like I can get lots done that I’d otherwise avoid! Sleeping definitely makes a flight pass quicker but I feel like there is an art to it that I’m still mastering!
Such a great article! An audio book is such a brilliant idea, when you are tired of reading as I often do in planes, but can’t sleep. Also, I would never have thought of journaling, planing ahead the trip or setting goals on a flight… but it’s great. A very interresting way to spend our time.
I’m not typically an audio book kind of person but I always download one before a flight because I find that I can relax but still enjoy a book at the same time, plus it means I’m not juggling a physical book, my phone, tray table, food and drink at that moment when the meals are distributed!
I really enjoy using a flight to do goal setting on journalling. I think it is because it is one of the few times where I am just sat with my thoughts and not doing something else so it really gives me a chance to focus, which I don’t always have any other time.
This is a great list. I love how much variety you’ve included in your suggestions. The one tip I haven’t mastered is chatting to a neighbour. I tend to postpone striking up a conversation until the plane begins its descent only to find that I’ve missed an opportunity to interact in a meaningful way with a very interesting person. I realize it’s a fear of spending 15 hours with a “chatty Cathy” so it’s clear I need to come up with respectful strategies of how to communicate a need for quiet time.
Haha I know exactly how you feel! I’m very much an introvert and I find it difficult to strike up a conversation with strangers! If you can pluck up the courage it is often very rewarding though, like you said, you often meet such fascinating people on flights! I can be a bit tricky to get out of the conversation though, I agree! That’s a skill I need to brush up on too!