Figuring out what to do with your time on a long flight is always challenging. You’d love for it to just take a few minutes to get to your destination, but it always seems so much longer than that.
Fortunately, there are many things that you can do to make the time fly. You don’t just have to sit there like a lump, twiddling your thumbs.
Here’s what we recommend:
Curate A Pre-Flight Playlist
The first step is to curate your pre-flight playlist. You want a list of songs and podcasts you can take anywhere with you, even if you don’t have access to Wi-Fi.
Creating a playlist like this is easy. Just open your Spotify or Apple account and start downloading songs. Then, name your playlists by theme so you have something to listen to when it gets boring or dull in the air.
Also, make sure you remove anything from your playlist that isn’t going to make you feel the way you want to feel. Check that everything on there is hitting the mark and you look forward to listening to each track.
Read A Long-Form Article Or A Short Book
If you have the option, you can also take a long-form article with you, or a short book. You want something that’s going to take you around 90 minutes to read, and will entertain you throughout.
If you’re not used to short stories, then flights are a great place to start reading them. They introduce you to a whole new world of narrative arcs that you just don’t get with standard novels. Many writers in this genre have license to be more creative and bombastic, simply because they have to cram everything into a smaller space.
If you read a long-form article, make sure it is on a topic that interests you right now. You can use the spare time you have on the flight to dig deep and really learn as much as you can about the subject without all the usual distractions and notifications.
Learn A Small Skill On Your Phone
Another option is to learn a small skill on your phone. You can download the materials or apps you need before you fly and then use the dead time to brush up on your skills.
For example, why not spend 15 minutes getting chess coaching or go on Duolingo and build up your Spanish lessons point streak. The more you invest in your skills, the more you can level up over time and just do more. This way, the time you spend on the flight isn’t “dead time” but something you can be using to make yourself better.
Declutter Your Devices
You could also spend time decluttering your devices. Instead of just listening to music or watching a movie, you could use the peace and quiet for admin, removing photos you don’t want and deleting old documents you’ll never use again.
When you get into this process, you’ll realize two things. First, there’s more junk on your phone than you ever thought was possible. And, second, deleting it all manually takes a long time. You can remove it via master menus, but then you don’t have much control over what you’re deleting.
The good news is that you can usually arrange all your archived material by date. Then, all you need to do is go back and prune what you no longer need, keeping what you do.
Nap More
While it might sound simple, napping on a long flight is a great idea. Not only does it take up time, but it also leaves you feeling ready to go when you finally arrive at your destination.
If you want to be really clever about it, you could set your alarm to coincide with a full sleep cycle (usually 70 minutes). If you can sleep for this long on a flight, it usually means you can go through all the stages of sleep, giving your brain a chance to clean itself out and get ready for whatever you’re doing next.
Sketch And Doodle
How about spending time on a long flight sketching and doodling? Usually, airlines will provide you with a complementary pen to use, or you can bring one in your hand luggage.
Doodling is a great option if there’s someone snoring near you. You can get your brain to do something creative that makes you feel refreshed and invigorated at the end of the flight, not groggy.
Write A Letter
If you’re really feeling up for a challenge, you could write a letter you never intend to send. These are great if there’s something you want to get off your chest or improve about your life.
Writing a letter could be something cathartic, like complaining about your boss. Or it could be something grateful, like a thank you card to your old teacher. Whatever it is, put your entire mind to it. You’ll notice that when you start writing, it changes how you structure your thoughts, helping you be clearer and communicate better in the rest of your life.
Find A Brain-Teaser
Another option is to find a brain-teaser that’ll keep your mind occupied as you fly over continents and oceans. These can be a lot of fun, especially if you can get into the flow state.
One option is to play the daily crossword in the newspaper you bought at the airport. On a flight, you can’t cheat and look online for the answers, either.
You could also play solitaire on your phone or laptop. Again, you need to think strategically in order to make the right moves to win.
People Watch And Invent Stories
Finally, you could try people watching and inventing stories about them. This game is particularly fun if you’re with someone else who wants to join in.
For example, if you see someone cuddling a large toy, they might be trying to smuggle items into the destination country. Likewise, if there’s someone who is constantly going to the bathroom, they might have had the wrong pre-flight meal. You get the idea.
