Travel Etiquette – 8 Unwritten (but important) rules on the Airplane

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To respect fellow travelers and show good manners, that’s something that should be followed by everyone. Unfortunately, it’s not all travelers who follow these unwritten rules and share this vision. Here are 8 unwritten rules that everyone should follow that are traveling by airplane.

It’s Skyscanner that has made this guide with guidelines and easy tips on how to behave on a plane.

1. Wait for your turn at boarding

There’s a reason why people are divided into groups when boarding a plane – to avoid crowds and rush into the cabin and to make it more convenient for everyone. Whether you cut the line or not, it will still take just as long time before the plane departure. Haven’t your section been called? Sit down, relax and wait. Stress only leads to bad mood and that it possibly can take longer time to board the plane.

2. Show up prepared

This is something that frequent travelers usually knows and something that other travelers should follow. Keep your documents readily available; passport, boarding pass, and other relevant documents should be easy to reach if you need them. It’s all too common that people are wasting the time of others, forming queues just because they’re not organized and prepared.

Do yourself and others a favor – come to the airport prepared!

3. Whoever sits in the middle seat gets the armrest

Are you one of those people who fight over the armrest on the airplane? If so, you can stop doing that now, the one that gets the middle seat has the worst seat. There’s no window, no room from the aisle and you’re forced to sit squashed between two other people. The armrest acts like a limit of the middle seat space – so stay within its limit.

4. It’s okay to say hello to the people sitting next to you

To say hello is a common etiquette, despite this, it often happens that it becomes a rigid atmosphere if you end up sitting next to someone you don’t know on the aircraft. An easy way to lighten the mood can be a simple greeting or do some small talk (you’re going to sit next to each other for several hours).

But remember, there’s not everyone that like to talk to strangers, so it’s important also to show respect.

5. Ask before you put your seat back

Some people think you can just put your seat back whenever they want because they have the right to do that. Yes, you have the right, but that doesn’t mean that you can’t show some good manners and ask the person sitting behind you if it’s okay.

In addition to this, maybe the person behind you need the space at the moment, and then it’s not so cool to put your seat back without asking first.

6. Respect your fellow travelers

  • If you want to stretch your body, then do it without disturbing others.
  • Keep your shoes on.
  • Keep your clothes on.
  • Wait with your manicure and make-up until you get to your hotel.
  • Are you going to watch movies or listen to music? Use headphones!
  • Keep a normal tone.
  • Keep track of your children.
  • Skip filing/clipping your nails, brushing teeth and similar things that should be done in the bathroom.

7. Follow the stream

Just like when you stand on an escalator or are riding the subway, the unwritten “stand to the right” rule applies. Also, your bag shouldn’t block anyone from getting past you.

8. It’s okay to make mistakes

Remember that it’s okay to make a mistake or forget something sometimes. We are all human, and the most important thing in these cases is that you apologize and are humble about it. If you’re stepping on someone’s toes (for example), then apologize. If you’re walking into someone by mistake, apologize.

If all people had followed these unwritten rules, then your visit to the airport and flight would have gone much more easily and should have been so much nicer for everyone.

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