Pre Flight Ritutals

Morning, wondering what your pre flight rituals are, the stranger the better!

For me I personally leave packing until last thing the night before travelling or first thing in the morning if a late afternoon flight.

I travel with a St Christopher's Medal given to me before first flight when I was 11 or 12 (LHR - DUB Aer Lingus on a 737 with the cigar engines).

On the jet bridge I say a quick prayer and look down the side of the plane and give the fuselage a couple of quick pats.

Once in my seat I check that the seat back tray clip is not broken. Not sure what I would do if I find it broken! :0

When I was younger I also refused to fly on DC10s

I go to the Clubhouse and drink my own body weight in champagne.

Usually does the trick. ):

1) plan the trip, usually starting at least a year ahead and create a spread sheet for everything that needs to be done.
2) Allow far too much time for any eventuality. e.g. go the airport the day before even though it's only 40 miles away.
3)Countdown the days to go. Started at 440 for next years holiday.
4) Try to be first to book our seats and check in online.
5) Follow Marshy's advice and drink lots of champagne with the first bottle being at the airport hotel the night before the flight.

Dick D

Having boarded the wrong plane once (leaving LGA, I got on the DL Shuttle to DCA instead of the Shuttle to BOS - adjacent gates, identical departure time, broken boarding scanner, exhausted looking gate staff, too many pre-boarding DL SkyClub Bloody Marys on my part - it was only when I was in my seat [the Shuttle had open seating] and the pilot mentioned it was the DCA flight that I ran off the plane over to the right one 'next door'), my pre-flight ritual now mostly involves looking very, very closely at my boarding pass, then at the plane information at the gate, then at my boarding pass, then at the plane information at the gate, then etc etc...

Having boarded the wrong plane once (leaving LGA, I got on the DL Shuttle to DCA instead of the Shuttle to BOS - adjacent gates, identical departure time, broken boarding scanner, exhausted looking gate staff, too many pre-boarding DL SkyClub Bloody Marys on my part - it was only when I was in my seat [the Shuttle had open seating] and the pilot mentioned it was the DCA flight that I ran off the plane over to the right one 'next door'), my pre-flight ritual now mostly involves looking very, very closely at my boarding pass, then at the plane information at the gate, then at my boarding pass, then at the plane information at the gate, then etc etc...

Add that to my ritual ever since I looked at the landing time instead of boarding on a little red from Edinburgh. Fortunately the flights only an hour and I leave way more than that time, but it was close.
Dick D

[honey lamb]

My main pre-flight ritual is preparing my handbag which is different to the one I use on a day-to-day basis. In it goes my passport and any other documentation I might need; I usually take two purses - my usual wallet and a smaller purse to take out and about and in which I usually carry any foreign currency I might need. One thing I won't go without is a rosary ring, given to me by my parish priest before a long trip, given "to keep you safe". Readers of my trip reports will say it's not working!! )

I have to be the last of my party to board and with my right foot! I know it's stupid but I always do it!

I have to be the last of my party to board and with my right foot! I know it's stupid but I always do it!

Does your right foot come off then ? Do you sometimes have to check it ?

lol HL that made me laugh out loud
hmm my ritual is perhaps similar to dickydotcoms
up until the first time i flew UC i always prepared the same outfit the night before even ironing my undies and socks. i just realised i wore the same outfit on all flights from august 2003 to feb 2013.
at T3 I would buy; coke, lucozade, water, pringles and lockets.
now i still buy lockets though.

I organise my travel documents in a plastic folder with labels and in the order I'll need them a couple of days before my trip. I'll check this folder several times before I leave, including right before I go out the door, and again if we've stayed overnight in a hotel before flying, which is the norm these days.

That's about as ritualistic as it gets...

...if you exclude the packing cubes, the obsession with packing well in advance (not, horror of horrors, on the day, unthinkable!), the precision with which cases are packed - anything that can be rolled is, and that includes my smalls :w, the insistence that I leave plenty of time 'just in case' (especially as we travel by train, I always make sure I've added 1.5 - 2 hours for delays before calculating connection times).

Oh, and I'll count and recount my foreign currency even though I know how much there is.

On the day I'll pole up in good time, about 3 hours in advance for bag drop knowing what security lines can be like, and if a VS flight, which so far have only been / will be UC, 4-5 hours in advance so I can enjoy the clubhouse, y)

OCD, lists spreadsheets everything double ticked and checked. Carry on has everything important and contents checked every 10 mins up to and including in the taxi, at the check in desk, and the gate. Do not relax until doors closed. Too many 'did I switch the ... Off'

love these kinds of threads

glad its not just me who has ocd when it comes to travel.
i even check my MMB almost every other day for the countdown.

I don't iron undies though (or socks), that's gfonk's little peculiarity, isn't it matey?

I do have "flying trousers" though. Comfy smart casual chinos or cargo pants, I forgot to mention they're part of my ritual lol.

love these kinds of threads

glad its not just me who has ocd when it comes to travel.
i even check my MMB almost every other day for the countdown.

Oh yeah, I like doing that too, and I have an app specifically for counting down to holidays!

My "ritual" is to shout "why the **** do you say that now?" at the wife just as we pull onto the motorway and she says "did you lock the front door?".

love these kinds of threads

glad its not just me who has ocd when it comes to travel.
i even check my MMB almost every other day for the countdown.

Only every other day? I am almost hourly ! Not OCD at all !

My "ritual" is to shout "why the **** do you say that now?" at the wife just as we pull onto the motorway and she says "did you lock the front door?".

thats brilliant lol

I don't iron undies though (or socks), that's gfonk's little peculiarity, isn't it matey?

I do have "flying trousers" though. Comfy smart casual chinos or cargo pants, I forgot to mention they're part of my ritual lol.

lol true bretty
i think its only the flight outfit ones i iron the night before.

after what you say about packing cubes im trying lol
we use vacuum bags alot though

1) plan the trip, usually starting at least a year ahead and create a spread sheet for everything that needs to be done.
2) Allow far too much time for any eventuality. e.g. go the airport the day before even though it's only 40 miles away.
3)Countdown the days to go. Started at 440 for next years holiday.
4) Try to be first to book our seats and check in online.
5) Follow Marshy's advice and drink lots of champagne with the first bottle being at the airport hotel the night before the flight.

Dick D

Very similar to this really!!

I have my spreadsheet all done with separate tabs:
Legal (Passport needed renewing, ESTA) Incidentally the passport is done so a few points already ticked off for that!
Travel - International
Travel - Domestic (Getting to the Airport, and various trips I have planned internally in the US)
Hotels
Extra's (Travel money, insurance, credit cards etc)

I am also one for getting there exceptionally early! Can never hurt, there's always shops to admire, magazines to read, and in my case a Starbucks to be had no matter where I am, lounge access or not!

I quite like the excitement of the travel to the airport, jumping on the train, I have flown out of MAN, LHR, LGW and ABZ in the short time I have been flying and each time arrived by train!

Also another one with the countdown app!

Two things I cannot survive without on any flight though is my headphones, I have a rather expensive pair of Skullcandy one's which have been with me on all flights I have taken (okay I know there's only been 8 of them but still!) and are now a bit worse for wear sadly! The other thing, is a big bag of Worthers Originals!!

What a relief to know I'm seemingly with the majority being OCD about preparation and packing and counting-down - I'd thought for years I was the odd one out.

We always leave early, far too early, for any and every appointment so of course arrive much too soon at the airport.

Lists are everywhere, on my phone, little bits of paper on the fridge, post-its, things piling up on the guest bed "mustn't forget that". Everything - laptop, phone, camera, Kindle has to be charged up at the last possible minute.

All travel information is printed out and in a plastic folder, passports are in a wallet which I carry and which holds boarding passes once we've checked in.

And yes, we've had the "Did I lock the front door" from OH (not from me) but we were actually on the motorway and turned round at the next junction! Arguably better than spending the holiday with himself worrying about an unlocked door.

But it's all great fun and so enjoyable isn't it. Adds to it by being on here and sharing everyone else's flights. y)

Others mention the document wallet.
Our next trip is Feb 2015
The document wallet already has:
Passports and driving licences.
Copy of ESTAs (not needed but it shows us we've done them)
Gatwick hotel booking. (did that yesterday)
Flight itinerary. Did that April.
Hyatt Regency at Orlando (did that in April)
Hotel in St. Augustine for the final night as we had to add a day to the hols to get Upper on the return. Did that last month.
Missing is the paperwork for our house rental in South Carolina, but we don't get that until 30 days prior.
Car rental is still on the to do list.
Dick D

Ah refereshing it's not just me!
Just starting my last shift before the hols start and my colleagues are well aware of my trip.

My ritual starts with reminding them EVERY DAY that I am going away. Bags packed, passport checked,double checked and now getting all the paperwork together.

+1 for the "I'm glad it's not just me"!!!

For a short journeys I don't do any preparation as it's all electronic on my phone these days (I'll be really stuck without my phone). The only thing I do is the customary pat of the plane as I board.

For trips with the family it's a military exercise so a few months before I'll stick an email into drafts and keep adding to it. This is from my last trip:



My backpack
Documentation pack (*)
Phone
Video Camera
Book
Headphones
iPads
2xchargers

Mrs Fuzzy's backpack
Nappies
Wipes
Change for baby
Snacks

Kids backpack (replace with kids onboard bag)
Books
Crayons
Toys

Suitcase 1 (small siver)
My clothes
My shoes
Child 1 Clothes
SLR Camera
Camera Chargers (SLR, phone & Video)
Travel Plugs

Suitcase 2 (large silver)
Mrs Fuzzy's clothes
Straighteners

Suitcase 3 (yellow)
Child 2's clothes
Child 3's clothes
Car seat

Suitcase 4 (yellow)
Car seat
Shoes (others)
Toiletries/sun cream
Baby's swim jacket

(*) Documentation Pack
Passports
Plane tickets
Lounge tickets
ESTA
Car Hire
Licences paper counterpart
Villa instructions
Maps
Theme park tickets
Money

The documentation pack has to be in that order, as it's how we'll need everything in the journey.

It's interesting that we all print off ESTAs despite us not needing to!

I never take my licence counterpart and of course Sod's law now says I will need it.