Flying Long Haul when you've only ever flown short - what do you think are the differences?

[JemimaPyjamas]

A friend is considering a long haul destination for her honeymoon in a few months. She has had a previous fear of flying but is hoping hypnotherapy is helping this, and has previously never flown for longer than a few hours flight.

One of the things she said that made her feel uncomfortable is the plane feeling flimsy and I have said that in my experience a bigger plane significantly lessens that aspect - but that's easy for me to say as I've never been a nervous flyer!

I have had far more long than short haul flights (and very few of either in recent years) but if you can think of any other positive aspects comparing the two I'd love to hear them.

Generally, more comfortable seats, better in flight entertainment, it tends to be non-budget airlines that fly long-haul so your food and drinks are included.

Long haul takes longer is what I have found

You're bored for longer but that's about it.

Scianel, this is the kind of thing I mean! I've flown RyanAir once and, to be, it felt like a bus with wings but when I've flown long haul it's been at least some level of exciting and less, er, bus like.

I have no idea why this is so hard for me to articulate! Your post helped, thanks

When we fly to Caribbean, we get breakfast, lunch and dinner, plus free drinks. The Thomson Dreamliner has mood lighting and they do something with the cabin pressure to ease jet lag (I'm not very techie, so can't elaborate). The in-flight entertainment is great. Me and DH usually order a couple of bottles of prosecco and get tipsy and then sleep for a few hours.

Its a while since I've flown but I first peruse the inflight entertainment and suss out the best movies, then which TV progs/ music I plan to watch. Two good movies can fill a lot of the time and your attention. I used to often watch award winning foreign movies which used to be difficult to find in the U.K.

Long haul airlines tend to have older aircrew. The destination will influence the make up of the passengers.

Depends how long the flight is but we will always fly in the premium ecomony cabin. More leg room, smaller cabin, better meals (if any airplane meals are nice!), priority getting on / off. We always book the seats of 2 .... nothing worse than being stuck next to a stranger for 10 hours.

I am a very nervous flier didn't fly for about 10 years then I decided I wanted to go to LA. So we went on a Virgin dreamliner. The fear is still there but the plane is bigger and wider so it feels more spacious. They bring round food and drinks a lot so that is a distraction. Plus you have entertainment and it helps me relax by watching the map.

If she can upgrade her seats for a bit more room/leg room do it.

The year later I even went on a 40 seat tiny flight and made it was ok.

I still hate take off. I try and read.

Following. I have flown long haul but not for years, and remember it as less scary than short haul. Am I right?

I've only flown long haul once, to Japan. It gets boring and the in flight entertainment isn't always very good and they sometimes have the same things on the way out and the way back. The interesting bits of flying are take off and landing. When you're in the sky for ages it does get dull. Also, it can be interesting to know where you're flying over but once you got past Europe, the flight information didn't have much to tell us, we were just going over Siberia for a very, very, long time. Take lots of books and magazines.

@Firesidefox I think it is less scary, yes. While I am not nervous myself, I do think that the bigger plane lends itself to feeling less vulnerable in the air - and as a previous poster said, the meals and snacks is at least a distraction!

I am a very frequent flyer. Wide-body planes used for long haul flights feel heavier, even during turbulence, so yes the 'flimsy' feeling is reduced. It could also be useful to sit in the middle rows that are nowhere near windows, so it doesn't feel so much like a plane, more like a train in some way.

There is food, which even though tends to be of crap quality, breaks off the journey. I look forward to it somewhat, for the novelty of it if nothing else. There is in-flight entertainment which again varies from airline to airline, but usually there are 2 or 3 decent movies you can watch.

Funnily enough, I get bored after the 2h mark on a short-haul flight, but I've gone 6-7 hours on a long-haul flight before feeling bored. There's something about it that doesn't tire you as much. Seats are usually a little wider and unless the flight is jam-packed, you can put handbags and rucksacks in the holders, so you do have some floor space compared with eg an easyJet flight.

It also depends how long-haul we're talking - 7 hours direct to New York, or 28 hours and 3 different layovers to a regional airport in New Zealand? Vastly different experiences.

It's the same but longer. Bigger planes usually plus you often get an entertainment system with a map built in so you can stare at a little plane icon for 9+ hours whilst not sleeping... not a fan of flying myself, this year we go one way on the Queen Mary 2 instead.

Your legs might explode. That might be a flippant answer but it's one of my fears.

[quote JemimaPyjamas]@Firesidefox I think it is less scary, yes. While I am not nervous myself, I do think that the bigger plane lends itself to feeling less vulnerable in the air - and as a previous poster said, the meals and snacks is at least a distraction![/quote]
Good, I was wondering if I was just a bit less nervous in those days!

I am hoping to fly long haul next year but do keep wondering if my nerves are up to it, so following this post with interest.

The toilets might be on a different floor which is actually quite nice to stretch your legs a bit.

The layout is usually a different as well - rows for 2 people along the outside with a large row in the middle. So two aisles instead of one.

The free food is also a good distraction, as are the choice of films / tv programs. You might also get a pillow / blanket for a night flight.

I flew long haul for the first time since 2013 last week and forgot how much better it is than short haul!

After my last few European holidays I thought I was becoming a bit of a nervous flyer but I've come to realise I think it's just short haul I don't like as I was absolutely fine on both long haul flights. Having entertainment makes the flight go much quicker so I think that was the biggest difference.

If it's not included, I'd recommend them booking into a lounge before the flight - if she not keen on flying it can be a nice calm way to start the journey and you can get pretty good rates online.

I'm not a nervous flyer so don't have your friend's challenges, but flying long haul is much more of an "experience " than short haul. This helps distract from the fact that you're in a tin tube thousands of miles up in the sky . The flight usually feels much smoother, and the time is broken up by meals, drinks, entertainment.
I miss long haul flights!

I always look at the TV and film options in advance and plan my viewing to look forward to.

It's also a much nicer process with being able to pick seats (there's a website which tells you which ones are good), nice food and drink, a bit more space and usually more comfortable.

Despite that it is very dull, and unless you can sleep I'm bored after about 5 hours!

It also depends if it's flying or the takeoff and landing she doesn't like of course. Also some routes more likely to have bad turbulence but that applies to both long and short routes.

I agree about booking a lounge m, it’s a nice way to start your holiday.
I prefer long haul because of better in flight entertainment. I normally watch a couple of films and a box set of comedies.

@soyunperdador I think you mean thousands of feet, cruising altitude is normally around 7 miles.

@EileenGC Cambodia!

My DM is an extremely nervous flyer. She definitely fines smaller flights scarier. She doesn't like turbulence and the noise - all of which are less on a bigger plane. She did a fear of flying course which included cbt and a short flight. She found it very helpful and can now fly alone if necessary - after previously having to get train home from one trip.