The famous words that many of us travelers have been guilty of when in an unknown destination. Plenty of times in my own experience have I pictured Dorothy telling little Toto those lines of discomfort when in a foreign or unknown land. Driving to your destination in many people’s opinions can tailor more to you and how you can control your time wherever you go. But if the destination is too far or more economical for your time, flying might be the only option for you. After your destination and traveling options have been decided, thoughts or fears might tend to creep into your mind by now. Who to buy tickets from, the expenses, navigating your destination, or even just a fear of flying in general. Below, I have laid out a list of some commonalities when it comes to airline travel fears to get started on this journey of tips, experiences and commonalities to ensure a safe, successful and exciting airplane trip.
Picking an Airline:
As anybody knows in this day and age, there are plenty of airlines browse and pick from. Whether that is Southwest’s super cheap airfares, to the convenience of destinations and fleet numbers of American Airlines, or to even international powerhouses such as Emirates or KLM. Choosing the right airline for you and your interests is not an easy decision and for some people, past experiences might be the only driving factor for you to move along the process of your trip.
Airline Expenses:
The next stage of airline travel fear for many of us is the pocket emptying airline ticket. That $300 plane ticket that gets you from Austin to LAX in less than 3 hours can put many people in a sticky situation financially. According to statista.com, airfare prices have risen 3.5% in 2018 alone. Not only is Austin to LAX a domestic flight, but international flights can be triple or even more than that figure for just a one way trip.
Destination Navigation:
Many of us airline travelers are aware of the navigation that is required when it comes to the end of your flight. Some of us decide to plan ahead, some of do not (wink wink, me). Domestically it can be difficult, internationally it may be even harder, given their customs for travel are not similar to America’s. This confusion can be finding your type of transportation from the airport, the pricing of it and the convenience of where it’s located from the airport as well. To give an experience of my own, I was in Washington D.C. in the summer with no rental car. So, having to call an Uber towards the airport, going to our hotel destination and then having to use the subway as a means of travel while there for the best economical choice in a brand new city was not easy. This concept surely can drive worry and stress into travelers with myself included.
International Uncertainty:
When it comes to the ranking of the five common fears of airline travel, this might be towards the top. Not being up to date with international travel customs or the layout of navigation in say Germany or Mexico or Japan can happen. This fear can be fueled by a lot of factors for you to say at any given moment, “You know what, I don’t want to worry about it, forget it.” Whether that is the navigation of the city or country, the way of transportation, currency and figuring out expenses.
Fear of Flying:
You might be thinking to yourself right now, what? Fear of flying? I fly regularly, that is not a common fear. Well, my aunt would easily convince you in about ten seconds that she has never stepped on a working airplane and will happily never step on one until the day she dies. Now, that might be a bit extreme, but you would be surprised at how many people are scared of flying. According to flyright.com, 1 in 3 Americans are either anxious about flying or have a fear of flying. Given that statistic, it’s clear for some people that if they have an option to get to a destination differently, they are going to take advantage of those options.
To many, some of these fears have occurred during an airline trip, so thinking you are alone is not the theme of this blog. Throughout the next few weeks, I will try and appeal to you who is in a situation of fear when dealing with an airline trip. I will not only give insight, but experiences and cite personal connections to some other areas and destinations along the way. The journey has only begun!
Joel's Airline Travel Blog 