How to Survive a Long Airport Delay

Sometimes it happens. That inevitable sinking feeling that you get when your flight is delayed for a long time. Here are few tips from a seasoned road warrior to help you make the best of it.

Difficulty: Easy

Instructions

Things You'll Need:

• The Frequent Travelers Essentials:
• Playing Cards
• Magazine - Non-Work Related
• One Internal Obscure Procedural Memo
• Travel Tooth Brush
• Travel Tooth Paste
• Floss Picks
• Travel Mouth Wash
• Hand Sanitizing Wipes
• Travel Size Cologne
• Chewable Aspirin
• Chewable Bismuth Tablets

1. It is every road-warrior's nightmare. You just get off your flight ready to hustle to your connecting flight and as you dash up the gate ramp and into the terminal you see the unmistakable yellow flicker on the departure board anonymously and indiscriminately indicating that your connecting flight has been delayed. You walk up to the board and look closer to make sure it is your flight. You check your watch. You reach for your PDA. You scroll through your browser and call up your airline's url and to your dismay you did in fact receive an alert of the delay while you were en route. With a slow turn you walk away from the schedule board and begin to walk dejectedly down the concourse of the terminal. In a nook just before the main concourse you find a single seat where you shirk off your carryon, slump in your chair, and make the dreaded "I am delayed" call to your receiving party at the your final destination. After platitudes and the requisite "you get here when you get here" condolences you begin to check your email, double check your schedule, call a colleague or two, and then if you are like me and are having an endless affair with your laptop, you might find yourself a nice quiet corner and actually try and do some work.
   
   Now for most short delays ranging from a half hour to an hour you might do just fine and arrive at your gate feeling somewhat satisfied that you had actually put in some productive time while the Lords of the Airport had sorted out your connection and then you are then on your way. There is, however, those times that inexplicably your plane is at the gate but there is no aircrew, the plane never arrived, and while its sunny and beautiful where you are, the plane you needed to be on is snowbound in Kansas City or melting in the rain somewhere in the South East. I never can understand why this is, and during one seven hour delay I had at Laguardia on a day trip into New York City I did a lot of questioning why planes can't fly in the rain. It didn't matter to me at the time that the explanations about thunderstorms in the mid-west were keeping me from my hour return flight home. I just felt trapped.

2. 
    
   Sometimes a drink and a hand of cards is just the thing you need to relax.

   So for those of you that travel as much as I do I have learned a few things that with a modest amount of planning and foresight, and good packing, you may just find your time at the terminal a little more enjoyable. Long after you have expended the busy work on your laptop, almost killing your battery and as you gaze down the concourse at all of your other fellow trapped travelers huddled around every available power station node like moths to a porch light on a mid-summers eve, you may actually want to just find a place, imbibe in a martini or whatever your beverage of choice is, and even strike up a conversation with a stranger to pass the time. I have found one of the easiest and non-threatening ways to meet a new person at an airport is to sit down at a good eatery or pub in the terminal and when my martini arrives pull out a deck of cards. Most people, men and women alike will be agreeable to play a few hands of whatever you both know. Everyone knows Crazy Eights, Go Fish, and for all those sales people out there, you can always just play War. Now and again I encounter an older gent that will know how to play cribbage and on one occasion I found three other people willing to pass the time playing Euchre. What is great about playing cards is that everyone just begins to feel relaxed and for you, well, that just lets the otherwise frustrating times during long delays pass quickly and easily.

3. There are those times when you may be delayed late into the evening and even night and depending on the terminal you are in you may not have an option of the pub, or even many people willing to trade some shut eye time with a few hands at cards. For this eventuality I pack some essential reading material, the first being some obscure internal procedural memo that I have deemed to be worth of becoming an expert on. Again this is a way to be productive, and proactive as well with my career, and it is an excellent way to pass the time, digest the memo, and then see what if any improvements or new ideas that I may be able to add to it. In either case, it will become a talking point the next time I talk to my boss and at the least sets the record for me when performance and annual evaluation time comes around. The second piece of reading material that I always have with me is some non-work related magazine or novelette that is no more than pure brain candy. There is a time in every delay you need to exercise the other part of your mind to mitigate the stress of delays and just make you feel good. It may be anything that you fancy, whether a sports magazine, travel guide to help plan your next vacation, or even a humorous novelette by any known satirist. There is nothing wrong sitting alone in an airport with a smile on your face and the occasional chuckle escaping your lips. It does make you more human and approachable too should any passerby be looking to pass the time with conversation with you as well.

4. 
    
   A few packed essentials can make all the difference.

   There is also the feeling that one gets when you are trapped in an airport, especially if on that particular day there are multitudes of flights delayed, you might find some of the amenities over used, and the little shops scarce of some basic creature comforts. It really doesn't matter whether I am doing a same day turn around, one night, or several nights, I keep the same items in my laptop bag that in a pinch will allow me to feel refreshed and relaxed. One of the most essential items is keeping sanitizing hand wipes handy. I know that most people use the sanitizing gel, which is great, don't get me wrong, but I find the sanitizing clothes to be better, especially if I want to just do a quick face wipe without navigating the crowded restrooms of the terminal. Its easy, quick, and quite refreshing. Also having my tooth brush and toothpaste accessible is a great pick me up during a long delay and given some of the airport food that you may ingest during your unscheduled stay, it an be a god send to any weary traveler. The other two items that I have found extremely handy are chewable aspirin and bismuth tablets, for those unforeseen head and body aches, cold onslaughts, and the inevitable indigestion that arrives after the third coffee while waiting.
   
   The keys to surviving the long airport delay lie in the amount of planning and preparation you do in advance. Keeping a few things handy, a couple of items to help pass the time, and some fodder to generate an unexpected smile and good conversation will always make a world of difference. Happy Travels!!
   
   The Frequent Travelers Essentials:
   Playing Cards
   Magazine - Non-Work Related
   One Internal Obscure Procedural Memo
   Travel Tooth Brush
   Travel Tooth Paste
   Floss Picks
   Travel Mouth Wash
   Hand Sanitizing Wipes
   Travel Size Cologne
   Chewable Aspirin
   Chewable Bismuth Tablets