Flying economy: comfort tips
Small things that make a budget flight feel better, without taking up space in your free baggage.
Karen’s tip Ditch the foam neck pillow
An inflatable pillow that deflates into its own small pouch beats the bulky foam neck pillow most people carry. It takes almost no space, and it’s versatile: a head cushion on the plane, then a cushion on the sunbed or the beach. You also choose how much air goes in, so it’s as firm or soft as you like, which a foam neck pillow can’t do.
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Karen’s tips - Wear your heaviest items on travel day: coat, knit and your bulkiest shoes. They’d take the most space and weight in your bag.
- Planes can be cold with the air con, so take a jacket on board.
- On super-hot trips, skip the jacket and take a neutral-colour wrap or pashmina. It keeps you warm on the plane, doubles as an evening wrap, and covers your shoulders for churches where a guide mentions it.
Karen’s tipDon’t pour your water away
At airports with the new scanners and a 2-litre liquids limit, you can take a full water bottle (up to 2 litres) through security. Lots of people still pour theirs away out of habit: Karen saw a whole queue doing it at an airport where it was allowed.
- Check your airport on our liquids page before you go.
- 2 litres allowed? Keep your bottle.
- Still 100 ml? Take it through empty and refill airside. A collapsible bottle packs flat.
- Flying home: the airport you fly back from may still make you empty it.
Simple things that help
Choose your seat wisely
A window seat gives you a wall to lean on for sleeping. An aisle seat lets you stretch your legs and get up without climbing over anyone. Want to sit together for free? See Karen’s check-in tip below.
Layers and socks
Cabin temperatures swing. A thin layer you can add or remove, plus a pair of warm socks for when you slip your shoes off, makes a long flight far comfier.
Eye mask and earplugs or earbuds
Cabin lights and engine noise are the two things that stop most people sleeping. Both fit in a pocket.
Buy snacks airside
Food you buy after security can come on board, and it’s usually better value than the trolley. Remember that a soup or yoghurt bought before security counts as a liquid.
Keep essentials in your under-seat bag
Medicines, chargers, your water bottle, the eye mask and a snack: keep them in the bag at your feet, so you don’t need the overhead locker mid-flight.
Karen’s tip Want to sit together without paying?
“Want to sit together without paying for seats? Try checking in as early as you can. It doesn’t always work, but it has for me, and the free seats run out the closer you get to departure.”
Free seats together are never guaranteed. If sitting together really matters, paying for seats is the only sure way.
When free online check-in opens
| Airline | Free check-in opens | With a paid seat | Children and families |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ryanair | 24 hours before departure (random free seat) closes 2 hours before | 60 days before departure | If random allocation is chosen, children are seated next to an accompanying adult on the same booking free of charge; other adults and teens may be seated separately. Ryanair says a free random seat is unlikely to be next to your travel companions. Source · Source 2 |
| easyJetto re-check | 30 days before departure closes 2 hours before | 30 days before departure | If you don't buy seats, easyJet allocates free seats at check-in and tries to keep the booking together, but doesn't guarantee it. Source · Source 2 |
| Wizz Air | 24 hours before departure (no seat bought) closes 3 hours before | 30 days before departure | Free random seats: Wizz says it can't guarantee passengers on the same booking will sit next to each other. Source · Source 2 |
| Jet2to re-check | 28 days before departure closes 6 hours before | 28 days before departure | Without pre-booked seats, seats are assigned free at check-in, first come first served. Children and infants under 12 are seated next to an accompanying adult where possible, otherwise no more than one row away. Source · Source 2 |
| TUI Airwaysto re-check | 48 hours before departure (24 hours for Mexico and Jamaica) closes 1 hour before | 14 days before departure | A child under 12 is guaranteed a seat with at least one adult on the booking, though not necessarily right beside them. Reserve seats to keep the whole family together. Source · Source 2 |
| British Airwaysto re-check | 24 hours before departure closes 1 hour before (2 hours for US flights) | 24 hours before departure (paid seat selection is available earlier, but check-in itself opens at 24 hours) | BA says children under 12 are seated with an accompanying adult from the same booking; seats may be across an aisle or in different rows for the rest of the party. Source · Source 2 |
| Vuelingto re-check | 24 hours before departure (Basic/Fly Light without a seat) closes unconfirmed | 15 days before departure (Fly Light with a seat); higher fares from booking | Vueling tries to seat passengers on the same booking together but can't guarantee it; free random seats are limited. Source · Source 2 |
| Aer Lingusto re-check | 48 hours before (Europe); 24 hours before (transatlantic) closes unconfirmed | up to 15 days before on some European fares or with paid seat selection | Unconfirmed. we found no official promise of free seats together for children (a Family First plan offers reduced-price child seat selection on some European flights). Source |
| Virgin Atlanticto re-check | 24 hours before departure (free standard Economy seats from then) closes 70 minutes before | 24 hours before departure (paid seat selection earlier) | Virgin Atlantic seats children within arm's reach of an accompanying adult (next to, across the aisle, in front or behind). Source · Source 2 |
From the airlines’ official pages, checked 20 Oct 2026. Rules change: check your booking. “To re-check” means we’ll confirm it again on the next monthly check.
🔋 Power banks go in your hand baggage
UK Civil Aviation Authority rules: power banks and spare lithium batteries must travel in the cabin, never in the hold. Since 27 March 2026 there’s a limit of two power banks per person; each must be protected from short circuits (for example in its own pouch, or with the terminals taped over) when you’re not using it, and you mustn’t recharge it on board. Power banks over 100 Wh need the airline’s approval.
Sources: CAA power bank rules · CAA: what you can pack. Checked 20 Oct 2026.
🦵 Long flights and flight socks
On journeys of 4 hours or more, the NHS suggests wearing loose clothing, drinking plenty of water, avoiding alcohol and walking around when you can. Some people like flight or compression socks. Ask your GP if you’re at risk of DVT (deep vein thrombosis) before you fly, and about whether flight socks are right for you.
Source: NHS: DVT (deep vein thrombosis). This is general advice, not medical advice.
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Some links will become affiliate links. See our affiliate disclosure. Also useful: Pack light · Liquids rules by airport · Plan my trip.