Surviving Your First Long-Haul Flight

By Alex Moore, Australian National University, Australia

The thought of having a 24 hour+ journey was definitely a daunting one and they are a very different experience in comparison to the short European flights that I had taken before. That being said there were a few things that I did that made the experience slightly easier and less stressful.

Now first there are a few housekeeping bits that will make your life easier; firstly having your visa and any other important paperwork like you CofE printed out and to hand. I was asked to show my visa when checking in and having a folder in my hand luggage with everything ready to go made this process quick and easy. Secondly, on landing in Australia you will be handed a small form called an incoming passenger card to fill out, just pop a pen in you cabin bag and you will avoid the long process of having to ask everyone around you for one that me and my row had to that left us rushing to fill it out as everyone else was getting off.

Now regarding the flights themselves my number one tip would be to choose a journey that does not involve self-transfer of your bags. This meant, for me, checking mine in at Gatwick and not having to think about them until I collected them at the baggage claim in Sydney. This was then one less thing that I would have to think about during my layover, which did end up being significantly shorter than planned due to a delayed take off, meaning I would not have had enough time to re-check back in and go through security again.

Secondly, I would say that my decision to go with a slightly more expensive option was one that I do not regret. Now by no means was I flying Emirates first class or anything like that, but flying with Qatar airways did provide me with a 30kg baggage allowance, a reasonably comfortable seat, as well as surprisingly good food. This was a pleasant surprise as this was my first experience with plane food so I was expecting the worst.

Another thing to note is that you will be passing through multiple time zones during your journey. It is useful to focus on the time zone you will be eventually landing in into in Australia. This involves attempting to align you sleep schedule to you final destination; this was a tip that I was given by an Australian that I sat next to on my 14 hour flight. Now I was far from completely successful in doing this, but with the provided eye mask and ear plugs it did make sleeping at any point in the flight possible and allow for an easier experience beating my jetlag in the first few days (although I have to say that jet lag was no joke for me so don’t underestimate its effects).

A highlight of my journey was exploring Doha airport, this was a very different experience in comparison to my small local airports at home. Although I only had an hour to explore and stretch my legs it was amazing to witness an indoor tropical garden, a stark contrast to the view of a small screen that had been in front of me for the past 7 hours.

Finally, I will end with a more specific note on getting to Canberra itself. From the UK flights do not go directly to Canberra, instead they will all take you to mostly Sydney and sometimes Melbourne. My advice would be to either book yourself a hostel/hotel for a few days in Sydney, to explore and adjust to the time zone before diving straight into integrating into uni life again. Then, whether you stopped off or went straight down to Canberra I would recommend booking a coach rather than an additional flight, it is so much cheaper and when taking into account the time it takes for security, baggage claim and everything else that comes along with flying, the fact the coach is only takes 3 and a bit hours makes the money saved definitely worth it!