hezza

Hi

My 63-year-old mother is facing her first ever long-haul flight to visit my sister who recently moved to NZ. She has never flown longer than an hour, hates travelling, has very little faith in her ability to cope with sudden changes and is generally pretty intimidated by the thought, especially since she will have to stop over at least twice and probably 3 times. The probable route is (Manchester - ) Heathrow - Foreign Stopover (maybe Singapore) - Auckland - New Plymouth. She would be much happier if she had someone to travel with, someone to sit with during stopovers, basically a friendly face during a v stressful experience. I'm sure there must be a lot of retired people travlling on their own, but how do I find such people? Anyone know of any handy websites or links? Anyone have any tips?

Hezza

Buzzy--Bee

Here's my tip - and it worked for my Father in his 70's. Fly Air New Zealand. Not because they're better than anyone else or anything, it's just that your Mother will definitely strike up a conversation with the people next to her who will either be a)kiwis and long to tell her about their wonderful country b)People such as herself going to visit relatives c) Tourists, in which case she can talk about how she is going to visit her resident relatives with pride.

As an example, when I had to fly to Los Angeles from London recently on business I chose to fly Air NZ for all the reasons above and ended up sitting next to my wife's cousin's boss from Christchurch. We knew a lot of the same people.

My father still exchanges Christmas Cards with people he has met on Air NZ (nutter!).

Cheers

Buzzy.

Sugo

i would make sure she chats to her doctor too before she goes, see if there is any advice for DVT risk reduction its rare but can happen. I 2nd the air new zealand thing, sit with a kiwi you might end up making a friend for life.

Also have an itinary written down and have copies incase she looses one it reduces stress, and make sure she asks for help if she gets stuck, it will also reduce the stress. It is stressful flying as we all know but i always think preparation is the best. Preparation prevents pi** poor performance

She should be fine.

Dodsonfamily

My Mom is in her seventy's and she hadn't even left the uk before,just make sure she has everything writen down and laminated(size of a creidt card so it fits in her purse)she flew via hong Kong and only stopped for 3hrs before getting on her next plane.
I also told her to drink plenty(so she would be up walking around going to the loo).
She's having christmas at home this year but will be back next christmas and is thinking of going via kuala lumpa next time(just so she can say she's been to another country on her list

Fishy

when we move my mum reckons she is happy to spend 6 months in uk and 6 in NZ. She's in her mid 60's now and very active and dynamic and says she wants a bit of an adventure. It would be great to put her in touch with other Grannies in the future (not planning to move untilAug 2006.) Just wondering how many years she'll be able to keep it up for. Hoping that when she see's NZ she'll love it so much she'll just stay.

Andrew Cross

If you are worried about her getting lost etc then I suggest she becomes a MAAS. (meet and assist) They will meet her from the aircraft and escort her to her connecting flight, especially at Heathrow as the two flights are in different terminals and she will have to go through the connection centre first. Also if she cant walk far then she could go in a wheelchair, the pushers are a great lot and very chatty and helpful. This also applies in Singapore where they will do exactly the same. It also puts your mind at rest as you know she will be getting looked after.... I did it with my gran last year and she was glad she had the help. Just call reservations and let them know.
Good luck,

Sue

hezza

Thanks very much for all the tips - keep them coming!

Heather

shazzafromnz

Hi.
I have done a number of long haul flights around the world now and..
My tips are for any age on a long haul flight..dont drink alcohol..drink only water and juice..its dehydrating enough being in flight that long and your jet lag will be no where near as bad.
Get up and walk around at least 2 hrly when it is not your sleep time..and do leg excercises..Dont eat every meal..you will feel awful by the end of it..it only some of each meal or every second meal around the times that you would have normally been eating.
Take your own water bottle and face wipes for refreshing your self as one feels pretty greasy and sticky..
Ask for an isle seat..easier for the elderly to get out and walk about and visit the loo etc..you do have to put up with others needing to get out though.
The tip about taking Air New Zealand is I agree a good one..I would also advise that she take a stop over in either singapore or LA ..as they are efficient, english speaking ,clean etc..I hated Bankock airport they body search you and your bag for everything and their transit lounges have very uncomfortable plastic seats.I would avoid any stop overs,or flight change overs in India,Bankock or any middle eastern countries...i dont think she would feel safe there.

Often a friendly person on their own is happy to provide company in transit if asked..ive done this before for people.
Cheers
Shazza