How to Upgrade Your In-Flight Experience—Even While Stuck in Economy
While I’m sure we all wish we could fly first class every time we traveled, most of us don’t have the money or miles to do so. Even while sitting in economy class, there are a few ways you can upgrade your in-flight experience to make it feel more comfortable, pleasant, and luxurious. A little advance planning and smart travel accessories can go a long way.
Treat yourself to a smaller upgrade
Gone are the days when flights had just two sections: coach and first class. Now, even the main cabin has been divided into multiple tiers, allowing for travelers to choose from a super discounted fare (like United’s Basic Economy), regular, or plus.
Typically, an upgrade to economy “Plus” (or preferred, or comfort+ — the name varies by airline) gets you a little extra space and priority boarding. However, some airlines have a few extra perks baked into their plans:
Alaska Airlines offers complimentary wine, beer, and a snack box.
Delta gives complimentary wine, beer, and a dedicated bin space for your luggage.
JetBlue offers you one free checked bag, but no complimentary wine or beer.
United Airlines comes with priority boarding and extra leg room.
On some flights, the upgrade can cost as much as an additional $200 per leg, but on others it’s as cheap as $15-50 each way. Depending on the price and perks, this little upgrade can be worth it. Keep an eye out for affordable upgrades and treat yourself to a little extra comfort.
In addition to this offering, some airlines on some routes will also offer an additional class in between business/first and economy, such as the Premium Plus option offered on longer United Airlines routes (such as some, but not all, of their EWR - SFO flights). These offerings do cost more than Economy Plus, but you get more space, more comfortable seats, fewer people in each row (for example, a 2-3-2 configuration instead of a 3-4-3) and other little perks like an amenity kit and meals from the first class cabin. What you won’t get is a lie flat seat or personal “pod”, but if you’re able to find an upgrade to Premium Plus for a reasonable price, it’s absolutely worth it.
Uplevel your TV and movie game
With more and more airlines swapping back of seat entertainment screens with “personal device entertainment”, there are two things you can do to make watching a movie on your phone more enjoyable:
Get a pop socket ($10): Pop sockets, which are small, round phone grips you can stick to the back of any phone, also double as a stand, allowing you to prop your phone up on your tray table.
Or a phone mount ($12): Pop sockets are handy if they’re always on your phone (mine is embedded in my Otterbox phone case) but they can be unstable, especially during turbulence, and you can only use it when your tray table is down. A phone mount, on the other hand, clips to your tray table when shut and can be used when open, allowing maximum versatility and additional stability.
Download the Netflix app (free): Did you know with your Netflix subscription you can download Netflix movies and TV shows to your phone and access them offline? As long as you have a subscription (obviously), you can temporarily save anything you want and watch it without data or wifi.
Swap your travel socks for slippers
In many first and business class seats they don’t just give you socks—you also get slippers. Replicate this little luxury in economy by bringing your own pair. If you don’t yet own any, I recommend those by Muji, a Japanese home and lifestyle brand, which makes a comfy pair of jersey travel slippers ($18). They fold down nicely and come in their own mesh bag making them extra portable.
BYOF: Bring your own food
In economy, your food options are usually pretty mediocre—even if you’re willing to pay for the snack box or microwaved hamburger. Airport foods are yes, better, especially as some have been improving their food game. But if you’re willing to plan a bit in advance there’s no reason why you need to settle for either option since yes, you’re allowed to bring food through TSA , though with a few exceptions. Instead, grab a sandwich from your favorite local deli or make something at home. Just make sure to avoid overly messy or smelly foods.
Some great in-flight meals and snacks to bring with you include:
fried rice with chicken
an "adult snack pack" with crackers, salami, hard cheese, and fruit
a faro and broccoli salad
vegetable pasta
fresh apple slices
turkey wrap
How to pack your food
For containers, Smart Planet makes some nice collapsible food containers ($10-20). I also love the reusable sandwich bags by Stasher ($10+) for snacks, fruit, and sandwiches.
For a hot meal that won’t be cold by the time you eat it, Zojirushi makes a food container ($33) that will keep your food hot for hours after you pack it.
Find a way to actually sleep
There’s no one size-fits-all recommend for getting some in-flight zzz’s. For some of us, it’s all about the travel pillow. For others, sitting in a window seat helps tremendously.
For me, the magic combo is an eye mask, blanket, Tylenol PM, and a post-rock playlist on my iPhone. For eye mask, I like a silk mask such as this one by Brooklinen ($25), my Apple AirPods ($90) are essential for canceling out noise, and for a cozy blanket, I opt for one that doubles as a scarf, like this lightweight jersey one on Etsy ($42).
If you struggle to sleep on planes, play around with it and find what works for you. Also, The Greatist has some helpful advice from sleep experts if you need some additional pointers.
Create your own amenity pack
First class passengers get a complimentary amenities pack, but you can build your own that’s ten times better. For this, I turned to a friend and former United flight attendant, Charity Yoro, for recommendations:
“I love having EO’s lavender hand sanitizer spray on hand for flights,” says Charity. “Oh, and Alba Botanica’s 3-in-1 face wipes. After a long flight, it’s so refreshing to use one.” Want to feel extra luxurious? Treat yourself to a hydrating, rose-scented face mist like Herbivore’s Rose Hibiscus Face Mist ($36).
If they're not already in your carry-on, some other items to keep in reach include:
hand lotion
face lotion
chapstick
toothbrush and toothpaste
a pair of cozy socks
face mask
All of these items are pretty standard inclusions in first and business class amenity kits, but also super easy to bring yourself. I recommend packing them together in a small pouch that you can pop in your backseat pocket for easy access throughout the flight.
This article was originally published in 2018. It has been most recently updated on August 27, 2023.
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