A few weeks ago, I was headed home from Jamaica with my family in tow. We had just spent an exhausting week laying around on the beach, drinking Red Stripe and searching for crabs. With a four-hour flight ahead of us, we were ready for some R&R.
Unfortunately, the family next to us had other ideas.
As soon as our plane took off, they whipped out a giant iPad, turned on the most annoying cartoon I'd ever heard, and proceeded to watch it on full blast. And this wasn't just a child; the parents were watching, too!
Everyone around them kept looking and waiting. Did they really expect the entire plane to listen to their cartoon? Why didn't they wear ear plugs? I found it fascinating they didn't realize how rude they were being, but the guy across the aisle from me looked extremely angry.
At a certain point, I started to wonder if they noticed the angry looks and stares. But no, they just kept on watching.
Fortunately, a flight attendant made them turn the volume off after 30 minutes of uncomfortable misery. I snickered with sweet satisfaction as she said, "Sorry ma'am, but you'll need to turn that off or plug in headphones. The people around you shouldn't have to listen to your movie."
This is the kind of thing that gives parents with kids a bad rap. While plenty of us work hard to keep our kids busy, other parents don't seem to care if other travelers are miserable.
And some people seem truly clueless when it comes to child and parent etiquette on a plane.
If you have kids and want to improve your own travel experience, along with the experiences of those around you, here are some tips to consider:
