5 Little Ways To Pass The Time When You Find Yourself Stuck In An Airport

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It could be a one hour wait before you have to board your flight, or it might be a 10hr long lay over … I have been on both sides. Whatever the airport wait is, it doesn’t have to be a torture, in fact I really enjoy just chilling at airports. You just have to find a way to spend your time in a way that doesn’t make you want to crash that tick-tock from the clock on the wall.

1. Be productive and write.

Airports have a tendency of putting me in a weird state of mind. I like to just sit and let my thoughts flow and see where they take me, and when I find something interesting in my mental box I like to write it down. Sometimes is a random story of something that happened that I had forgotten, and just sitting there having nothing to do brought that story up in my head. Sometimes is future plans, since being at an airport involves change in some way I like to thing of what is to come. Sometimes is about whatever I am leaving behind by boarding that plane. It could be anything, just make sure to have your pen and notebook close by. Or laptop, if that’s your thing.

2. Listen to music.

I simply cannot live without music, I need to be listening to something, always. If there is nothing playing then I am singing, in my head or out loud. Sometimes this goes hand in hand with writing. I have all types of music on my iPod (I still use those) and sometimes a certain song will bring up a memory in my head which I will later on put down on paper.

3. Check out your fellow airport dwellers.

Again you could mix and match the options, I like to sometimes grab a coffee or a beer at the airport put my headphones in and just watch the world around me go by. Look at everyone rushing to their boarding gate, see those cute backpacking couples heading to their next adventure, that solo traveler with the camera on hand, those families juggling a million suitcases, those lovers saying goodbye at the gate. I love to stay still and see the motion around me, I love to watch and take it all in, think about the stories behind the people, and sometimes think about what would people deduct from me if they saw me as I see them.

4. Read a book.

If you are a hungry reader like me this one will definitely make the hours rush by on a long layover. I am one of those people that are not always reading, but when I do pick up a book I have to finish it in 2 days. I cannot stop. If  you bring along a book that  you really enjoy, you can just lose yourself in someone else’s world and problems and before you realize it they will be calling your flight to head to the boarding gate.

5. Find a spot with good internet and drinks, Netflix, and chill by yourself.

I recently found out that the airport is an excellent place to start a new series. I can never encourage myself to start a new series at home, because I know I will probably end up watching all the seasons in an unhealthy amount of time and I will be the less productive human being on Earth.

Sooooo, being at the airport gives me the perfect excuse to just sit and enjoy whatever series I want to watch, and watch as many episodes as possible without feeling like a useless member of society. Go find yourself a good bar/coffee shop/restaurant, a comfy corner and ask for that Wi-Fi password with no shame… obviously order something if you are planning to spend a good part of the day there.