You are sitting at the airport waiting to board your flight, looking forward to reach your destination. You look at the announcement board at the airport and breathe a sigh of relief that your flight is scheduled on time. However, within a few minutes you hear an announcement, "Attention please, all passengers on XYZ airlines flight 310589 to Chicago, the gate has been changed to 31A. Also there will be a delay in departure. The new departure time for this flight will be 11.45. This is due to heavy snow in Chicago. We would like to apologize for the delayed departure. Thank you for your patience." Now, this can be an unpleasant experience, unless you decide to take it in the right stride, not lose your calm and enjoy the delay. Well... I know it sounds a little weird, but there are a few creative ways to kill time when things like that happen. Take a look at how to spend time at an airport, in case of a delayed flight.
How to Kill Time at an Airport
Carry your favorite book along...
Whenever you are traveling and especially if you are alone, make sure you carry a book you like or simply a comic book (if you do not enjoy reading intense books). If you have forgotten to carry one, walk to a magazine or book stall at the airport (you have plenty of them there) and browse through the books there. You will find a lot of people at the airport with newspapers, borrow one for the time being and return it once you are done with it. Reading is not the only thing you can do, read the entire article to know a few more interesting things.
Surf the net...
If you are carrying your laptop along or if you have a smart phone, you are definitely sorted. People with such gadgets are never alone and never bored. So, get googling. You can also enjoy a few social networking sites or simply surf the net. Online games are the best to keep you occupied during your stay at the airport. Check your emails, send your friends an email or reply to one. Use the time for yourself.
Listen to music...
A delayed flight can give you a chance to download your favorite music, which probably you have been waiting to download since a long time and listen to. Keep your ipods or MP3 players updated with good music and audio books, trust me they really help you kill time and enjoy the experience, rather than sulking. If you do not have these gadgets, your mobile phones support MP3 format, update your cell phone with some good music.
Window shopping...
Shopping is the best remedy to fight the unpleasant feeling of flight delay. No, I don't mean go shopping at the airport and shell out cash, but it doesn't hurt to go and look for things. Just go window shopping! You never know you might like something and would want to pick it up for someone and make them happy. Or even better, end up buying something for yourself making yourself happy.
Pamper yourself...
This is something I did the last time I was stuck at the airport; pampered myself. Massage parlors and spas are very common these days at the airports. Give yourself a relaxed muscle tingling back or foot massage. A rejuvenating facial massage and manicure or pedicure also works wonders to help you forget your delayed boarding time. So, relax and rejuvenate.
Talk to people around...
If there's something that the airport is rarely short of, it is people. Talking to your fellow travelers is a great way to kill time. If you are traveling with your family nothing like it you get to catch up with them and spend some quality time chatting. However, if you are nervous about starting a conversation with a stranger, simply start with "where are you flying?" and go on. Sometimes you get to meet interesting people at the airport.
So next time with an airport layover, you know what you have to do when your flights canceled to keep yourself entertained and occupied. You can also jot down your experiences and about the different kind of people you met or noticed at the airport. Perhaps even blog about the experience!
P.S. - Just make sure you are keep an eye on the time and also listen to the announcements intently; you may be waiting at the wrong gate or enjoying your massage and wouldn't know when your flight finally takes off.
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