Is It Actually Better to Book Morning Flights?
Morning flights can look like a terrible idea when the alarm goes off at 3.30 am. At that moment, any supposed advantage of flying early seems very difficult to appreciate. But once you’re through security, clutching a coffee and watching the airport come to life, you may start to wonder whether that painfully early start was actually rather clever.
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There are two sorts of people at an airport at six o’clock in the morning.
There are the frighteningly cheerful ones, already clutching a coffee and looking as though they’ve been awake since Tuesday.
And then there are the rest of us.
We’re the ones wondering why we ever thought a 6.10 am flight was a good idea, whether coffee can legally be administered intravenously, and why airport lighting makes everybody look as though they’ve recently been dug up.
But here’s the annoying thing.
That horribly early flight might actually be worth getting out of bed for.
Morning flights have several advantages that aren’t immediately obvious when your alarm goes off at 3.30am. But they aren’t automatically the best choice for every journey either.
So before you sacrifice a perfectly good night’s sleep in pursuit of an early departure, let’s look at when flying early really does make sense — and when you can quite happily have a lie-in.
Why Morning Flights Can Be a Very Good Idea
One of the biggest advantages of an early flight is simply that the day’s problems haven’t had as much time to pile up yet.
Aircraft don’t spend their lives waiting patiently at one airport. The same plane and crew may operate several flights during the day.
If something delays an earlier journey, that disruption can affect what happens later.
That doesn’t mean every afternoon flight will be late or that the first flight of the morning will magically leave on time. Airports, airlines, weather and air-traffic restrictions can upset even the best-laid plans.
But if arriving at your destination on time really matters, an earlier departure can give you more breathing room.
And with morning flights there is another advantage I particularly like:
You get more holiday.
Land at lunchtime and you may still have most of the afternoon and evening ahead of you. Arrive at 10pm and Day One of the holiday has largely consisted of motorway, airport, aeroplane and finding the hotel reception desk.
That’s not quite the Mediterranean adventure I had in mind.
The Airport Can Feel Rather Different Early in the Day
There is something peculiar about an airport first thing in the morning.
It’s still busy — sometimes extremely busy — but there’s often a different atmosphere.
You’ve got your boarding pass. You’ve survived security. You’ve found coffee.
Suddenly that barbaric alarm clock begins to feel slightly less offensive.
And once you’re sitting at the gate watching daylight appear outside the windows, there can even be something rather lovely about it.
Almost.
Let’s not get carried away.
But There Is a Price to Pay
With morning flights the obvious disadvantage is getting there.
A 6.10am flight doesn’t mean arriving at the airport at 6am with your handbag swinging jauntily from your shoulder.
You may need to be there hours earlier.
That can mean leaving home in the middle of the night, paying for an airport hotel, arranging a taxi when public transport isn’t running normally, or driving while your body is firmly insisting that sensible people are still in bed.
And beginning a holiday exhausted isn’t particularly clever either.
If you arrive at your destination needing a four-hour sleep before you’re capable of recognising your travelling companion, you’ve rather cancelled out the benefit of arriving early.
Check the Whole Journey — Not Just the Flight Time
This is where I think people sometimes get caught.
We compare:
6.10am flight — £59
with:
11.30am flight — £84
and congratulate ourselves on saving £25.
But what did the 6.10am flight actually cost?
If it required an airport hotel, an expensive middle-of-the-night taxi or additional parking, the bargain can disappear remarkably quickly.
Before booking, I would compare the door-to-door cost and inconvenience, not merely the airfare.
Sometimes paying a little more for a civilised departure time is money very well spent.
The Little Things That Make Early Flights Much Easier
This is where a few carefully chosen travel gadgets can earn their place in your luggage.
Not seventeen gadgets.
Not an entire suitcase full of things somebody on the internet insists are “travel essentials”.
Just the things that solve an actual problem.
A small flight organiser can save an astonishing amount of rummaging once you’re on board. Keep the things you’re likely to want during the flight — passport, pen, phone cable, earbuds, Kindle, glasses and lip balm — together in one slim pouch. Once you’re seated, simply take out the organiser and tuck your main hand luggage away. No more excavating the overhead locker halfway through the flight because your charging cable has somehow migrated to the very bottom of your bag.
One surprisingly clever little extra is an aeroplane foot hammock. It loops around the tray-table support and gives your feet somewhere to rest instead of fighting for space with the bag under the seat. It won’t magically turn economy into first class, but on a longer flight — particularly when you’re tired after a ridiculously early start — being able to change the position of your feet and legs can make the journey feel much more comfortable.
Another tiny gadget that earns its place in your hand luggage is an aeroplane phone holder. Instead of spending the flight holding your phone, balancing it against a water bottle or repeatedly retrieving it from the floor, a foldable holder such as the Flight Flap lets you position your screen in front of you for hands-free viewing. It’s particularly handy if you’ve downloaded a film or a few episodes before travelling — and takes up barely any room when you’ve finished with it.
A tiny digital luggage scale is another unglamorous little thing that suddenly becomes magnificent when you’re standing in a hotel room wondering whether the four things you’ve bought have somehow added 12kg to your suitcase.
And I particularly like travel products that become smaller when you’re not using them. A collapsible water bottle is a perfect example: useful once you’ve passed security, but not taking up half your bag afterwards.
These aren’t exciting purchases.
They’re the things you eventually realise you’ve taken on every trip for the last five years.
When I’d Choose the Morning Flights
If I had an important connection to make, needed to reach my destination that day, or simply wanted to squeeze as much as possible out of a short break, I’d seriously consider flying early.
I’d also favour it when getting to the airport was straightforward — particularly if I were staying nearby the night before.
For a three-night European break, arriving before lunch rather than in the evening can make an enormous difference.
You’ve effectively gained another afternoon of your holiday.
When I’d Happily Choose a Later Flight
If getting to the airport means leaving home at an absurd hour, I’d think twice.
The same applies if the first day isn’t particularly important.
For a relaxing fortnight away, arriving at 4pm instead of noon probably isn’t going to ruin anything.
With morning flights I’d also consider the people travelling with me.
Small children, older relatives, somebody who doesn’t cope well without sleep — or, frankly, me when deprived of breakfast — can completely change the calculation.
The theoretically “best” flight isn’t necessarily the best flight for you.
Are Morning Flights Really Better?
Sometimes, yes.
An early departure can give you more of your first day, leave more alternatives if disruption occurs, and get the travelling part over with while everyone else is still contemplating breakfast.
But I wouldn’t automatically book the earliest flight on the screen.
Look at what time you’ll need to leave home, how you’re getting to the airport, what that will cost, when you’ll arrive at the other end and how much you value that extra half-day.
“A little preparation the night before can make that painfully early alarm much easier to forgive. And while you’re getting organised, it’s worth checking our guide to things not to put in your checked luggage before you finally zip the suitcase shut.” Link only the bold words to your checked-luggage post.
Whatever time you fly, it’s always worth checking the latest UK hand luggage restrictions before leaving home, especially as airport security rules can change.” Link those bold words to the GOV.UK hand-luggage page.
If all those pieces work…
I’ll see you at Departures at 5am ready for one of those morning flights.
I’ll be the one clutching the enormous coffee and pretending this was an excellent idea.
