No Sleep For Me
As I wrote earlier this week, my family and I recently completed a trip to South America. We had a wonderful time, with the exception of all those nights that I didn’t get any sleep. You see, all of our flights were redeyes in coach. Oh the horror.
Our trip to Colombia started with a redeye to Miami from Las Vegas. We also flew overnight from Bogota to Santiago and Santiago to Dallas on the return. Add to that an overnight bus trip from Medellin to Bogota and I am the worst miles & points junkie alive. I am getting too old for this!
Now don’t get me wrong, generally I don’t have an issue flying coach, but I hate redeye flights. As a 6’2″ red blooded American man I can’t sleep in coach. I can’t sit in those uncomfortable seats with my back in a weird position and sleep. The best way I could describe myself during overnight flights is comatose. I generally float in and out of consciousness every 30 seconds or so until the pilot announces our approach. It is MISERABLE!
So tonight I am flying my fourth redeye in the past three weeks and it is on….wait for it…..SPIRIT! (Love me some 28″ pitch!) It isn’t even a real redeye either. The flight leaves Las Vegas at 1am and arrives in Kansas City at 5:30am. That’s right! It is basically a 2 1/2 hour flight that leaves at 1am and arrives at 3:30am local time. That is a recipe for no sleep and is the worst scheduling ever.
At this point you have probably unsubscribed to my feed and sworn to yourself that you will never read another word that I write. After all I must be a dummy right? Well considering I am about to fly an overnight flight on Spirit Airlines I really can’t fight that point. I do have an excuse though.
I Love Roller Coasters
I am flying to Kansas City to ride roller coasters over Labor Day weekend with my friend. (One of my favorite hobbies!) This Spirit flight was the best fit for our schedules and it came in at 1/5 the cost of the next competitor. Yes wrap your head around that number. I am sacrificing my sleep and thus my sanity to save 80%.
The main reason our South American flights were overnight and in coach was more as a result of last minute planning than not having enough miles. While I would have been more than willing to stick my son in the back of the airplane, I would have been enjoying a lie flat bed.
Considering I started my travel career as a backpacker on a shoestring budget, I have always lived by a mantra. I will always take the worst flight possible if it is the only way for me to travel. I would rather travel in hell then not travel at all. This is my passion and my love, but I’m not sure I can take another overnight flight. Oh please let me survive the night!
So what are you doing over the holiday weekend? Am I crazy for doing this? Let me know in the comments and have a safe and eventful weekend!
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I took a domestic redeye once 20 years ago … miserable is too mild a word … and I sat up front. Flights to Europe are not as bad, but I just read yet another piece of “advice” to not leave your reading light on or open the shade to avoid bothering other passengers. For those of us who do not sleep on airplanes, I ask: WTH am I supposed to do for 6 hours if I can’t read or use my computer? “Take a nap”, they said; you described that perfectly, Shawn, waking up every 30 seconds for hours. UGH!
I decided a few years ago that 38 year old men do not sleep in cars nor do they sleep on the floor. 🙂
I have not yet flown a red-eye nor really tried to sleep on a plane, so I don’t have any concrete advice but I love the passion that says “if that’s the only way I’ll travel, then I’d rather do it than stay home”
Hey I may not be smart, but at least I am passionate! Oh and I am only 32 years old so I get to sleep on the floor still. At least in airports!