Take Care...

Originally, I started writing this post back in February last year. I read about the sad death of a V Australia crew member in Phuket, after he fell from a hotel balcony during a room mix-up. However, a blogger glitch erased the post that I had worked on for hours and frustrated, I decided to continue it later. As often happens, other things took over and it was soon forgotten. Recently I found the half-draft in my archives & decided to finish the post to share with you.

The Phuket story got me thinking about how sometimes crew can take hotel safety for granted, and ways to make sure you stay safe in hotels.

For most flight attendants, spending time in hotels on layovers is common. We spend almost as much time in hotels as at home, if not more. Hotels become like a second home- especially if we layover in the same cities on a regular basis. We have our favourite rooms, make friends with the hotel staff and seek out the best places to eat and shop.

However, being away from home and often travelling solo has a darker side. Being in a strange city, around people you don't know and in unfamiliar locations can be dangerous to a flight attendant's personal safety in the wrong circumstances.

In 2010, an Australian flight attendant was killed when he fell from a hotel balcony/walkway while on a layover in Phuket. It appears he mixed up the room numbers and somehow, while trying to either find his room or gain entry to a room, fell from the balcony or walkway & fell five floors to his death.

I'm no stranger to odd hotel layouts- one hotel I used to stay at had an 'open plan' garden layout similar to the Phuket hotel where V Australia stayed. We'd frequently come back from a night out, tripping over plants or other things in the dark and losing our way between blocks of rooms.

Other hotels had complicated stairways, dimly lit walkways and were sometimes located in dodgy neighbourhoods if it couldn't be avoided.

Flight crew safety has recently been put in the spotlight again with concerns from Cathay Pacific flight attendants staying in Riyadh, Saudia Arabia reporting interference during layovers.

Here's a few things I do to make things that little bit safer in hotels.

Check It Out

On arriving, I always make a quick check of my room- inside the closet, the bathroom and under the bed. These are all known places for an assailant to hide until you've locked that door behind you. While checking, I'll close the door but not latch it until my check is complete, so I can open it quickly if needed.

I'll also have a quick look to see whether I have a balcony with a sliding door, a normal door or a window. It's important to know not only if your window locks, but if it opens enough for you to use if you can't get out of the door.

If the room is a joining one, I move something in front of the door- a chair, desk or other item which makes it difficult to open from the other room. At the very least, it'll make a noise to let me know someone is coming in.

Lock It Up

Most hotels I stay in have either a chain or one of those door limiters on it so that you can open the door without it being able to be forced open. If you don't have one of these chains, or are staying somewhere where you don't trust that staff don't access rooms, you can find plenty of door security gadgets online. I had one a few years ago which worked well, the plus points were that it was made of plastic so I could carry it in my hand luggage and it barely weighed a thing. Sadly, I can't recall the name of it or seem to find it online.

Of course if the fire department are trying to get in for whatever reason, it's not enough to completely stop them, for obvious reasons, but is enough to warn me that someone is coming in if they do. All-metal models might sound like a good idea, but remember in a fire situation that it may get too hot to handle & be difficult to remove without injury.

Stranger Danger

If someone knocks on your door saying they are from maintenance, you don't have to open the door. Hotels don't usually do any work at night (unless it's an emergency) and genuine hotel employees are happy for you to wait to call the front desk and verify that they DID send someone to your room. The same goes for room service or porters. If you don't feel right about it, check with the concierge or reception.

If I'm approaching my room and there's someone walking behind me, I wait until they've passed before I open my door. I've heard of crew members who have been followed into rooms and been robbed -or worse.

Just because you're inside a building, don't let your guard down. Again, it sounds paranoid, but would-be thieves take advantage of the sense of security a hotel gives people to get them when they least expect it. Especially as women, we can 'feel bad' that we'll offend someone by acting as though they're up to no good- would-be attackers can use this to their advantage. ALWAYS follow your intuition and remember- it's better to be thought rude than to have something happen to you.

Know Your Exits

As a flight attendant, this sort of goes without saying, but you'd be surprised just how many flight crews have no idea where the fire exits are. This goes for the fire fighting equipment as well. Check the plan on the back of your door, and make sure it's correct. When you go to the lobby for your night out, have a look on the way past where the fire stairs are and where you can grab a fire extinguishers. It's a bit of a silly habit picked up on the job, but I just can't help checking that a fire extinguisher is actually serviceable when I walk past one.

Speaking of safety equipment, I always think it's a good idea to carry a small torch in my bag. It's come in useful so many times that it's more than paid for itself. Mine is just a small LED job I got for less than $10 at a Kmart. The batteries last a long time and the light is much better than conventional globes. Some hotels supply a flashlight in the closet. One hotel in Asia I stayed at even had smoke hoods- I wasn't sure to be reassured that one was there if I needed it, or worried that they were there in the first place!

This is also where your earlier window check will help. Now you'll know if you can use your window to escape a fire as a last resort. How high is your room? Is there a balcony? Can you reach some other structure like the roof of the garage easily? At least you'll know this in advance, and it will only take you a few seconds to work this out when you're doing your room check.

Ring, Ring

In the article posted above, some of the Cathay Pacific crew reported receiving nonsense calls in their rooms, firstly from outside the hotel and then from other rooms.

Personally, unless I'm expecting another crew member to call my room, I don't pick up the phone. If it's an important schedule change or other work issue, there'll shortly be a note under the door. My supervisor and captain have the crew's numbers or can get them from crew scheduling if it's urgent. Also, my family will send me a text if they're going to call, or just call me on my cell. If you don't want roaming charges, you can always arrange to text them when you want them to call you.

It's also good to know how to contact various departments in the hotel. Know how to dial room-to-room. Check whether you have to dial an actual number, or just push a button to reach Reception or Hotel Security. This is especially good to know if you have to dial in the dark. If it's not noted on the phone, find out what the local police & fire numbers are. That way if your phone doesn't work you can at least try from your cell phone (make sure you know the dialling codes as well).

Other good numbers to know include your airline or company's security department. Crew scheduling can be a good help, but security is a better option in the event of something major going down. Crew who were caught up in the Mumbai terror attacks reported getting assistance from their airline security department when they couldn't get through to the police.

At the least, they can probably advise whether to stay put or leave in a security-type situation. Program these numbers into your phone: Scheduling, Security & your international help line if your company gives it. Every traveller should have an "ICE" (in case of emergency) contact in their phone.

Out on the Town

There's nothing wrong with a good night out on the town- it's a great way to relax and let off steam after a tiring flight, or to bond with your crew. Having said that, you should take some reasonable steps when heading out to ensure a safe night for all. Try to swap numbers with at least one other person in your group, if you don't already know them. This way if you get separated, or someone's phone gets stolen, you can still keep in touch. (Remember, you also wrote down the hotel's phone number, didn't you?)

Keep an eye on each other's drinks- especially if one of you goes off to dance. In some countries thieves work together to distract one member of the group while the other makes off with the valuables. Keep watch on bags and purses. Girls, if you're in a slightly dodgy area, make sure you visit the ladies' room together (This usually happens anyway!) ESPECIALLY if one of you suddenly feels unwell. You just never know what someone might have put in your drink, and you do NOT want her to be alone if that is the case!

Ideally, make sure everyone gets back to their rooms safely, especially in hotels that are dimly lit or have tricky layouts. This might sound sexist but I often ask one of the guys on the crew to walk me back if we're in a dodgy part of town or failing that, we girls make sure at a minimum, we're in pairs if not a group.

If you're heading out in a foreign city on your own, be sure to let someone know where you're going & when you expect to be back. This can be as simple as leaving a note on your bed- "Gone shopping in Mongkok, back by 1800". If you're not there for the crew pickup, at least that gives everyone an idea of where to start looking.


I don't mean to come across as paranoid, but it is a reality of the travelling life that we can face risks to our safety on the move. Implementing ways to keep yourself safe should be an important part of any traveller's routine.

We all go off on our trips not thinking that we might not come home. While having fun seeing the world and meeting new people, be sure to take care so that your family can welcome you home again, safely & soon.

Got a travel tip you think I'd like? Leave a comment, hop over to my Facebook page or send me a Tweet!

Homey Hotels

Amongst the flight attendants on Twitter, we've often had the conversation about hotel habits, little rituals that we have to make ourselves feel more at home while we're on the road (or in the air, more like!)


All of us have our favourite ways of relaxing, and it really depends on what kind of person you are at home. If we love our comforts at home, chances are we want to be comfy when we travel. If we don't 'need' a lot at home, generally we're light packers. I tend to swing somewhere between the two, depending on how long I'm away and what kind of trip I'm working.

If it's a leanover (very short layover) then all I'll want is comfy pyjamas,

my iPod and maybe a good book, adding a mini hot water bottle in winter or cold destinations. (You can pick up ultra-cute crew-themed tanks & pj's at theJet Line Clothing site.) If I have longer, I might bring a 'going-out' outfit, a couple magazines

and my beauty kit to do my nails and a facial while I watch a movie in the hotel. Sometimes I'll bring my little computer, and work on various things, or just watch tv. Nights where there's nothing good on, I'll try to write a few blog posts so I don't get too far behind.

Anyway, back to hotel routines. I already made a post back in the early days of my Blogger page on this, but what the hey, it's one of those topics that flight attendants never really get tired of!

First thing I do when arriving in the room, is to do a quick check of the room to make sure that a) there's nothing/no-one funky in there and b) make sure it's up to standard and one of the rooms on the crew list (they meet requirements for noise, light, amenities and so forth) Once the room checks out ok, I'll unpack my stuff. Pyjamas go on the bed, ready for sleep time. Book, iPod, torch & water go on the bedside table, along with the travel speakers and eyeshades.

In the bathroom, I unpack my toiletry bag, I'm a bit OCD in that I arrange all the items out in order of use so I don't need to think about it too much for an early bus time in the morning.

I also make sure the towels are handy and put my shower gel (Body Shop Satsuma) on the bathtub. If I have food that goes in the bar fridge. If we're staying at a hotel with mini bar facilities, I'll check out what they have on offer (and whether their prices are a rip off or not. If so, I go buy that from the supermarket down the road if there is one ;)

If I don't have a lot of time, I'll usually iron my uniform as soon as possible, and hang it in the closet along with the shoes and make sure all the badges and so on are pinned on, so I don't leave any behind. If it's daytime, I'll generally head out into town for a look round or to get food, order determined by how hungry I happen to be. On a leanover, especially a daytime one, I'll probably be getting right into pj's, popping on my eyeshades and music and nodding off to sleep as soon as I can (sometimes aided by a herbal sleep aid)

Sometimes the hotels we stay at have a nice pool or gym, if the weather is good enough (or the pool is heated) then I'm definitely there! Otherwise I'll go for a walk or at least get outside in the fresh air and sun if it's out.

Oh and I always have my slippers in my bag, because you never know who or what has been on that carpet before you! :P

What do you do to feel more at home in hotels- candles, room sprays, BYO pillows? Tell me! :)

Eating on the Fly

When you spend your life in hotels and in the air, it can be difficult to take care of yourself with regard to your diet and exercise. When you work odd hours on top of that, it becomes extra difficult. There's nothing quite like wanting to eat a nice healthy meal, only to arrive at your hotel in the wee hours of the morning and the only thing room service is interested in making is fries and toasted sandwiches.

For Aussie flight attendants, bringing your own food isn't the easy solution you might think, as in most cases, you cannot take fresh food across state borders. Things like cup-of-soup or dried fruits are fine, but salads, fresh fruit, sandwiches and the like are totally prohibited to be taken from one state to another. So if you want to BYO a nice salad for lunch, it has to be eaten before you get off the plane. Sure you can try to sneak it in, but Quarantine have the cute beagle dogs which will sniff out a single rogue grape at 30 feet! And if they find that apple you're trying to bring in... cha-ching!! $200 dollars, thanks!

What's a girl to do? Get creative, of course!! We've heard of cooking in your hotel room, but what if a) you can't be bothered and b) you fear all the potential germs hanging around on the counter tops? Here's what I did on a recent layover...

Take a walk to the supermarket & pick out your ingredients. In this case I decided a caesar salad was in order. I went and got my cos lettuce, cherry tomatoes, a 1/4 cooked chicken (make sure to ask them to take it out of the foil bag & put it in a take-away container) and a pre-packed salad kit which had croutons, dressing, bacon pieces etc...

much easier and no wastage from having enough croutoons for 10 salads.

1. Clear & wipe down the counter in the bathroom (just in case) next to the basin. The salad came in one of those trays sealed in a plastic bag. Flatten the bag and as you wash the salad leaves, shake them and place them on the bag so they don't touch the icky counter top.

Do the same with the cherry tomatoes, putting the clean ones on one side of the plastic tub to drain.

2. Take the 1/4 chicken and pull it into salad-size pieces, putting them on the lid of the take-away container. Discard the unused chicken scraps and wash the container out. Now layer the lettuce & cherry tomatoes into the container, adding the chicken as you like.


3. Using the salad kit, add half the croutons, bacon bits, cheese and dressing.

If you have any left over salad, once you've eaten the first half, rinse the container & make up another, putting the sachets of dressing & croutons in the container to add again the next day for lunch!

Two meals for arounf $10, much cheaper than airport food, and healthier than room service!

Pillow Talk

Here I am sitting in my hotel room bed. The mattress is a bit hard, but at least the pillows are pretty good. I've discovered that the good hotel pillows (at least in mid-to cheap-range hotels) tend to be in the closet on the top shelf, rather than on the bed. Don't ask me why this is, it's just something that I've noticed.

Maybe the ones in the closet hardly ever get used, so they're softer, or perhaps the housekeeping staff have been told to put them there, so the 'expensive' pillows don't get used as much, and therefore need to be replaced less frequently.

Whatever the reason, if your hotel pillow is crap, try the one in the closet. At least it's likely to be cleaner! :p


Some crew I know take their own pillow (rare) or bring a pillowcase from home, to put over the hotel ones (not so rare). I used to bring my own sheet on one particular layover, because the hotel was notoriously icky & we often found unpleasant things in our beds. Let's not get started on airplane pillows, that is, on the airlines that still have them. Fortunately for my vacation time, I purchased the ultra-cute Lug travel pillow set (pink of course!) It's kind of like the PamBee, which Mel of Tampax Towers has, only I'm not quite so luxe as her & had to settle for the slightly more low-rent, but still cute, option. You can get your own here.

Flights today went ok. Two of them were very short legs. I had to work galley which is a full on but challenging post. Luckily I had a really good crew who helped me out where we needed it. This turned out to be a good thing, because we had to sit down early because of turbulence.This meant we had only just handed out the meal trays and were starting on the clean-up. Of course, there were one or two passengers who didn't understand that this meant we couldn't keep coming out to serve them more wine. The captain basically said to get the cabin ready for landing. That pretty much means, pack up your s**t and sit down.

Still, 6B kept insisting on asking me for another red wine. In my company, once the captain says prepare for landing, that's it. unless you;re having a heart attack, we can't do anything else for you except make sure your seat back is upright & your bag is stowed in the o/h locker. One couple in the last row got really upset that they didn't get their meals choice. Considering that I quickly served them for 30 seconds after the landing PA, they were lucky to get anything at all! We landed 10 minutess early due to tailwinds, and some people even complained about that! You just can't win! Having said that, majority of passengers were really nice & understood that we'd done the best we could..

On a side note, if you're travelling in economy, please don't nick all of my hangers from the closet in business class- I actually need them to hang jackets on- for BUSINESS CLASS!

Travel Finds & Treats!

One of the perks of being a globe-trotting flight attenndant* is the fact that one gets to spend time in various cities, and frequently getting to return to those same cities, so that one can seek out new shopping haunts, places to eat and relax or just find that perfect gift for a friend or loved one that no one else at home has.

Now my regular readers will know that I do love a bit of a shop, sometimes too much so lately (my poor credit card, ouch!) which has resulted in my cutting the worst offender into four pieces and leaving it in the bottom of my dresser drawer. But I digress...

On my travels, I have found some of my most loved items in places such as airport gift shops, chemist and newsagents. Since a lot of fun can be had even window-shopping, I'm going to share some of the designers & places that put a smile on my face. Maybe you might discover something new...

The first is Catherine Manuell Design, an Australian luggage & accessories brand which has been around for about 11 years. Manuell has been designing a lot longer, however. Her colorful designs are well known and can now be seen in many a business & even economy cabin, standing out proud on the baggage carousel.


Here's a bit behind her design choices:

Black spells 'classic' in a lot of instances. There are cars that look better in black than in any other colour (okay, perhaps we'll give you an occasional red), bank account balances, and be honest; a penguin suit really has no business being anything else.

But luggage? Well, it can make for a confusing time at the carousel - which is exactly what Catherine Manuell thought eleven years ago.

"I've always loved colour, so when I came to buy luggage, I never wanted a black bag, but I realized that was basically all that was available," says Manuell. "I thought it was pretty dull and I was suprised that there was no more choice available, and so I decided to create something completely different for myself and others!”

And plain black is a far cry from the range that Catherine Manuell Design (CMD) now sports. Forget plain black, think faux red croc, french peasant prints or cranberry alligator, floral haby's, swirl black flat fur, poppies, and Aboriginal artist painting prints - the list of options is long.

One of my first purchases as an 'international air hostess' was a CMD luggage tag, bought while my flight was delayed in Darwin airport. (Of the lily-pad carpet fame in 'The Amazing Race') I still have it now and it started off my rather strong obssession with luggage tags. Among others I have the Singapore girl tag, a retro 50's tag, and pin-up girl tags.

Next on the list is Christopher Vine, another Australian designer probably best known for his homewares such as mugs, plates and other knick-knacks featuring feminine shoes, corsets & clothing.

As well as those, he does a cute line of cosmetic bags, luggage tags and stationery. Another favourite in my collection is his 'First Class' cosmetic bag, with retro flight attendant print & some Pan Am-style zipper pulls. Too cute!

One of my more recent discoveries was the gorgeous Sex Kitten Boutique in Brisbane, Australia.

This place is worth going to just to gape at the fitout alone! If you're a girly girl, love chic French boudoir style or burlesque, you'll want to put this on your list of places to see! From gorgeous retro-styled dresses, to day-wearable corset tops, cheeky lingerie & some beautiful jewellery & accessories, they've got a little bit of everything to satisfy your inner Dita von Teese. The branding is very thorough, right down to the price tags but I just love it! The clothes are heading towards expensive, but this is because they are limited in each edition, so you won't see the dress on every second girl. One of my favorites is the Chicago Pinstripe dress.

Very sharp!

You can take a virtual tour of the boutique if you're a bit too far away to visit in person. The best part is, Shipping is Free with Australia, and only $30 for International orders! =)

Stay tuned for my next few Travel Treatie Discoveries!

*(However, not as much of the globe as I would currently like)

Hotel Rituals...

All the travelling around and staying in different hotels lately got me to thinking about the habits we crew form after getting familiar with some of our layover destinations.

Some crew have their favourite shopping spots, others a particular coffee shop, or a jogging route close by to the hotel with nice scenery. I suppose it's a little bit of normalcy in our otherwise random travelling lives.

I have different little routines for each hotel. It all depends on their location, and what is close by.

For example, in Brisbane I like to go for a jog (or walk, depending on how disciplined I feel that day) through the Roma Street Parklands.
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It's really pretty and has a botanic garden section where there's some quite cool flowers, and occasionally lizards and other creatures as well. Of course, this is when I manage not to get sucked into the Queen St Mall. I usually head there to get lunch, or on longer layovers grocery supplies from the supermarket. I like to trawl the usual stores where I get good clothes and then of course the standard Gloria Jean's iced chocolate =)
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Sydney I like to go for a walk around the hotel, or get on the train and go to Bondi
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or walk into the city. There's always something to do, even if it's just to watch people at Circular Quay and get a coffee sitting on the lawn at the passenger terminal,
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looking at the Opera House and watching ferries go by. If the timing is right, I try to catch up with Vanishing Point, another ex-FA who I got to know a few years ago at an open call for one of the Middle Eastern airlines. We always have a fun time out.

Aside from the different locations, most crew have routines which they follow no matter which hotel they're staying in. Mine includes:

* bringing my own Body Shop shower/bath gel (strawberry at the moment)


* setting up my iPod and mini travel speakers for some "choons"- relaxation style and Enya-type for going to sleep, chillout/house for sitting around reading, or upbeat for getting ready just before pickup.

* throwing aside all the useless scatter cushions/pillows/bed runners that hotels seem to love putting on beds, and hunting up the best pillow (these are usally not on the bed but the spare ones on the shelf in top of the closet!)

* layout out my uniform items and makeups in the bathroom ready for the next day, means I can get ready quicker

* put good book, eye shades and phone on charge next to bed


Yes sometimes we're strange in our habits and a bit obssessive but it helps to cope with the nomadic lifestyle that comes with the work we've chosen!

I get to rest my feet for just one day, luckily not working on the actual day of Christmas so plan o relax at home with the family and have a nice lunch.

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Merry Christmas all, hope you have a safe and fun time whatever you may be doing!