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How do you pass the time in airports during delays?

by Mike Barish (RSS feed) on Feb 25th 2010 at 9:30AM

With nasty weather once again enveloping the Northeastern United States and winter showing no signs of ending anytime soon, thousands of travelers find themselves killing a lot of time at airports. Flight delays are a fact of life and there's not a whole lot you can do about it unless you want to pay the fees necessary to change your flights. That leaves us all spending much of our holiday or business trip twiddling our thumbs in crowded, boring airport terminals.

Earlier this week, we showed you how one imaginative traveler entertained herself in Pittsburgh International Airport. However, not all of us are that creative (or bold), so we have to find other activities to keep us sane. Gadling wants to know what your favorite time-killer is during a long flight delay.

Let us know by voting in the poll below and feel free to elaborate in the comments.

How do you pass the time in airports during delays?
Eat	104 (12.3%)
Shop	64 (7.6%)
Read/Listen to music/Check email & internet	556 (65.6%)
Complain to anyone who will listen	49 (5.8%)
Other (share in the comments)	74 (8.7%)

Filed under: Airports

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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 2)

David LaHuta Feb 25th 2010 10:16AM

And there wasn't a vote bubble for 'drink heavily' because why?

Mike Barish Feb 25th 2010 10:17AM

Seemed like the perfect use for "other." Trying to keep it fam friendly!

Edward Hasbrouck Feb 25th 2010 10:14AM

People watching.

Edward Hasbrouck Feb 25th 2010 10:17AM

Plane spotting.

Sean Feb 25th 2010 10:19AM

The best thing to do is definitely do roundtrips in the airport unmanned tram thingy. If they don't have one of those I go for being creative on the moving sidewalk.

Butch Feb 28th 2010 1:36PM

Great idea...I've done that and walked between terminals. Along with people watching the time goes really fast.

Mike Barish Feb 25th 2010 10:44AM

If you can do them all at the same time, drinks are on me!

Chris Feb 25th 2010 10:44AM

I had a long delay at ATL due to weather (3+ hours) so I took a walk. I went down in the tunnels and walked from T to D and back again. Killed almost half an hour and burned just enough energy that I wasn't antsy while I was sitting waiting for the flight. Then I people-watched and surfed the internet.

robbie Feb 25th 2010 4:25PM

I have a membership at Continental's President's Club. Ergo, I eat free snacks, and get toasty on the free beverages.

Adia Morris Feb 25th 2010 12:08PM

Make impromptu films of the people mover. (Currently doing so in DTW.)

pam Feb 25th 2010 2:29PM

I don't see "Practice My Ukulele" on that list of options.

Mike Barish Feb 25th 2010 2:29PM

You're a strong candidate for "Other."

Ashley Feb 26th 2010 12:56AM

This: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xv1va9Jdt7g

andrew Feb 26th 2010 3:24AM

Stare into space, find a bar, have a drink, have more drinks, get my wife to push me round on a trolley, sleep upright with an armrest in my ribs, wake up with headache...

Sara Feb 26th 2010 8:10PM

It's been awhile since I have been in an airport or on a plane, but I was one of the people always looking for the smoking lounge or the place to discreetly smoke outside if there was no lounge. (Take O'Hare which has 'No Smoking' signs all over, but there are butts all over the ground so...) Other than that I was in a bar drinking a huge overpriced beer in between stumbling back to a smoking area. I'd also randomly walk around. It was always a lot of fun using the ladies and dragging all of my luggage into the stall with me. =)

Lady G Feb 26th 2010 10:05PM

Drink, bar, alcohol. Why was this not even an option? I would fix survey

BUTTON Feb 27th 2010 12:18PM

WE WERE STRANDED IN DALLAS DUE TO 1/2 INCH OF SNOW ON CHRISTMAS EVE. THEY WOULDN'T LET US GO TO A MOTEL. THEY BROUGHT OUT OVER 500 LIGHT WEIGHT COTS, HARD AS A BOARD....NO PILLOWS, NO BLANKETS. MY HUSBAND SAT ON HIS COT AND IT BENT IN HALF AND HE LANDED ON THE FLOOR. I TOOK A PILL AND SLEPT. THEY MOVED US AROUND THREE TIMES THAT NIGHT. WE DIDN'T GET OUT OF THERE FOR OVER 24 HOURS. GOT HOME TO FLORIDA AT MIDNIGHT CHRISTMAS NIGHT!!!!!! WE SHOULD HAVE JUST RENTED A CAR BUT THEY WERE CLOSED. WE COULD HAVE EATEN SOMETHING, BUT THEY WERE CLOSED TIGHTER THAN A DRUM. BABIES THERE COULD HAVE GOTTEN SOME MILK TO DRINK BUT THERE WAS NONE. ALL THE AIRPORT STAFF JUST TURNED OFF THE HEAT AND DISAPPEARED.
TUESDAY I HAVE KNEE SURGERY DUE TO THAT CRAPPY STAY IN DALLAS. NEVER, NEVER, NEVER, NEVER WILL I FLY UNLESS ABSOLUTELY NECESSARY AND CERTAINLY NOT VIA TEXAS OR ATLANTA!!!