Wine on the Plane

Last summer, I worked on a study with Alex Dichter, global head of Travel, Transport, and Logistics at McKinsey. Based in London, he was used to flying across continents on fancy business class seats where passengers are wined and dined. So I was surprised when he said that he never eats on planes. His philosophy is that business class is for sleeping, not eating (more on this here). 

I've since adopted some of his arguments on eating for wine and any alcoholic beverages. If I'm flying, I'm not drinking.

Yes, I understand that traveling can be stressful, especially if we're sitting in tight economy seats. But will alcohol really make it better? My main argument is that alcohol will dehydrate your body and that is not something you need when traveling. Especially in these times of coronavirus, making sure you're 100% healthy should be your priority. Drink at home, at the hotel, or at the restaurant at your destination, but enjoy a cup of tomato, apple or orange juice on the plane. 

Second, I was once curious about the quality of the wines they were serving on my flights, and needless to say, I was quite disappointed even for business class fares. The retail price of bottles on the menu of major Star Alliance carriers for long-haul business class was about $16-20 and in economy, they were between $5-10. Comparing how much money I spend on a trip to the cost of a glass of wine (especially from a health perspective) really convinced me that it is just not worth it to drink when flying. 

So, I urge you, next time you fly, to avoid alcohol and see how much better you feel!