Look, let's be honest: we've all fallen for it. You're searching for flights and suddenly that unbelievable fare pops up. Compared to the 11 AM flight, you save €50! "Yeah, I can handle it", you think with the confidence of someone who has never had to wake up at 3:30 in the morning.
Cut to the day of the trip: the alarm goes off, you feel like you've been hit by a freight train and you start questioning every life decision you've ever made. The airport at 4 AM is a strange place, full of people yawning and staring into the void.
So you don't arrive at your destination looking like an extra from The Walking Dead, Martin leaves you with the golden rules for surviving the early hours:
1. The "Sleep in Shifts" Rule (Or Don't Sleep) 😴
If your flight is at 6 AM, you have to be at the airport by 4 AM. If you live 30 minutes away, you have to leave the house by 3:30 AM. Is it worth sleeping?
- If you can sleep before 10 PM: go for it, grab those 4 or 5 hours.
- If you're a night owl: sometimes it's better to "pull an all-nighter" or just take a 90-minute nap. Waking up in the middle of a deep sleep cycle is what makes you feel like a zombie.
2. Get Everything Ready the Night Before (Autopilot Mode) 🎒
At 3 AM, your brain has the intellectual capacity of a potato. You don't want to be choosing what socks to bring or looking for your passport at that hour.
Lay out the clothes, leave the bag closed by the door and the documents on the table. The goal is to leave the house in autopilot mode, without having to think.
3. Strategic Caffeine ☕
Don't dive straight into a bucket of coffee the moment you open your eyes. Drink water first to hydrate the brain.
Save the first coffee for when you get to the airport or even for the plane. If you spend the caffeine "shot" too early, you'll have the energy crash exactly when you're in the check-in queue.
4. The Breakfast of Victory 🥐
Don't leave the house on an empty stomach, but don't eat a full English either. Something light but with energy (a banana, some nuts) helps to keep the mood up.
At the airport, avoid the fried stuff. A yoghurt or a piece of fruit will keep you alert for longer than a buttery pastry that will give you a terrible slump as soon as you sit on the plane.
Your Friend is Not to Blame for Your Cheap Flight!
This is the most important tip of all. You know that idea of "I'm going to ask my brother-in-law/best friend to take me to the airport"?
Forget it. Nobody likes you enough to want to wake up at 3:30 AM, drive to the airport, get hit by the cold of the early morning and then have to go to work looking miserable. You're spending a "favour card" that's going to cost you dearly later!
Be an independent and smart traveller.
Take your car, turn on the radio to keep yourself awake, crank up the heating and drive calmly to Departures. At Multipark, we don't sleep! Our Valet Parking team is there 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, with a smile (and probably a coffee in hand) to receive you.
You hand us the keys right at the door, head off to check-in stress-free, and we park the car for you in a secure, monitored lot.
On the way back, even if your flight also lands at unholy hours, your car will be there waiting for you, ready to take you to your bed without having to wait for anyone.
Save the friendship and save the stress. Run the simulation and book your spot at Multipark and travel like a pro, even at the crack of dawn!
