Tips for when a sleeping person blocks access to the aisle

Gotta love wikiHow 😂. There's one for everything!
More seriously, maybe that's the rude Parisian inside me but... If I need to go, I need to go, and I will wake up the person next to me if I need to... I am usually nimble enough to step over someone's legs, anyway.

Now I'm curious about etiquette in a situation like this. I usually take an aisle seat and so I fully expect I may have to be woken up and I'm OK with it. Good etiquette may be if one person in your aisle needs to go, maybe all should try and go at the same time.

Thankfully I haven't experienced it on a plane yet, but it drives me crazy if I'm at a game and people in my aisle are constantly getting up and down. Last hockey game I was at we counted two young adults get up and down 11 times throughout the game.

I always try to book the aisle seat because I can’t sleep on a plane and need to be up and about. What I do when I sit down is let the folks next to me know that anytime they need to get up, let me know.

On the rare occasion where I get a middle or window seat, I try to step over folks without waking them or politely as them to get up. I do find when I don’t have an aisle, I don’t drink as much water.

"What I do when I sit down is let the folks next to me know that anytime they need to get up, let me know."

Yes...this! And I tell them that even if my eyes are closed to go ahead and nudge me! I figure that might give me a few karma points, lol!!

This reminds me of a flight long ago and far away. Laker Airline from Tampa to Gatwick and we were crammed in like sardines (or kippers?). I was in the middle of a 3-seat configuration and the aisle was taken by a guy from South Africa who was about 6'5", had traveled a long way already who sat down and immediately went to sleep. I was young, agile and thin so I stood up in the seat and hopped over on the arm rests. He never moved. 40 years later, uh no.

Pam I wish there had been phones with cameras back then to record this, but for my laugh of the day I can envision it from your description 😂

Anyone sitting in the middle or a aisle seats should except to be awakened. I don’t think it’s rude at all.

I insist on my aisle seat because, now that I'm older, I have to pee more often than some people. If someone has to wake me up so she can go potty, it's fine because I'll be in line right behind her. I don't sleep much on a plane anyway.

I’m glad to see so many say they don’t mind being woken up by someone who needs to use the toilet. I much prefer window seats, but I never want to wake up the person next to me. Climbing over them never seems possible anymore as usually their knees are up to the seat in front of them, and the seat in front is often reclined. These days I sometimes choose the aisle seat just to avoid this situation.

Under "Making physical adjustments", I suspect the sleeping aisle person would prefer to be awakened than have suggestion #4 employed.

I have always followed the "when one goes, we should all go" theory and that is exactly what I do. It really cuts down on the number of times people are disrupted.

Joe32F,

“Under "Making physical adjustments", I suspect the sleeping aisle person would prefer to be awakened than have suggestion #4 employed.”

Your post just broke rule #4 under “Refocusing or Distracting Yourself”! 🤣

I prefer an aisle seat and I know that having to get up to let people out comes with that seat position. On long haul flights I usually go for the center section that has 3 or 4 seats. Because there is an exit to the row on each side only my husband will need to get past me. On the occasions I’ve flown by myself it has always been a couple in the other seats and I never had to get up. Our flight to Dublin on Aer Lingus in August has just 2 seats on the sides, so I booked those. I haven’t seen that in a long time, but it’s definitely my preference.

Mona, Joe, Jean....hahaha!!

Thank goodness it was in the 80's when cell phones hadn't been invented much less camera phones. I don't remember how I got back in the seat. My now ex-husb was in the window seat but he was a poor flyer and refused to get out of his seat as he felt the plane would crash unless it was strapped to his bottom.

My travel companion and I were on our way to Australia in the middle and aisle seats of a Qantas 747. The slightly-built young man in the window seat, who had been drinking quite a bit (I was surprised the flight attendants kept serving him) tried Pam’s technique of hopping across on the armrests, but it didn’t go so well. He made it past me, but lost his balance and ended up in my travel companion’s lap. Needless to say, he (my travel partner) was not pleased.

I am glad your effort was more successful, Pam!

Pam, at our next travel group meeting, we want to see you reenact your gymnastics skills! ; )

hmmm. What about asking the flight attendant to wake the person up? Is that too much to ask of them? I always request an aisle seat, and dont mind being woken up. Unless its more often than I think is reasonable.

What I do hate is when the person seated behind me grabs my seatback to pull themselves up, therefore waking me up for no reason. Just push yourself up with the armrests. Thats what I do and it works. I had one guy dig his fingernails into the top of my head once, leaving marks.

"he felt the plane would crash unless it was strapped to his bottom'
Oh man...just had a coughing fit after laughing at this bit... !

I always have an aisle seat too.
I don't mind people waking me up, and I tell them that at the start of the flight.
I just don't like disturbing and climbing over others.
Can't do that so nimbly anymore.
And if I've got to go, it's right now; not after practicing "Wiki - Waiting" skills. ;)

Pam, LOL. :-)
My now ex-husb was in the window seat but he was a poor flyer and refused to get out of his seat as he felt the plane would crash unless it was strapped to his bottom.

In regard to the "Focusing and Distracting Yourself" section, my family of three was traveling one summer via car and my four-year-old (?) son informed my wife and me that he needed to go to the bathroom "really bad." I picked up my speed and assured him that there was a rest stop about 10 minutes away. I said, "Try to think about the desert." He responded, "How can I think about the desert when I really, really have to pee?" Good point.

SJ and Nadine....and to top it off he was in the Air Force (chose that over the Army draft back in the day).

Jeff! Funny!