These Are The Worst Times To Use The Bathroom During A Flight, According To A Flight Attendant

While airplane bathrooms are sometimes disgusting enough to make you put on a mask before going inside, if you're taking a long flight you're going to have to get up and use it at some point. While there's no great time to be climbing over your fellow passengers to reach the aisle, some times are definitely worse than others. The worst time to be up and out of your seat is when there's a risk of turbulence, so if the fasten seatbelt sign is on indicating that conditions may be about to get bumpier, you shouldn't go to the bathroom unless it's an emergency. 

To figure out the best and worst times to time your bathroom breaks during a flight, Islands spoke to Barbi, a veteran flight attendant who has been flying with a major U.S. airline for almost four decades. While she was able to give us some guidelines for when to avoid being out of your seat and wandering around, she also reassured us that flight attendants are aware that passengers will sometimes need to use the bathroom at inconvenient times, saying, "We all know that sometimes you just gotta go, and it's not ideally timed."

Barbi, the experienced flight attendant, told us that the absolute worst times to get up for a bathroom break are when there's turbulence or when turbulence is likely. While you might assume that once you're no longer hurtling through the sky six miles above the surface of the earth, the most dangerous part of the flight might actually be when you're on the ground. Barbi explained, "You should never be up when the fasten seatbelt sign is on, especially when the airplane is taxiing on the ground."

Naturally, travelers aren't encouraged to unstrap their seatbelts and stretch their legs while the seatbelt indicator is on. However, you have probably seen people get up and head to the bathroom anyway, and the truth is people don't usually get in too much trouble for ignoring the sign because flight attendants enforce regulations on a case by case basis. However, ignoring crewmember instructions can come with real consequences, including fines and jail time for serious offenses.

Even if you won't get told off for doing this, standing up during turbulence can be extremely dangerous. While such horrific incidents are rare, in 2008 a woman was severely injured trying to get back to her seat after using the bathroom when the plane's autopilot suddenly malfunctioned, sending unsecured flight attendants and passengers flying into the ceiling. Of course, no one can predict that kind of rare, sudden emergency, but you can keep yourself safe from more predictable turbulence by staying strapped in when you're instructed to.

There are a few reasons that window seats can be a bad choice, and one of them is definitely having to wake up the people sitting next to you because you have to go — but even if it's awkward, we all have to do it sometimes. Even if it's not an emergency, the little walk is good for you, and might keep your ankles from swelling up too much during your flight. According to flight attendant Barbi, any time when the fasten seatbelt light is off is a good time to get up out of your seat and head to the bathroom — but if you want to be extra polite, you might want to wait until before or after the flight attendants have gotten to your row.

Some frequent fliers attempt to time their bathroom trips so that they don't overlap with when the drink cart is out, both because it's frustrating for the flight attendant and because it might take a long time to get back to your seat. While Barbi stated that waiting for the flight attendant to pass is a good idea, she let us know that it's not necessary if you really need to go. She advised, "Just be as polite and accommodating as possible; most flight attendants will be understanding."