A Flight Attendant Shares The Best Parts Of The Job

If you love to travel, you may have fantasized about becoming a flight attendant, jetting around the world and getting paid to do it. While the hours can be long, delayed boarding is especially annoying for flight attendants, and there are a lot of things airline workers wish passengers would stop doing, there is a lot of truth to the dream, and being a flight attendant can be a fantastic career choice for many. To hear more about the very best parts of the job, Islands spoke exclusively to Barbi, a journalist and veteran flight attendant. Thanks to nearly four decades working as a flight attendant, Barbi knows practically everything there is to know about the profession. She told us, "I ... love that our office windows overlook the vast open sky 35,000 feet above sea level."

While soaring above the clouds every day is incredible, Barbi shared that one of the surprising perks of the job is the way the experience changes you as a person, encouraging personal growth and preparing you for everything else you may choose to do in life. She explained, "Being a flight attendant ... builds confidence and independence in unique ways. You learn to navigate complex airports quickly, solve problems on your feet, and adapt to different cultures — all skills that transfer to every aspect of life."

While the idea of working 14-hour flights might sound exhausting, flight attendants like Barbi who stick with the job can end up getting a lot of control over their schedules. While you may have to take some exhausting red-eye flights early in your career, Barbi assured us that it can become a very flexible job. "Depending on your seniority, airline, and base, you can either maintain a consistent schedule or embrace the spontaneity of a flight attendant's life," she stated.

While the job might be a dream come true for those who love to experience new things and meet new people all the time, there are some perks for those who like a clear, comfortable routine, too. In addition to being able to choose a regular set schedule once you have enough seniority, Barbi told us that the uniform can simplify your life, and your travel. She explained, "While packing presents its own challenges ... having a uniform eliminates the daily wardrobe guesswork."

While everyone knows that flight attendants travel for work, they can also travel for fun in their free time. According to experienced flight attendant Barbi, heading to new destinations or returning to beloved spots is a lot easier for cabin crew than it is for most other travelers — even if the places they want to go aren't on the routes they fly professionally. While flights keep getting more and more expensive for the rest of us, airline employees often get to travel completely for free. According to Barbi, flight attendants fly standby, meaning that they get to take any unused seats on flights. Of course, that does mean that if a plane is fully booked, they are out of luck. However, Barbi told us that if a flight attendant really wants to get on a certain flight, they may be able to, even if it's booked up, by riding in a jumpseat.

Cabin crew also get to enjoy downtime between flights. "The real fun, as a flight attendant, happens during our layovers in amazing cities around the globe," Barbi revealed. While the rest of us spend our overnight layovers trying to figure out the most comfortable ways to sleep in airports, flight attendants often take the opportunity to explore. Barbi told us that she has had some incredible adventures during layovers, including visiting the Eiffel Tower, the Dead Sea, and the Taj Mahal. "Last winter, my crew and I visited a koala sanctuary on a layover in Brisbane, Australia," she added.

While most would consider the opportunity to travel the biggest perk of being a flight attendant, sometimes what you bring back home with you is just as important as what you do while you're at your destination. In addition to being exposed to diverse cultures and getting to taste delicious food wherever you go, you can bring bits of what you experience back home to share with your friends and family — particularly when it comes to cooking ingredients. "One of my best friend's kids used to say I grocery-shopped around the world, and he wasn't wrong!" Barbi shared.

Whether it's snacks from Japanese convenience stores or fresh ingredients from street markets across Europe, flight attendants have plenty of opportunities to bring home delicious treats when they travel. According to Barbi, people tend to develop favorites that they come back for again and again. She told us, "We all have our specialties we love bringing home — French salted butter, Italian olive oil, fresh Hawaiian pineapples, or spicy mustards from Germany." If you're a foodie, or just love shopping, this may be the career for you.

If you're a social person, being a flight attendant might be your dream job. You'll meet different people from all around the world every day when you're at work, including both passengers and your fellow members of the cabin crew. If you're not quite as outgoing, never fear. In addition to being fun and exciting for extroverts who love having conversations with people from all walks of life, being a flight attendant can be a great opportunity to learn the gift of gab in a professional setting. Barbi said, "You ... develop exceptional customer service skills, which, unfortunately, feels like a dying art these days."

You may not always work with the same people — which can be an advantage, depending on what your coworkers are like. However, if you do meet people you click with, you'll have the opportunity to explore new destinations around the world together. "You're not stuck with the same colleagues forever," the veteran flight attendant explained. "You can meet interesting people every day — both passengers and crew — and try to work with your favorite colleagues for adventures both on duty and off."

If you're a flight attendant who works on the same routes regularly, you have the rare opportunity to visit what might be bucket-list destinations for some over and over again — and they may even start to feel like a second home. Barbi explained, "When you regularly visit the same destinations, you develop routines and relationships that change you from tourist to local-adjacent. Many flight attendants maintain connections with hairdressers, restaurant owners, aestheticians, or, like myself, fitness studios in cities they don't call home." Once, Barbi even attended a small-town Oktoberfest celebration in Germany alongside a local and a fellow crew member. "It was amazing to ride the rides, eat the authentic local food, and experience life and how the locals live," she recalled.

After zig-zagging across the globe long enough, flight attendants get the rare opportunity to immerse themselves in everyday life in places both near and far. While it's not exactly like becoming a resident, it can come close. Barbi shared, "Even way back in the early '90s, I would drag my rollerblades on trips and turn New York City into my fitness studio. Skating to, around, and from Central Park became my regular workout for years, allowing me to experience Manhattan in a way most visitors never would."