Flight attendant shares how to get ‘royal treatment’ from crew – ‘highly appreciated’

Ruth Langsford trains as BA cabin crew on Loose Women

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Passengers who are hoping to experience a taste of what it is like to receive the “royal treatment” while travelling are in luck thanks to a US flight attendant. Kat Kalami who works as a cabin crew member has lifted the curtain on the “simple” way customers can get on the good side of their crew and ultimately enjoy a better experience on board.

Long hours and multiple time zones are part and parcel of being a flight attendant.

However, it turns out one small gesture from passengers can help elevate their mood.

In a video shared on social media platform TikTok, Ms Kalami explained: “If you do this one simple thing on an aircraft I promise you, you will get the royal treatment from the flight attendants.

“Being a flight attendant is exhausting.

“You’re always in different time zones, waking up crazy hours and dealing with angry customers so I promise you the next time you fly if you want special treatment from the flight attendants this is all you have to do.”

According to Ms Kalami, the key to “special treatment” is by purchasing a £5 Starbucks gift card for your cabin crew.

“It means the world to us when customers give us this,” she said.

Indeed, free coffees are likely a saviour between arduous long-haul journeys.

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However, it isn’t just a Starbucks card that can get passengers in their cabin crew’s good books.

Ms Kalami continued: “If you don’t have gift cards you can just pick up candy bars, lip balm, anything and give them to your flight attendants.

“We will know where you’re sitting and we will know what you look like and the whole crew will make sure that you’re taken care of.”

These small gifts can show a token of appreciation to hard-working crew, particularly as many airlines such as British Airways do not permit onboard staff to take monetary tips.

Yet, as flight attendant Sharon Chen explains, gifts from passengers are not “expected”.

Sharing her point of view on web question and answer forum Quora, Ms Chen wrote: “More commonly, passengers bring a small gift for the crew, like chocolates or candies or once, Starbucks gift cards.

“These gifts aren’t merit-based and definitely not expected, but they are highly appreciated and may increase your chance of receiving exceptional service.”

Gifts are not the only way passengers can show their appreciation and gratitude towards staff.

According to Budget Traveller, flagging a particular crew member’s efforts with senior management is also a great way to give them a pat on the back.

The travel website states: “When you receive truly extraordinary service, though, a letter or email to the airline praising the work of a specific flight attendant or crew is most appreciated and can sincerely help a flight attendant’s career.”

However, while these small gestures may boost the mood of your crew, they don’t always result in free upgrades.

This is largely because upgrades tend to be dished out based on frequent-flier status, fare class or the time at which customers booked their flights.

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