Motion Sickness on Qantas Flights: Best Seats and How to Avoid Air Sickness

Qantas flies its long-haul network mostly on widebodies - the double-deck Airbus A380 and the Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner - which are among the steadiest aircraft in the sky, and the 787's lower cabin altitude and higher humidity help many travelers feel less fatigued on ultra-long sectors. Some routes are simply long and cross weather: trans-Pacific flights pass through equatorial convection, and the Southern Ocean legs to Santiago and Johannesburg cross the stormy high latitudes where riders sometimes report bumps. Domestic and regional flying on the 737, A220 or a Dash 8 turboprop can feel more motion than a widebody, as smaller aircraft usually do.

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Best Seat on Qantas for Motion Sickness

For the smoothest Qantas ride, a widebody A380 or 787 on the international network feels steadier than a domestic 737 or a QantasLink turboprop. On any of them, a window seat over the wing tends to feel most stable and gives a fixed horizon to focus on; on the A380 the upper deck often feels especially settled.

Known Turbulence Routes on Qantas

• Sydney and Melbourne to Los Angeles and Dallas across the Pacific (equatorial convection)
• Sydney-Santiago and Sydney/Perth-Johannesburg over the Southern Ocean near the Antarctic latitudes
• The 'Kangaroo Route' to London and Europe, crossing tropical Southeast Asia

Before you fly, look up a turbulence forecast for your route a day or two ahead, when route forecasts are most useful. Here is how to check a turbulence forecast before you fly. If you have been airsick before, read why air sickness happens and what helps, from the steadiest seat to what to do once nausea starts.

Turbulence and Anxiety on Qantas Flights

Turbulence is hard on a motion-sensitive body for two reasons that have nothing to do with the airline. The movement is unpredictable, so you cannot brace for it the way you brace for a turn you can see coming. And inside a cabin there is no horizon to check it against, so your inner ear reports motion your eyes cannot confirm. That mismatch is what makes people queasy in the air, on a ship, or in the back of a car.

Anxiety adds to it. Fear and nausea travel overlapping pathways, so bumps that frighten you tend to feel more sickening than the same bumps on a calm day, and the anticipation between them keeps your attention on your stomach. It works the other way too: the calmer you stay, the less the same movement registers.

Turbulence also has a season. Jet streams run stronger in winter, which is when long-haul routes tend to get bumpy, and summer heat drives the convective turbulence that builds around afternoon storms. Neither is a reason to change your flight. Both are a reason to have a plan in your seat.

1. Give your eyes something steady. From a window seat, watch the horizon. From an aisle seat, fix on the seat back in front of you and keep your head against the rest.
2. Open the overhead vent and point it at your face, then breathe slowly with the exhale longer than the inhale.
3. Start sound therapy at the first queasy signal rather than waiting. Dizzout is drug-free, works with the headphones you already brought, and is designed to help once symptoms have started.

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How to Prevent Air Sickness on Qantas

• Choose a seat over the wing if possible
• Take a window seat to see the horizon
• Avoid alcohol the night before and during the flight
• Eat lightly before flying
• Use cool air vents on your face
• Download Dizzout before flying, since it works with any headphones on any aircraft

Cabin crew will usually offer ginger ale, and ginger is one of the few remedies with trial evidence behind it, though the effect is modest: see the verdict on ginger.

FAQ

Is Qantas a bumpy airline?

Qantas's motion sickness risk profile is rated low. Turbulence depends much more on route, weather, and aircraft type than on airline operations. Qantas flies its long-haul network mostly on widebodies - the double-deck Airbus A380 and the Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner - which are among the steadiest aircraft in the sky, and the 787's lower cabin altitude and higher humidity help many travelers feel less fatigued on ultra-long sectors.

What does Qantas provide for air sickness?

Most airlines including Qantas provide air sickness bags in every seat back. Flight attendants can provide ginger ale or water. They generally do not stock motion sickness medication, so bring your own or use Dizzout (drug-free, works on any flight).

Does turbulence cause motion sickness, or is it anxiety?

Both, and they feed each other. Turbulence moves you in ways you cannot predict, and with no horizon in view your inner ear reports motion your eyes cannot confirm. That mismatch is what makes you queasy. Anxiety amplifies it, because fear and nausea travel overlapping pathways, so the same bumps feel worse when they frighten you. What helps in the seat: a window seat over the wing so you can watch the horizon, the overhead vent pointed at your face, and slow breathing with the exhale longer than the inhale.