Whether you prefer a window seat, an aisle seat or getting stuck in the middle on your next flight, access to the restroom usually isn’t a common concern.
A Reddit user recently posted about how taking a bathroom break became an issue, writing, “Okay so what’s the protocol when you need to get up and you’re in this seat?”
The post was subsequent to an apparent incident with an aisle seatmate with a potty response.
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The traveler chronicled the dilemma and shared how they needed to exit the row in order to take a mid-flight bathroom break.
“During the flight, I needed to get up for the restroom. I asked the man beside me if I could get out and he went to move,” the Reddit user wrote.
The middle-seat passenger was ready to stand without a fuss, the user said.
But to the window-seat traveler’s surprise, the aisle-seat passenger didn’t stand up and presented a surprising alternative.
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“When the man in the aisle looked over at me, he made a motion for me to go through the gap in front of me,” the user wrote.
This situation caused the Reddit user to become perplexed.
“The two men in the seats in front of me both have their laptops open, and frankly I didn’t fancy clambering over other humans just because aisle man was inconvenienced,” the traveler continued in their post.
Again, the user said duty was calling and they needed to use the facilities. Regarding the suggestion to climb over, the flyer flushed that idea down the toilet.
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“I told him no, I won’t. He motions again and tells me to go around,” the user wrote.
After a bit of back and forth, the passenger in the window seat finally let it out and was emphatic about the need to use the bathroom.
“I said no, I won’t fit and please will you let me out,” added the traveler.
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“[The] aisle man was clearly very upset that I had asked him to move.”
“Who is in the right here?” the post continued.
Reddit users responded to the thread, with some sharing thoughts on how the situation should have been handled.
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One user said the aisle passenger should have stood up to allow the window seat passenger access to the bathroom without issue.
“It is aisle’s responsibility to move for people in their own row,” the person wrote.
Other replies implied that an aisle seat passenger knows that it’s part of the deal when seated there.
One user said they choose the aisle seat out of convenience, and it’s understood that seatmates will likely need a bathroom break.
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“I love the aisle, I can get up to go to the bathroom whenever I want, and when the middle/window needs to go to the restroom it’s a great excuse to stretch my legs,” the user wrote.
Others said they would have immediately rebuked the option of climbing over to use the restroom.
“Like, come on man, just get up!” a user replied on the thread.
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If you’re seated in the window seat, there are ways to ask a seatmate to let you exit the row, according to an etiquette expert.
Always be courteous
If you feel nature calling, being pleasant is the best approach on a flight, said Pamela Eyring, president of The Protocol School of Washington with locations in Washington, D.C., and Columbia, South Carolina.
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“Lean over, smile, get eye contact if possible and ask, ‘Could you please excuse me?’ Then unbuckle, then begin to stand as a non-verbal motion,” she added.
“Lean over, smile, get eye contact if possible and ask, ‘Could you please excuse me?’”
Then continue your attempt to stand.
“By beginning to stand, it physically alerts the person in the aisle (and middle) that you need to depart the row,” Eyring told Fox News Digital. “When you return, always say ‘thank you’ and smile.”
Try excusing yourself before or after beverage/food service
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Eyring said the best time to exit a row is directly after the seat belt sign has been turned off and after the flight crew confirms it’s safe to move about the cabin.
“If it’s an emergency to use the lavatory and the seat belt sign is still on, use the call button to summon the flight attendant.”
“If you are not comfortable staying in that row, ask the flight attendant if there’s another seat you could move to.”
How to handle a rude plane passenger
Sit down and press the flight attendant button immediately for assistance.
“Let them be the mediator and deescalate the issue,” Eyring said.
“If you are not comfortable staying in that row, ask the flight attendant if there’s another seat you could move to.”
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