A mother and daughter heading off on a Christmas holiday received an unexpected perk when they boarded their plane and found they were the only passengers in the economy class cabin.
Zoe Doyle was travelling with her mother, Kimmy Chedel, on Christmas Day aboard an Emirates flight from the Seychelles to Switzerland to spend the festive period with family.
The pair made the most of their crowd-free cabin— (zndoyle / TikTok)
Ms Doyle shared a video of the empty seats on TikTok, which has now been viewed more than a million times. The caption reads: “Merry Christmas from the only ladies flying Emirates today.”
The clip shows Ms Chedel trying on the headgear worn by cabin crew, while her daughter can be seen dancing along the clear aisles and making ‘snow angels’ on the aircraft floor.
It is set to Mariah Carey’s Christmas pop classic, “All I Want for Christmas Is You”.
The empty plane was a “complete surprise”, Ms Doyle told SWNS.
“We had no idea we were the only ones. There were four others, I think, that were in first class but they were totally separate from us, so we were basically the only ones,” she said.
“Because it was monsoon season in the Seychelles, as well as being Christmas Day, it just meant no one was flying I guess.”
The pair got a tour of the plane – though still weren’t allowed in first class, despite the abundance of seats.
“It was so much fun. We were chatting with the flight attendants and filming funny videos with them.”
Many of the hundreds of comments on the video are people wishing they could fly without the crowds.
One user wrote “I want this so bad”, while another said that it was their “idea of heaven”.
“I worked a flight with only 10 passengers once. We put them all in first class and partied in the back. Best memory,” wrote someone on their experience of a quiet flight.
In January 2022, British student Kai Forsyth got a taste of the private jet life on a flight from London to Orlando, Florida – quickly realising he was the only passenger on board.
Forsyth posted two videos of the eerily quiet flight to TikTok, captioning one: “What would you do if you were the only passenger and had the plane to yourself?”
He spent the eight-hour service befriending members of the crew, stretching out in economy and marvelling at the limitless nibbles.
“They literally gave me all the snacks and unlimited food.”