A chance to reminisce - who remembers the "old days" of Travel?

[danintas]

My first airline flight was from Launceston to Whitemark, on Flinders Island, in 1965 where my father had been transferred to as the local police officer. It was a Fokker operated by Ansett. We got dressed up in our finest clothes - suits, with ties... it was the done thing then!

 

[esseeeayeenn]

My first airline flight was from Launceston to Whitemark, on Flinders Island, in 1965 where my father had been transferred to as the local police officer. It was a Fokker operated by Ansett. We got dressed up in our finest clothes - suits, with ties... it was the done thing then!

I must admit I still dress up a little to fly.
Although I never wear ties anymore unless I am going to a wedding, or court.

 

[Geegeela]

My first flight was in the 1950’s on a Butler Air Transport DC3 from Sydney to Bathurst.

Apart from the obvious superficialities I don’t think things have changed much.

 

[flyingfan]

Those airport flip boards... and of course the F lounges are referenced.

Solari boards: The disappearing sound of airports

Inside airports, old-school departure boards are falling silent. Outside, it's a different story.

www.bbc.com

I remember in SQ Y children would be provided with mini board games in a little plastic foldable box - backgammon and maybe chess?

 

[amaroo]

I miss visits to the coughpit. Most memorable was the first B747, early 70's as a 7 year old.

 

[MEL_Traveller]

I remember in SQ Y children would be provided with mini board games in a little plastic foldable box - backgammon and maybe chess?

Not just children - they were available for everyone Chess and mastermind are the two that come to mind. Other gifts included things like foldable mirrors.

 

[OZDUCK]

Our first overseas trip was in 1976 to Europe for 12 months. We were supposed to "Shipjet" i.e. a package deal to travel on an old Indonesian registered, Russian chartered, ship Fremantle to Singapore and then fly to London. In the event, the ship was damaged before the trip so we were flown to Singapore on a chartered QF 707, complete with cabin crew who were obviously disgruntled at having to slum it on a charter flight so offered as little service as possible. We then flew to Gatwick on a British Caledonian DC 8, this time with the cabin crew in fetching Tartan mini skirts. Every meal on this flight was some form of Ham - bacon & eggs, ham & salad for lunch and then ham steaks for the main meal. The fare each way was about $1,500 and included 2 nights hotel in Singapore. British Caledonian Airways stewardesses 1972 | Flight attendant, Vintage airlines, Vintage airline posters

We bought a car and travelled around the mainland for 3 months using Frommer's "Europe on $10 a Day" and an AA guide book. Nothing was booked ahead you just took your chances. We slept in the back of our car - 1972 Cortina Mk111 Station Wagon and stayed in Caravan Parks. To keep in contact with home we arranged for letters to be sent to Poste Restante in Geneva & Athens.

The same applied in the UK when we had our car. When we used our BritRail Card we either just walked out of the station and chose one of the cheap hotels clustered around them in the main cities. Or, as others have said, wandered into the local tourist office and got a room through them.

We had an account with the Commonwealth Bank in London - near Australia House. We drew some money out to set up a Giro Account with the Post Office. We also had American Express Travelers Cheques. (I actually found a $100 one left over from that trip a little while ago.) I was lucky in that when we bought the car I paid £750 for it and sold it 9 months later for £600 but the Aussie Dollar had been devalued by 20% in-between. So I deposited pretty much the same amount back into our Australian Dollar account as I took out in the first place.

Our trip home was British Caledonian, Gatwick to Singapore, a couple of nights there and then the rickety old Kota Singapura to Fremantle, We had the added bonus of a cyclone on the way down so I had a couple of lonely breakfasts. MS Kota Singapura, Kota Bali, ex Tjiluwah, Tjiwangi

 

[oirets]

Things have been made so simple now that I suspect that few even think about these things - they take the globe to be their personal playground within which they have some sort of "right" to play in. And I see this reflected in expectations in all modern travel. But I also see the modern views as flawed and ridiculous. The world is not a playground for those afluente enough to cruise it - it has problems.

In one part, yes, but this is what happens when you open something up to the masses,

This seems to happen with any niche that gets "opened up". Driving used to be a much more pleasant experience before everyone and their dog had a car. Many sporting events used to be much more pleasant before everyone and their dog could attend...etc.

There's also a continual breakdown of communication that means small issues just get compounded into larger and larger issues. How often do we hear other people describe fellow passengers as morons or idiots? The problem is that people no longer communicate in today's society.

Someone who might have done one small thing to annoy another person becomes defined by that one small action they did. To whoever they annoyed, they are no longer a person, no longer someone who might be travelling for work, or to visit their family, no longer someone who's trying their best to have a comfortable flight...etc. They simply just become "that cough" or "that moron".

The lack of communication also leads to a tendency for people to do increasingly passive-aggressive things until something just completely blows up. The problem is this culture where we're all encouraged to be a cough and be selfish because that's somehow "standing up for yourself", whilst social norms still dictate that we be somewhat civil. So we have people dong this passive-aggressive thing where they are being dickheads to each other, but leaving enough room to have some plausible deniability.

 

[Bundy Bear]

The good old days when Qantas would actually answer the call in a few minutes and not have to wait hours for a call back service.

 

[Forg]

The main Y stuff I can see that’s changed since my first international flight to Fiji in the early 80’s is billionty-times better IFE, flights are real-world about 20% the price, seats are more comfy, planes are quieter & don’t try to explode your head as much upon descent, and kids don’t get to go up to the coughpit any more.

In the upper classes, and this ain’t from experience, food & drink seems to be more coughpy Buffet, but seats heaps more comfy with the lie-flat ... and again, massively cheaper. Was talking to a workmate’s mum about this, she & some friends blew a year’s wages on a 2-week trip in Y to Australia from Auckland in the 60’s ... a year’s wages now would easily do around the world in F and stay in some very nice hotels in some pretty nice places for a few months.

It can surely be no surprise that every person and their dog is travelling & that the mystique/majesty of it all has eroded when I can do a return trip to Europe in J, complete with food & showers halfway etc, for the same amount inflation-adjusted as my mates & I were wedged into Y in 2001. I think that’s a fairly big change over a pretty small period of time, and it’s way since the big step-change resulting from jet airliners ... I dread to think what international flights on a Super Constellation or a Stratocruiser would’ve cost.

 

[kpc]

In 1989, a Y fare on Sq Adl-Sin-Lhr return cost me $2100....31 years later, you would feel ripped off paying this fare from Oz to Lhr!! ....and $2100 then is probably 2-3x that today due to inflation etc!

 

[Matt_01]

Came across this thread and these are some of my travels and thoughts. My first international trip was 1970 AU-UK sea passage I was about 18months old and according to my dad flying was not an option for the defence force in those days. I cannot remember the trip however mum and dad gave me a photo album with the the B&W photos

Yes, to go with the movie projected onto the bulkhead!

I remember this it was around 1976 and apparently we were on the quick flight, SYD-PER-BOM-LHR. Movies were played at certain times and all had to watch the same film. On our flight my sister had also developed the chicken pox and showing symptoms and my mum was more worried about LHR arrival and was constantly brushing her fringe down to cover the spots.

I miss visits to the coughpit. Most memorable was the first B747, early 70's as a 7 year old.

We went to visit the QF B707, and then the TWA 747 and QF 747 a couple of years later.

Does anyone remember the literally "piped" music or sound for movies? I recall on Panam you had to hire the stethoscope-like things for $2 USD - which my parents Would not pay for so as kids we learnt to raise the armrest and hold your ear against the pipe outlet so you could listen for free

I do remember the stethoscope-like things and as kids we used to have to listen to the audio via the arm rest. By the late 1990’s I used to take them off the plane as my dad loved them as they are great for tuning twin SU carburettors, we both have owned and still own old BMC vehicles

You bought a local phone card and used it once a week to call home and assure your mother that you had not been abducted into the white slave trade.

In the Mid 90’s when I was still in the defence force if there was an interstate course that several had to attend we would ask to self drive as the allowances paid was based on distance and over night accomodation for each. Then 3-4 would pile into one car and travel together. I remember one trip, we stopped at some small town to purchase a $10 phone card and the shop assistant gave one of the lads a pack of 10 for $10. We thought we scored big time $100 worth of call for $10 dollars.

Here's one for the ages - I remember travelling in Europe in the 70's with my boyfriend (now husband of 45 years) and when checking into hotels I had to wait outside as most refused to allow unmarried couples to share a room.

In the late 1990’s I was called into the Generals Office (2 Star) to discuss my living arrangements as he had been made aware that one of his officers (myself) was living with his girlfriend and were not married. We were invited lunch at the Generals House with his wife to discuss how and when our domestic living arrangements would be rectified. 20+ years on we are still married.

Final thoughts on flying some time in the late 90’s early 20’s we were on a J flight MEL-ADL and the seating was terrible the CSM informed us we were flying on the same seats that were QF 747 F class in the 70’s. We made small talk and bantered if these were the same seats I traveled in as a kid.

Fast forward 20 years we now have a 13 yo who cannot understand why all seats on planes are not lie flat. That is now my problem to deal with for her future travel.

 

[Happy Dude]

I only need to remember the time I stayed in a hostel in Shanghai in 2010 to recall "the good old days". I went into the communal bar/cafe thing there to see about 15 people, each at their own table, and all using an iPad or laptop or phone. The world at their fingertips but seemingly uninterested at the one immediately outside. Plenty of people talking on skype or whatever but no-one talking to each other. I decided right there and then that the good old days, for me at least, were the late 90's / early 2000s, when you could walk down Khao San Road trying to find a cafe with a decent bootleg movie to watch and end up organising a trip to Krabi with 5 others all from different nations.

But whenever I get all nostalgic about it, the stories my wife's auntie tells of overlanding from London to Singapore via Iran, Afghanistan etc, in the 70s really set the imagination racing. How good would that have been?

 

[tinkybelle]

It was actually 37500 for Round oz in J on Ansett and no id so you could fly as anyone in the 90s
you could do BNE PER MEL DRW AYQ ADL SYD BNE EVEN ADDING BROOME IN THERE SOMEWHERE

 

[juddles]

......
My first international trip was 1970 AU-UK sea passage I was about 18month old and according to my dad flying was not an option for the defence force in those days. I cannot remember the trip however mum and dad gave me a photo album with the the B&W photos.....

My first flight was in 1972 (as a 2 yr old), when my family moved from Woomera to England due to my father's work (something secret squirrel related to missiles back then)

I obviously cannot clearly remember those flights (something that remains true of current ones but for different reasons :O), but I really do admire that my mother was able to cope with three kids under 6 for that trip - it was a super-constellation (or what-ever - had 4 propellers) chartered from Monarch Airlines, and I think the route was Adelaide - Darwin - Singapore - Bombay - Kuwait - Milan - London or similar.

Perhaps a sign of my future, but my earliest childhood memory was a year later, when I was 3, doing the reverse flights - when the stewardess jokingly offered me a cup of tea. I understood that was an "adult drink" and so wanted one, but after the laughs I realized that I was not going to get it.

 

[mrsterryn]

I can remember looking out to the planes when I was young (possibly father catching a flight to rejoin his ship?) And putting 2cents (?) So the binoculars would work

I have a photo of my aunt and uncle going overseas back late 1960's and the whole family was there to see them. At least 25 people came to the airport

 

[Archipelago]

Not just children - they were available for everyone Chess and mastermind are the two that come to mind. Other gifts included things like foldable mirrors.

I remember those well.

I was a prolific letter writer in the 90's as I worked in remote areas for long periods (google "Montebello Islands"
and relished the weekly mail delivery by floatplane.
When I started working in Asia, the same applied.
Aside from the games that SQ and other airlines gave out, there were also the packs of playing cards (collected a few), and the letter writing packs - lettergrams, writing paper/envelopes, and of course the ubiquitous airline postcards.
I used to have my inflight meal, then settle down and write a BUNCH of letters/postcards for the remainder of the flights - the flight crew would collect them and they would be posted free of charge.
Used to catch up on a lot of correspondence in those days - kind of therapeutic too I now that I think about it

 

[Matt_01]

My first flight was in 1972 (as a 2 yr old), when my family moved from Woomera to England due to my father's work (something secret squirrel related to missiles back then)......

In the interests of who remembers the "old days" of Travel, this was me, the woman in the background is my mother and the date on the back of the photo reads July1970. My dad was in Subs so we had to go on the sea voyage.

Fast forward to 1987, this is the same strapping lad (pictured above) who has now started to remove the stethoscope-like headphone from flights to keep his car in good order

 

[Archipelago]

In the interests of who remembers the "old days" of Travel, this was me, the woman in the background is my mother and the date on the back of the photo reads July1970. My dad was in Subs so we had to go on the sea voyage.
View attachment 207365
Fast forward to 1987, this is the same strapping lad (pictured above) who has now started to remove the stethoscope-like headphone from flights to keep his car in good order
View attachment 207366

Great photos, thanks for sharing.
My eagle eye though now has questions about the apparition behind and to your Mum's right

 

[drron]

My goodness many of you have no idea about the good old days of travel.I reckon I missed them but my first OS trip was to NZ in 1967.Flew with a mate.Can't remember which airline as those things weren't important then.Our first hostel was arranged a couple of months before we went when we stayed at a Youth hostel in Bathurst for the October races.
We had this great idea of having a beer in every hotel in places we went that started with W.Flew into Wellington naturally and then went to Whakatane.
Travelled around using our thumbs.Some interesting experiences.

Next was 1969 after finishing medicine and before I started work.Had a win on the stock exchange-$400.So figured it would take me to Papua and the Solomons.All arranged through Student travel.Was only $10 extra travelling First class as J was called them from SYD to Png on TAA return.Figured I could drink that much to make it worth it.Was too easy.Wonderful memories.

Next trip was 1971 for our honeymoon-Norfolk Island.Came back with so much Duty free including a WMF complete saucepan set.Was 50KG overweight but didn't get slugged extra.Now those were the really good old days.