No Room…But a View: Sitting in the back of the plane, you have a clear view all the way to the cockpit, which means that you don’t have to crane your neck to see if there’s a line for the bathroom. You can sit back (well, not really back, since your seat doesn’t recline in the last row) and relax, not bothering to get up until that little “vacant†sign slides into place.
Congeniality Corner: Not only will you get to know the flight attendants stationed in the galley right beside you really well, you’ll get to overhear all of their conversations, which could easily be more entertaining than the in-flight movie you watched on a previous flight. Also, you’re guaranteed to make fast friends with your seat mates, who will be just as eager as you are to commiserate about your shared seating fiasco.
No-Kick Zone: For anyone who has ever endured a trip with a child kicking their seat from behind, this is a big one! For some, it might be reason enough to actually request the last row! No one is behind you. No little kickers, screamers, coughers, tappers, gas-passers or other junior travelers that only a mother could love.
Better Survival Odds: I read a statistic years ago that said you are more likely to survive a plane crash if you are seated in the rear of a plane than in the front. Of course, this is logical. As to whether it’s actually true, who knows. If you’re stuck in a last-row seat, it’s a good thing to console yourself with nonetheless. Those folks in first class, with their clean blankets and pillows, their hot meals and fresh-baked cookies, their leg-and-butt room and reclining seats, their spacious overhead bins, practically private bathroom, and drinks-on-demand… in a pinch, they’re more precariously perched than you are.
So, you see, there’s a lot to be glad about if you find yourself riding the back of the plane. Of course, this assumes you have a window or aisle seat. Back row, middle seat? The best you can hope for is that you’ll sleep through the entire ordeal.
Bon voyage!