Sadly, there is nothing most of us can do to magically move ourselves into the luxury of First Class, but you can make an economy class flight more comfortable - as long as you are prepared.

• Wear comfy clothes. They might not look amazing, but at least you'll be able to bend your legs in tracksuit pants as opposed to skinny jeans. You can always keep a spare pair of jeans in your hand luggage to change into just before you land and re-enter the real world. It is also a good idea to pack a pashmina - these take up a minute amount of space in your luggage and can act as either a blanket or a pillow.

• Pack some sweets or chewing gum - and remember to grab one during landing and take off to help prevent earache. You could also ensure that you have some mints with you. There is nothing worse than sitting next to someone who overdid the garlic the night before. By being kind and sharing your minty sweets you can save yourself from a night of bad breath without offending anyone.

• Chuck your shoes as soon as you can. Your feet will swell with the changes in air pressure and this can be really sore when you're still stuffed into your stilettos. No one will mind if you pad around in your socks - in fact, the man who you clamber over to get to the loo will probably really appreciate not getting a heel in his foot.

• Bring along your own toiletries. Please correct me if I am wrong, but I have never had tooth paste out of an airline goodie bag that actually tasted like tooth paste. You will feel much better if you can at least brush your teeth before you disembark. For the ladies, try packing some face wipes. These do wonders to freshen you up and also mean that you can leave your face wash in your checked baggage and not have to worry about the liquid restrictions for your hand luggage.

• Bring your own snacks or food. I trusted in the airline food on my last flight and ordered the oh-so-delicious looking chicken curry that my neighbour was already tucking into. But thanks to the luck of the draw, mine had more courgettes than chicken - the only veg that I absolutely cannot stomach. But lesson learnt - for the flight home, my mom packed me some sandwiches. Just don't spend a fortune on a huge bag of biltong or nuts that you will never finished - most countries don't let you bring ‘foreign food' in and you will have to throw it away.

• Keep yourself amused.

For me, I love to do crosswords, but can never find the time. So I always buy a small crossword book and try and finish it on the plane. Try bringing along something to keep yourself busy - be it anything from a War and Peace size novel to a Rubix cube. It can also be a good idea to bring along your own headphones. Many airlines charge for these and they never seem to fit my head. Noise cancelling earphones are also a brilliant idea as they drown out the drone of the aeroplane and the snoring old man next to you.

• Thump Thrombosis. We have all heard the frightening stories about thrombosis and how important it is to stay hydrated and to keep the blood flowing on a long haul flight. There are exercises that you can do, but let's be honest - they're a little silly looking so very few people ever actually do them. My foolproof method kills two birds with one stone. Firstly, I drink a lot of water to stay hydrated (and to combat the copious amounts of alcohol I drink to ‘calm my flying nerves'). And then I naturally need the loo all the time ensuring that I regularly stretch my legs and get the blood flowing. Ingenious - unless you are seated next to the window... Maybe you should just do the exercises actually.

Do you have any sneaky tips to make flying coach comfortable? Let us know in the comment section below.