A vacation turned into an extraordinary experience for a mother and daughter duo who found themselves as the only passengers in the economy-class cabin on an Emirates flight from Seychelles to Switzerland. Zoe Doyle, 25, and her 59-year-old mother, Kimmy Chedel, had embarked on their journey on December 25, 2023, for a Christmas celebration with family.
Zoe shared the delightful experience on TikTok, posting a video showcasing the empty seats on the plane. The video, set to Mariah Carey’s “All I Want for Christmas Is You,” has garnered over a million views, depicting the mother attempting to wear the Emirates cabin staff headgear while the daughter dances along the clean corridors and creates “snow angels” on the aircraft floor.
The duo admitted that the revelation of being the only passengers was a “complete surprise.” Zoe mentioned, “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.” The unique circumstance was attributed to the combination of monsoon season in Seychelles and Christmas Day, resulting in fewer travelers.
Despite having numerous vacant seats, the mother and daughter were not allowed to travel in the first-class section. However, they were treated to a special tour of the aircraft, engaging with flight attendants and even participating in amusing videos. Zoe shared, “We were chatting with the flight attendants and filming funny videos with them. They even got a Polaroid camera out and dressed my Mum up in the cabin crew uniform. It was great.”
This isn’t the first instance of an individual enjoying a near-private flight experience. In April 2023, a UK man traveling to Portugal from Northern Ireland discovered he was the only passenger on the entire flight. Described as a “VIP guest,” he got to choose his own seat, converse with the captain, and receive personalized attention from the flight attendants, making it a memorable and surreal journey.
Such unique travel stories highlight the unpredictability of air travel and the occasional surprises that passengers may encounter, turning an ordinary journey into an extraordinary adventure.
