Turns out, 55 percent of women travelers would give up in-flight perks in exchange for being able to keep their full-size beauty products with them during flight. According to a Degree Women survey of over 1,000 women, the fairer sex would forgo in-flight movies, free drinks, first class seats, and even go so far as to sit in a middle seat between crying children, to keep their beauty products close.

Interestingly enough, the women surveyed ranked toothpaste and deodorant over hair products, suggesting that smelling good and feeling fresh is at the top of the beauty priority list. As someone who paid little attention to beauty mid-air until she had to fly to see her long-distance boyfriend once a month, I can vouch: toothpaste and deodorant are essentials.

But I can’t deny that as the frequent flier miles built up, so did my in-flight makeup routine. What was once a stop in the airport bathroom for a quick tooth brushing lent itself to a hair-brushing, powdering, extra-mascara-applying affair. Surprisingly, looking better made me feel better, which in turn made traveling easier! Of course, the “you look beautiful!” from my boyfriend upon arrival wasn’t a bad perk either.

To get more traveling tips, I talked to Regina Upton, a former flight attendant who just recently changed careers because of the physical and emotional toll flying was taking on her body. She let EndlessBeauty.com in on the fail-proof tips flight attendants employ every day for in-flight beauty.

“We were required to wear a minimum of foundation, blush, lipstick, and mascara,” says Upton. But more importantly, she says, “I drank around 2-3 liters of water a day ... It still felt like I was dehydrated sometimes. I did know some women who bought that spray moisturizer for your face, it’s water-based.” A product like Evian Mineral Water Spray restores moisture to the face and revitalizes makeup, a must for long flights.

Upton also recommends an unscented moisturizer for hands and arms, saying, “I used extra dry skin moisturizer. The smelly, fruity lotions don’t work as well as, say, Jergens for dry skin.”

To beat the bloat sometimes caused by travel, Upton recommends: “Take vitamins, Airborne [an immune-boosting vitamin blend] works well, drink little soda because the carbonation will make you bloat, and if you bloat easily, try taking some Gas-X or something similar.” No one wants to arrive at their destination feeling puffy and unattractive!

You don’t have to suffer through a middle seat to get good looks while traveling. Even if you can’t bring your full-size beauty basics on board, you can use our flight-attendant-approved tips in-flight, touch-up where you can, and still look dashing--even while dashing through the airport.

Lyssa Myska Allen is editorial director at EndlessBeauty.com.