Grandma Boards Plane for 'Dream' Trip—Tears at Flight Announcement Surprise
Newsweek AI is in beta. Translations may contain inaccuracies—please refer to the original content.
A video about an 87-year-old woman who finally made it to Hawaii—a trip she had long dreamed of taking with her late husband—surrounded by eight of her 16 grandchildren has captivated viewers on TikTok.
The clip shared by Britney Lindgren (@hejmammabat) has racked up more than 6.4 million views since it was posted on July 26. Filmed on a July 17 flight from Phoenix, Arizona, to Honolulu, Hawaii, it shows a smiling grandmother receiving a special in-flight announcement from crew members as her family celebrates the journey.
"Grandma has always been close to all of us since we were babies. She helped take care of us all through our lives," Lindgren, 39, who lives in the Midwest and works for a radiology organization, told Newsweek. "This was grandma's first time to Hawaii. It was always a place she dreamed of going. She told us to go there with someone you loved and had hoped to go with her husband. He passed suddenly in 1996 before they could go."
A screenshot from a viral video showing the grandma on her "dream trip" to Hawaii.
A screenshot from a viral video showing the grandma on her "dream trip" to Hawaii.
@hejmammabat on TikTok
The flight attendant's announcement in the video drew laughs and applause from passengers. "We wanted to give a quick shoutout from a very grateful group of grandkids in rows 35, 36 and 37. Today, they are flying with a true VIP—their grandma," the crew member said.
From 2000 to 2024, the grandmother took each of her grandchildren on a one-on-one trip after they finished eighth grade—"yup, 16 middle schoolers, 16 adventures," the attendant said, adding: "We're still not sure how she did it, but somehow she made every single trip unforgettable … so, now, it's her turn."
The announcement closed with a message of gratitude: "Thank you for your love, your courage and your endless curiosity, for being our biggest fan, our favorite travel buddy and the queen of making travel memories. We love you, grandma."
Research shows that grandparent-grandchild relationships can have tangible benefits for health and well-being. A 2015 study in Child Indicators Research found that grandparents can influence outcomes such as children's nutrition, mental health, and survival rates. It also reported that a strong grandparent-grandchild bond can help offset "the negative effects of having an emotionally distant relationship with parents."
A 2018 study in Ageing International found that older adults engaged in grandparenting often "tended to perceive meaning in their lives and to exhibit relatively low levels of stress and depressive mood."
'I'm Sobbing'
The caption accompanying the viral post read: "Grandma always said 'go to Hawaii with someone you love' and although she meant that at first because she didn't want to take 14 year olds there—I think 8 of her 16 grandchildren taking her to Hawaii counts."
The TikTok video drew emotional responses from viewers.
"Ok sobbing. May this kind of generational love chase me down and kidnap me," one user, Caitlin, commented. Another, @wowagabrielle, wrote: "'Queen of making memories' I'm sobbing."
Others marveled at the grandmother's dedication over the years.
"16 grandchildren. 16 individual trips! What a woman!" wrote @angiebazikian. Lisa Collins posted: "Now THIS is the type of airline announcement that I'm paying full attention to. What a woman!! Enjoy."
User @kayla commented: "I hope she had the best trip ever."
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