My Great Aunt told me of travelling by air from the UK to South Africa. She said marvelous it was when the flying boats started and how much faster it was than the ship - a mere five days for the trip!
It was something like Train from London to Southampton. Then daylight flying only via France, Italian Lakes, The Nile, Lake Victoria, The Vaal River and Table Bay. Each evening they were in hotels and, as described above, the Captain ruled supreme and sat at the head of the table.
I forgot to ask her about the turbulence of being at low altitude. Apart that, it sounded great!