Is the foot traffic to the lavatory an annoyance.

I am sensitive to smells. Is there usually any smell from the lavatory?

I have also read about it being noisier due to the foot traffic and engines and the seats not being as comfortable.

Are all these things still true on today's planes or are they thing of the past?

Yes. In many cases the seatback in the last row will not recline. Aisle seats can be unpleasant given people queuing/passing eachother for the WC. Only plane I have flown in w/o a WC in the rear is the Q400. I am sure other planes like this do exist. Bottom line, if its a short flight, who cares. Bonus is, they are supposed to be the safest seats.

theres a better chance for an empty seat next to you in the back....

Yes. It's important to turn left when boarding a plane whenever possible.

Other than that -- it really varies by aircraft and flight duration. seatguru.com is a good source of information for your specific flight.

the back of an MD 80 is extremely loud. if OSHA checked the noise levels, i'm pretty certain they would issue citations for unsafe workplace.

Not only are all of the above true, but it will also take you approximately 2 weeks to deplane (Ever so slightly exaggerated...).

Yes.

Is this a trick question?

It's always noisy, occasionally smelly, and frequently has people coming and going all the time to the lav, galley, etc. On an overnight flight, it may be more well-lit than the rest of the darkened cabin as well. And if you're on a 757, bring a book to read after the plane parks at the gate. You're going to be sitting there for a while.

Only thing different about the past is that the back was where the smokers were. At least now you don't have to worry about that.

With loads so high these days, I don't put much stock in booking a seat back there on purpose just to get an empty middle. Kind of a longshot gamble.

Occasionally on Seatguru, you'll see a "green" seat back there as the fuselage narrows. A funky arrangement where a missing seat gives others around it a bit of an advantage. But even with that, I'd rather be in the *other* pointy end of the plane.

I wouldn't choose to sit right at the back � all the things mentioned above are likely to be true: it can be noisy, especially if there is a galley at the back, there will a lot of traffic up and down the aisle and people standing around, the lavatories can be smelly (although one hopes not, certainly on a "good" airline), and it is often not as dark as other areas when the cabin is lit for "night-time". And yes, it will take a long time to disembark at the end of the flight.

Depending on the airline/route, I sometimes prefer to sit in the last row (aisle).

If I have a bit of time for a layover/am flying to HKG, I sit in the back. Though, the chattiness can become a nuisance (CI/AK/KL seem particularly fond of letting the whole cabin hear them, IME), I'm not interested in being toppled by the deplaning scrum either. Sad that I've chosen a seat solely based on the last few minutes (when everyone is standing, mind you) I'm on a plane...

On the other hand, no one would be sitting behind me, thus no passenger would be banging on the in-seat tv or blabbing for the duration.

MS made it a bit tricky, since they used the back of the 773 as a smokers' lounge.

It has been two years but we used to pick the back of the plane when our son was young and yes, there were always empty seats even on flights that should have been sold out (Caribbean destinations on peak weekends for example)

I don't remember annoying lab traffic. I do remember getting good service from the FAs but that may have been the result of the blondy boy charming the crew, he has been a chick magnet since the day he was born.

the bach section of the plane(not the last row) is not that bad. frequently, the FA's sit back there and read.

Back in the day when crew used to be friendly to pax, this was not a bad spot at all. They used to chat with pax in the back, we used to get extra attention during meal service, and often an extra snack or beverage as well.

'it depends'

If you have a plane or an airport that only boards/exits via the front, then it is a pain - but on a recent run I intentionally chose last/2nd last rows because I knew that they would be doing front and rear boarding and I wasn't riding up the very front.

Back of the plane is often very warm, too. Of course, depending upon the aircraft.

Yes

On a recent flight back from Malaga to Gatwick, a number of passengers had the misfortune to sit close to an incredibly smelly toilet. Whilst waiting for baggage afterwards, a number of them were complaining about it saying it was their worst flight ever, etc and I have to say, the toilet smell had lingered onto them

Thankfully I was in CE so I was oblivious to all this commotion until later on