Well, we can reach the other islands in the archipelago in less of a time than we would have by long boat. Like...say you wanted to get to the Bog Burglar's territory. You'd have at least three or four days by boat. Dragon flight cuts the time by half, including a night's camping. Just because they're dragons doesn't mean they're not superhuman.

[Hiccup cups his free hand over his other, attempting to not make it look like the handshake had been a bit hard. He knew strong handshakes. Firm ones were a new thing. He raises an eyebrow at that.]

I'm guessing 'the Once-ler' is your actual name, not some sort of nickname.