Plane travel is undoubtedly a great experience but when it comes to long flights, you require a smooth sleep for sure.
I have been traveling for long and in the meantime, I took long hours flights, too. Long haul flights are economical and let you stay in the air for some great time. To spend the time, we often take help from movies, games and reading books but sleep is the real relaxation.
How to sleep on the plane is a question asked by every other traveler taking long flights and here are a few tips that you can follow to have the best sleep during your time in the air:
Tip #1. Start by Minimal Packing
The first thing that hinders your sleep during the flight is by packing the non-essential stuff with you. Unnecessary stuff should be in your briefcase or other luggage bags. Essential stuff includes anything that is needed during the flight.
As you are done with minimal packing, you have cleared half of your path to sleeping in the air; keep following the next tips:
Tip #2. Choosing Your Seat Wisely
A good sleep requires no-distraction at all. Your seat defines how well or poorly you’re gonna sleep.
It is recommended to go for a window seat as it offers multiple benefits:
- You get something to lean against
- Your sleep is not distracted by the folks nearby, they can go to the washroom with no disturbance. 😀
- You have control over window shade, up to you what you do with them
So choosing a window seat is the second thing when you’re up for sleep. Make sure the seat is positioned in front rows as last rows are often located near the lavatories where noise and odor can disturb your sleep.
Tip #3. Skip the Caffeine
To have the best sleep, you have to skip the caffeine. Especially when you’re on a daytime flight, where the shade and other factors are there to distract, the caffeine negates your sleep.
Whether you’re a caffeine lover or not, skip it before the flight. Experts have already shared how caffeine affects sleep and mental activity. Going for water or juice when the drink cart comes in is recommended to have a better sleep.
Tip #4. Have Blankets and Pillows or Stake Your Claim on Them!
No matter what airline you’re traveling with, ask the flight attendant to have the blankets and pillows for you. As soon as you take-off, claim your blankets and pillows to have a distraction-free sleep.
What I recommend is to have a travel blanket that can be easily packed and used when required. Travel blankets are well-engineered to prepare your bed anywhere, anytime. It just takes a few seconds to get them ready for sleep.
As you feel toasty warm, you will be able to rest in comfort!
About the neck comfort, you can go for a neck pillow to have an easy take for your neck. The best travel pillow I recommend is ComfoArray Travel Pillow. It offers maximum comfort to your neck and you can sleep with no pain in the neck later on.
Tip #5. Buckle your seatbelt over the blanket
For a passenger who’s sleeping in flight, the worst part is to be wakened up by the flight attendant for checking whether the seatbelt is on or not.
To avoid situations like that, buckle your seatbelt over the blanket. This will let the flight attendant know you’re packed like a baby and there’s no risk factor involved! 😀
Wrap yourself into the travel blanket, buckle your seatbelt over and move on to the next:
Tip #6. Free Your Feet
Sleep requires good blood circulation and freeing your feet stands for wearing the compression socks to encourage blood circulation.
Some passengers slip their shoes off as soon as they get on the plane while some don’t, it’s up to you whether you wear ‘em or not but if you’re wearing them, go for shoes that can slip on and off in no time. This way, you save your time not pulling shoelaces and flinging elbows mid-flight.
Got comfy shows with compressions socks?
Move on to the next tip:
Tip #7. Wear Comfortable Clothes
Whether your flight is going to be hot or cold, go for comfortable clothes. If you’re up for a long-haul flight, consider bringing pajamas to change during the flight and have easy sleep.
Formal clothing works fine for short flights while comfortable pajamas and t-shirts are essential for long flights.
Other than comfortable clothes, make sure you have the eye mask to stay away from the light. Done with everything, move over to the last tip:
Tip #8. Put Headphones on
Last but not least, put your headphones on. Make sure you have noise-canceling headphones to keep you away from distractions.
The best noise-canceling headphones I use for my long-haul flights is Beats Solo 3 as it cuts off noises precisely.
The Bottom Line
As you follow the above tips, specifically the window seat thing, you can have the best sleep during the airline. This is it, that’s how I sleep on most of the flights I take and yes, if you have sleep disorders, you can ask your consultant for a sleep aid to have an easy sleep.
Written By Boyan Minchev
References:
https://www.claimcompass.eu/blog/sleep-on-plane/
https://www.smartertravel.com/sleeping-planes-top-tips-travelers/