Overnight flights are the worst. Here’s how to make them better.
Red-eye flights can easily ruin the first day of your vacation or your first day back in the office after a great trip. While some people have sworn off red-eyes for life, there are some advantages: they’re usually cheaper, they maximize time spent in your destination, and hey, you don’t have to pay for a hotel room that night. Red-eyes are far from fun, but sometimes they’re necessary. Here’s how to make the most of a sleepless situation.
INSIDER TIPWhat exactly is a red-eye flight? Anything that flies overnight–essentially giving you an overnight flight, but without enough hours to actually get some sleep. The most common red-eye flights for our readers are from the West Coast to the East Coast (usually taking off around 9 or 10 pm local time and landing around 6 am local time–but with only a five-hour flight) or from the East Coast to Europe.
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Dress in Something Comfortable
If you’re somebody who refuses to wear yoga pants or sweats on the plane, you can still be comfortable. Loungewear disguised as streetwear is on-trend right now, so you’re in luck. JJ Winks has a “nightgown” that looks like a maxi dress but with a built-in bra and super-soft fabric. Daily Sleeper, who markets their clothes for men and women “the world’s first walking sleepwear” has pajama-esque dresses and pantsuits you can wear anywhere, while Lunya has washable silk sets that look like black-tie pajamas. DUER has rugged (yet comfy) pants for men and women–the sort of thing you can go rock climbing in and wear to work.
Get Cozy
Don’t set yourself up for failure by getting to the plane empty-handed. They barely even give out blankets on overnight flights these days, let alone pillows and eye masks. As a frequent flyer, you should have a bag of plane sleeping essentials: a great travel pillow (we love Travelrest and Turtl), an eye mask, over-ear headphones (we’re partial to Bose and Sennheiser) and earplugs, a blanket or shawl, and a footrest (either the hanging kind or the inflatable kind).
You’ll also need to be smart about where you’re sitting–in the aisle seat you might get bumped by the drink carts, and in the middle seat you might get bumped by your seatmates. Get a window seat toward the back of the plane, where the likelihood of having an empty middle seat next to you is high.
Don’t Eat on the Plane—Unless You’re in a Premium Class
If you’re trying to cram a full night’s sleep into a five- or six-hour flight, it’s just not worth it to waste any of that precious time eating microwaved meatloaf out of a plastic trough. Eat before you travel or eat at the airport, but in the case of a short overnight flight, you’ll need to be asleep by the time the meal cart rolls around. If you’re not waiting on food or drinks, you might even get lucky and fall asleep before the plane takes off.
There’s one exception to this rule, and that’s if you’re flying internationally in first or business class. Meal service, in that case, is a fun treat that you won’t want to miss out on.
Caffeine Is Your Friend
Even if you’re not a coffee or tea drinker, there’s a reason why everybody else in the world is obsessed with it: It works! Your first day after a red-eye should be fueled by caffeine, whether that’s in the form of a double Americano or a light green tea. Make sure to have a cup within an hour of waking up–not only will it save your day, but it will also get you acclimated to the time difference faster.
If you’re flying to a place that might not have coffee or tea (what is this, the moon?) then make sure to BYO. Instant coffee, tea bags, or chocolate-covered espresso beans–pick your poison.
One of the fastest ways to tell your body it’s morning while it still thinks it should be asleep is with food. If you’re not usually a breakfast person, at least have a granola bar when you land. Not only will it set you on track for the day, but it will also keep you from getting hangry.
INSIDER TIPIf you’re flying internationally, change some money before your flight so you can go straight to the coffee shop without stopping at a currency exchange or ATM.
