How to Survive Long-Haul Flights According to Frequent Flyers

Long-haul flights can be one of the hardest parts of travel, especially when you’re dealing with cramped seats, exhaustion, jet lag, and hours of trying to stay comfortable on a plane. To help make that long journey easier, I asked some frequent flyers to share their best tips for surviving long-haul flights.

In this roundup, you’ll find practical advice on what to pack, how to stay comfortable, and what seasoned travelers actually do to make long flights more bearable.

Here are the long-haul flight tips frequent flyers swear by.

Top Tips for Surviving a Long-Haul Flight

1. How to sleep on a plane

Getting some good rest is one of the most important, and most difficult, part of a long-haul flight. And unfortunately, most of us struggle with sleeping on a plane.

The struggle is real, but those of us who fly for a living have found a few ways to actually get some shut-eye on a red-eye.

Alison from Exploration Solo recommends wearing loose, comfortable clothing that will keep you warm, but not sweating. She also always travels with a good neck pillow and noise-cancelling headphones. Finding a comfortable sleeping position can be hard, “especially if you’re five foot three and your feet don’t solidly touch the floor of the plane when seated” she says, but she’s found that placing her feet on her bag helps angle her better, and the pillow the airline provides can be a good back rest.

Laura from Laura No Está recommends getting on the plane tired to begin with. “The day of your trip, try to go to the gym or go for a run,” she recommends. “If you’re tired, you’ll probably fall asleep even if your seat is extremely uncomfortable.”

If that doesn’t get you sleepy enough, Alison recommends taking a sleep aid. A natural supplement like melatonin or a medication like ZzzQuil can be helpful in getting you tired at the right point of the flight. Emily from The Planking Traveler recommends hemp oil to help sooth flight anxiety and help you relax enough to sleep.

Most people prefer the window seat for sleeping because you can rest your head against the window. But Laura actually prefers the aisle seat when she can’t sleep so that she doesn’t feel caged-in. With an aisle seat, she can easily get up and walk around the plane when she’s restless without having to bother her neighbor.

Sleep doesn’t come easily to me, either on or off a plane. So if you have trouble sleeping on flights, I feel your pain. My go-to for sleeping on a long-haul flight are comfortable and warm clothes, a neck pillow, noise-cancelling headphones, and some melatonin.

If it’s in the budget, upgrading to a lay-flat first-class seat is a gamechanger – even if I don’t fully sleep laying flat, at least I get off the plane feeling more rested simply because I was more comfortable.

2. What to wear for your flight

What you wear can make a huge difference on how comfortable you are on a long flight.

Loose-fitting layers are key to staying comfortable on a plane. I tend to get hot when the plane is on the ground and they don’t have the air conditioning fully going. But then I get so cold when we’re actually up in the air. My go-to outfit is this pair of comfortable travel leggings, a baggy sweater, and sneakers.

Depending on your preferences, you might want a cardigan or light jacket, joggers or sweatpants, or a long maxi dress or skirt.

Emily even recommends a scarf with a hidden zipper compartment, which helps keep her warm on a drafty plane while also giving her a place to store items she wants easy access to like lip balm, her boarding pass, and snacks.

Alison recommends wearing wool socks to keep your feet nice and dry. She also recommends big, loose shoes with your laces loosened to help keep your feet from swelling.

Compression socks are a great idea for flying. People of all ages can suffer from blot clots and swelling when sitting for long periods of time on a flight. Compression socks can help prevent blood clots and fatigued legs. When you do finally get up and move around after a long flight, you’ll feel so much better.

3. Extras to pack for comfort

It’s not only about what you wear to keep you comfortable on a long flight, it’s about what you bring along, too.

We’ve already mentioned a good neck pillow for helping you sleep. It’s also nice just to have a little extra cushion than those hard head rests, even if you’re just watching a movie.

Noise-cancelling headphones are my must-have for any flight. They block out those annoying sounds like people talking, children crying, or people coughing. They also help dampen the loud sounds of the engine. This is my favorite investment; I bought my noise-cancelling headphones before an 8-hour flight to England, and I’ve used them on every flight since.

If you’re like me and get hungry at all hours of the day, packing your own snacks is a great way to avoid getting hangry when flying. You can pack healthy snacks or junk food, whatever gets you through it! But at least you know you’ll have something when you’re hungry and you don’t have to wait for meal time (and if you can’t stomach the airplane food, you won’t go hungry!). Don’t forget to bring along a refillable water bottle as well.

A portable charger is also good to have handy for your phone and electronic devices that you need to keep you entertained and sane on a long flight. Many planes have outlets now, but some planes don’t and others have outlets that don’t work, so having your own portable charger means you’ll always have access to a charge.

Even if you’re not flying first class, you can make your flight feel more luxury by putting together an amenities bag filled with the little things that make the trip more comfortable. Things like an eye mask, soft socks, mints, gum, lip balm, lotion, Emergen-C, jet lag pills, and disinfecting wipes can go a long way to making your flight more bearable. Some of these items can be kept in the hidden pocket scarf that Emily recommends for easy access.

Emily also recommends tea tree oil as an alternative to alcohol-based hand sanitizers. Traditional hand sanitizers and wipes can dry out your skin, but a tea tree oil roll-on, diluted with coconut oil, is antibacterial, antifungal, and antiviral and it won’t dry out your skin. Use it on your hands or dab a little on a tissue to wipe down your tray table and seat.

4. Passing the time on a long flight

Since many of us can’t sleep for an entire flight (or for any of it at all), we need something else to help pass the time.

There are the usual pastimes of catching up on TV shows and movies, either on your seatback entertainment or by bringing your own tablet with pre-downloaded entertainment.

Reading a book, either a physical book or on a Kindle, is also a great option. This is good to have handy if your seatback screen isn’t working, which can unfortunately happen.

Hanny from The Global Wanderess keeps herself entertained with her skincare routine. She fills her time with things like wearing a hydrating facial mask and putting on lotions, which also helps keep her skin feeling fresh in the dry plane air.

5. Tips for flying with kids

Air travel with kids can be stressful, especially for a long flight. But my travel expert friends have some tips to help you survive the journey!

Jessica from The Walking Mermaid says keeping the kiddos entertained is key to surviving a long-haul flight. “The last thing I want to deal with on a stressful trip is a total meltdown,” she says.

She recommends bringing plenty of activities for them. These can include activity books, coloring books, card games, and a tablet with educational games.

Jessica also recommends booking seats that allow you to easily walk with your children to the bathroom. She tends to book a full window row so that the kids can look out the window for entertainment and she can have the aisle seat, allowing her to easily get her kids to and from the bathroom without worrying about disturbing a stranger.

Your Long-Haul Flight Survival Packing List

With the right tools and strategies, you can make the most out of your long-haul flight and turn it into a more bearable experience. Make sure you have everything you need for your next long-haul flight with this packing list.

• Noise-cancelling headphones
• Neck pillow
• Travel leggings
• Compression socks or wool socks
• Hidden-pocket scarf
• Snacks and a reusable water bottle
• Kindle, tablet, and a portable charger for all your electronics
• Melatonin, ZzzQuil, hemp oil, or the sleep-aid of your choice
• Eye mask
• Facial mask, lotion, and other skin care products
• Emergen-C, jet lag pills, hand sanitizer, tea tree oil, and disinfecting wipes
• A good book
• Activity books, coloring books, card games, or a children’s tablet

More Flight Resources

Check out these other helpful travel tips to make your long-haul flight even better:

• How to Find Cheap Flights: Top Tips and Strategies
• How to Use Skyscanner to Find Cheap Flights
• What It’s Like to Fly Delta One: My Delta One Suites Review
• What It’s Like to Fly First Class on Virgin Atlantic: My Virgin Atlantic Upper Class Review
• Knack Pack Medium Expandable Backpack Review
• Knack Expandable Packing Cubes Review
• How to Take Your Own Passport Photos at Home
• How to Prevent Motion Sickness While Traveling

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Ready to take a long flight? Plan your trip with these tips.

• Find a cheap flight: Use my tips for finding a cheap flight, no matter what the travel time
• Book your flight: Find the cheapest flights using Skyscanner, my favorite flight search engine
• Pack for your vacation: Make sure you’ve packed everything you need by checking out my packing list resources

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Cheers!

Paige

How do you survive a long-haul flight? Let me know in the comments!