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We have a 14 hour ish flight coming up in BA economy. It’s been a long time since I’ve done one of these and I am rather dreading it.
Does any one have any tips on making it better?
What are the best neck pillows??
Is there any point getting those weird foot hammocks Amazon sells to hang over the seat in front?
Would you recommend sleeping pills (either for flight or jet lag after)??We will also have a 12-year old with us. Any tips for managing one of those? Do I just abandon all rules and let them watch trash for 12 hours straight??? They’ve rather outgrown the sticker books and mini Lego sets I used on previous long haul flights!!
(I appreciate the best solution would be not to fly economy but unfortunately that wasn’t a viable option!)
Some really like the Trtl neck support.
I find good red wine can send me off to zzzzz.
Take snacks on board with you, the food can be poor.
You aren’t allowed to use foot hammocks and similar devices
https://www.britishairways.com/en-gb/information/family-travel/seating
My tips would be: noise cancelling headphones (I have the Sony WH-1000XM4 and they are worth every penny), a decent eye mask for you and your travelling companions (mine is huge and fluffy so it looks ridiculous but completely blocks out the light and I don’t travel anywhere without it because it works a treat!) and, whilst it sounds obvious, head to the airport in comfortable clothes or take them with you to change into on the plane. Don’t forget your toothbrush and toothpaste! Good luck 🙂
Slip-on shoes. Much less faff when you want to put them on to go to the loo 😉
I’ve occasionally thought someone should make trousers with inflatable / adjustable bum and upper leg padding, though I suppose that might be overkill 😉 But even the best seats feel very hard after 10+ hours (though it has been a few years since I last had to do it, so maybe the latest ones are better). If you can grab spare pillows early on in the flight to sit on, do, or bring an inflatable cushion with you perhaps.
YMMV with this but for me, I found after much trial and error that it’s best not to try turning sideways when sleeping, much as it’s tempting to change position regularly. Staying forward-facing resulted in much less post-flight ache and pain. Extra lumbar support may be useful also (I used to roll up a spare blanket if I could get one).
Oh also, swimmer’s earplugs – the type that come in boxes of 6, for about £5 from Boots or Superdrug, and you mould/press them into your ears (not the foam ones, and not the pre-shaped ones, these are little sticky silicon ‘tablets’).
My tips would be: noise cancelling headphones (I have the Sony WH-1000XM4 and they are worth every penny), a decent eye mask for you and your travelling companions (mine is huge and fluffy so it looks ridiculous but completely blocks out the light and I don’t travel anywhere without it because it works a treat!) and, whilst it sounds obvious, head to the airport in comfortable clothes or take them with you to change into on the plane. Don’t forget your toothbrush and toothpaste! Good luck 🙂
Seconded – noise cancelling headphones are essential.
Melatonin is the way to go – you can order it from the US because for some bizarre reason it’s on prescription in the UK, e.g. https://uk.vitamingrocer.com/
Great way to fall asleep, even in the most uncomfortable situations, and deal with jetlag.
How about when there are 3 kids with you? 2,4,6yo
Take a tablet each and download Netflix or similar stuff to watch of your choice instead of relying on the in flight entertainment. Amazon tablets are from £50.
I like the Cabeau Evolution S3 travel pillow. It is expensive but it gives good neck support. I bought mine in the USA so was a bit cheaper. I also tried the J Pillow but found it really uncomfortable.
How about when there are 3 kids with you? 2,4,6yo
How long is the flight? At that age, hopefully you can schedule in meal and nap times which fills a good chunk of flying time!
As previously mentioned, Lego, colouring, story books, stickers, transfer sets (you can still get them), favourite programs on tablets, bribe treats (as in “If you’re good for the next hour, you can have …”
For the 12-year-old – long flights are classed as extraordinary circumstances so yes definitely as much trash as they want. My teenager will be gaming on a laptop for 12 hours solid on our flight next week, doesn’t seem to have damaged him yet. Plenty of time for fresh air and family fun once you reach your destination.
*Also for younger kids, if there’s something that they’ve wanted for ages, and you’re willing to buy it, have it as a “You can have it when we are on the plane” option, and hopefully the novelty will last a good couple of hours!
Second earplugs (or noise-cancelling) as essential. None of us are very bothered by light, and they tend to darken the cabin more reliably than most of the rest of the service onboard, but eye masks if any of your mob might want them. I’d get them to test and get comfortable with them at home first.
Adaptable clothing as the on-board environment is unpredictable – I had a bitterly-cold BOS-LHR last year on which I shivered all night in my hat + hoodie even with the BA blanket over my head…I’ve also sweated my way up Africa in the past. Maybe zip-off trousers (in case of heat), layer for top, beanie or buff. People with low-level colds or who didn’t get enough sleep/breakfast might be cold; people who feel a bit travel sick will be warm.
If you’re interested in the Trtl “pillow” (neck support) as recommended above, note that you can get a clone of it from ebay for £8 (vs £40 for an “official” one) and there’s little to choose between them.
Sleeping pills are very personal; some people swear by them, others find they wipe out the next day. Really it’s something I’d want to try before the flight, at home, to see how well it worked. My nightmare would be to be exhausted, stressed, drugged, and still unable to sleep (eg disruptive passenger/baby, or just the pill disagreed with me).
There are herbal options and Valerian works for a lot of people – although not always many times (tolerance). Nytol (diphenhydramine) or Piriton (chlorphenamine) work for many people; both are over-the-counter at pharmacies in the UK. Note that the brand names in the USA may not be the same drug (“Nytol” is “Benadryl” there and our “Benadryl” is acrivastine and non-sedating).
Melatonin as suggested is difficult – need it from the USA where it’s sold in Wal-mart etc. The typical dose of melatonin sold is a *preposterous* (although harmless) overdose; typically 0.3mg (300mcg) would be appropriate and the 10mg+ ones won’t help sleep. If you can only get the bigger ones then they can be scalpel’ed down but tend to crumble and be quite inexact doses. No legal problem with having it posted to you from abroad.
You can’t rely on the IFE, onboard Internet, or charging so do take fully-charged kids tablets and pre-load them with games or videos that work without Internet, and headphones (and TEST all the parts of this). We always took the view that screen-time restrictions go out of the window as soon as we get into any kind of public transport, in favour of keeping stress level down. Older kids we insist take a fat paperback now. The later Harry Potter books from after Rowling got too rich for her publishers to insist on brevity are great…
[0] May be illegal to import into your destination as it’s meat.
I wouldn’t take a sleep aid if travelling with young children but I find Sominex very effective, 1/3 of a tablet knocks me out for 8 hours and I have always suffered very badly from insomnia. It’s very slow acting and long-lasting though, so make sure you’ve got plenty of time to come round the next day. Melatonin does nothing for me, I decided to try it again after many years and bought a huge tub of tablets in Boston last year which are now sitting useless in my bathroom. Walgreens and the like are also brilliant for tubs of migraine tablets (which cost an arm and a leg in rip-off Britain!) And teenage skincare stuff. And insect repellent.
I’ve occasionally thought someone should make trousers with inflatable / adjustable bum and upper leg padding, …… or bring an inflatable cushion with you perhaps.
This! Coccyx cushions can make it more comfortable.
We cannot take any sleeping aids with little children. Our flight is 11 hours. We have got their tablets all loaded up, colouring, play doh, activity packs, snacks all loaded up including a “just for this holiday new treat”, but usually the longest we fly is 6 hours so this is nearly double! I think the flight is a night flight departing but a day flight in the return and I think the night one may be easier than the day one, which I am dreading(!) but I want them at least to be able to sleep comfortably.
IME kids sleep much better on planes than adults. A night flight is good – get them used to the idea that they will be getting on the plane at bed time and going to sleep. Put their pyjamas on before you board. We did this when my son was 4 and we went to NZ and we survived that really quite well (in economy!)
You’ll just have to take the jet lag as it comes as you can’t physically make kids stay awake or go to sleep if they don’t want to! The first time we took our son to the Caribbean (at 2 1/2) he woke up at weird times and asked for his meals at the UK times but you just have to roll with it until they adjust. Be gentle with yourself for the first few days and take things as they come.
* – IF there will be jet lag, not sure where you’re actually going? Obviously if somewhere like South Africa with no big time difference this shouldn’t be an issue.
We will also have a 12-year old with us. Any tips for managing one of those? Do I just abandon all rules and let them watch trash for 12 hours straight???
100% yes. I mean what else can they realistically do.
Having flown economy for the first time in a few years this year … all the way to Australia [shudder] I’d also say:
The way I did it: you have saved many many thousands of pounds by not flying in the nice cabin. Invest a tiny fraction of that into making the rest of your experience as good as it can be. Pay more to park in the short haul parking rather than dicking about with shuttle buses. Get the best pre-flight meal you can have at the airport rather than crappy Priority-Pass-lounge pasta and breadsticks. Nicer and closer airport hotel than normal – maybe a suite even. First class train tickets to the airport. Whatever, you get the idea. Definitely eases the psychological blow (We’re flying in this cramped cabin for 12 hours but I got X and Y and Z and am still £x thousand pounds up!)
Knowing you are getting all this rather than a plane seat cushions the psychological blow a lot.Seconded that the Sony WH-1000XM4 noise cancelling headphones are truly amazing. Thing they’re up to XM5s now which are probably even better. Worth every penny.
* – IF there will be jet lag, not sure where you’re actually going? Obviously if somewhere like South Africa with no big time difference this shouldn’t be an issue.
We are ia going to the Maldives. We went to Mauritius when we had just one child and she was 1yo and it was the perfect long night flight but 3 kids and different demands is a bit different!
Just did a 12 hour with a 6 and 10 year old (and missed our connection resulting in a crazy reroute but that’s a diff story)
– We had one of the foot pillows (we weren’t on BA!) for the younger one
– Trash tv works wonders
– If you put the arm rest up to about 10/2 o’clock, slide the pillow/pillow case over it
– cant remember if ba does snacks on demand in econ, but fun to have a midnight snack 😉
Thank you!! Some really good advice here. Will definitely pick up some turtl pillow dupes on eBay, look into noise cancelling headphones, and try my best to unclench on the child’s screen time. Good idea re thick paperback (and totally agree on lack of editing in the lager Potter books :))
Second the comment on water spray for nose, also water spray for face and lastly eye pads (the smaller version of a face mask – that sit under the eyes).
We bought the Ostrichpillow, not the crazy one around your head, but the neck version and it’s great. Expensive but worth it. I also bought an eye mask from them too, and likewise expensive but worth it.
I wouldn’t take a sleep aid if travelling with young children but I find Sominex very effective, 1/3 of a tablet knocks me out for 8 hours and I have always suffered very badly from insomnia. It’s very slow acting and long-lasting though, so make sure you’ve got plenty of time to come round the next day. Melatonin does nothing for me, I decided to try it again after many years and bought a huge tub of tablets in Boston last year which are now sitting useless in my bathroom. Walgreens and the like are also brilliant for tubs of migraine tablets (which cost an arm and a leg in rip-off Britain!) And teenage skincare stuff. And insect repellent.
I might try some Sominex, thanks Anna. Like you, meltonin does absolutely nothing for me, and I have huge issues with insomnia. I also find sleeping on a plane impossible, even on a flat bed. So jealous of people that can sleep!
We’ve got a 7 hour flight home in economy later this year which I’m dreading.
BTW if you do buy neck pillows / eye masks for the kids then get them to use them at home before hand so they get used to them and find out what’s a good posiition for them to sit / sleep in.
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