How Long Does Jet-Lag Last & How to Survive It

Is Jet-Lag Always a Thing During Travel Across the Globe?

One of the sticking points of flying across the globe is the time it takes to get there. Often, getting to the other side of the planet takes multiple flights.

You might even find yourself “losing” a day when you cross the international dateline on a trip across the Pacific, or you might find yourself arriving in the middle of the night when crossing the Atlantic.

To add insult to injury, all the time you spend flying and the time it takes to get there are just the start of your experience. Then, you often need to get used to a time zone that’s several different hours from your own.

If you’re sitting on your couch in Portland, Oregon right now and it’s about noon but you’re thinking about touring New Delhi, India, consider that when you’re eating lunch in Oregon, it’s almost 2 in the morning in New Delhi.

How do you even get used to that sort of difference in time when traveling internationally? Does it happen naturally over time? Do you feel like a walking zombie for half your trip? Is there anything you can do to make the process a little less of a headache? The answer is yes! Let’s talk about it.

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Preparing for a Big Time Change

One of the easiest ways to take a bit of the sting out of jet lag is to change your schedule before you leave. If you’re traveling east, no matter where you are on the planet right now, the people east of you are getting up earlier than you’re used to.

Therefore, you may want to start getting up a little earlier yourself. Try backing it up an hour each day until the day you depart. You can even try getting a flight that’s early in the morning – like really early – so you have to get up early anyway and get yourself moving.

On the other hand, if you’re headed west, perhaps across the Pacific Ocean, there’s a good chance your temporary vacation time zone will be a full 12 hours different than your current time. It’s tough to make a noticeable impact with your sleep schedule before you leave when you’re literally going to the other side of the planet.

When I flew to Vietnam, the time zone was so far removed – and we even “lost” a day going across the Pacific – that it wasn’t worth doing anything crazy to our schedule before we departed.

It did take us FOREVER to reach Vietnam though – we had to take three flights and a taxi to get to our first hotel. After we arrived and had sat around for a few hours, we walked down to the waterfront in Hoi An and got to know the local area. Nothing stressful, just a stroll, some food, and some photography.

When You Land in Your New Time Zone

If you’re just going across a large country – maybe you’re flying from Vancouver to your grandparents in Nova Scotia – you probably don’t need to do any hardcore preparation for your sleep schedule.

Three or four hours isn’t really going to make a giant impact on your ability to sleep. While you might find it convenient to wake up a few hours earlier than usual, you shouldn’t expect to feel like you’re dragging for the entirety of your trip.

On the other hand, if you’re traveling from Vancouver all the way across the continent and then across the Atlantic to France, get ready to feel a little weird on your first morning in Paris.

What I’ve found is the best practice when traveling across a globe’s worth of time zones is adopting the new time zone immediately upon landing.

I don’t look at what time it might be at home. If it’s 7 AM when I land in Paris, I get ready to eat my croissant. I don’t think about the fact that it’s about 9 PM and I’d normally be relaxing and getting ready for bed.

Even if you need to contact someone back home to let them know you landed safely, don’t focus on what time it is back there. You’re not at home anymore, so it doesn’t make sense to think about what time it is there.

Even if you’re not tired when your local time suggests it’s time to sleep, don’t stay up all night. Get your rest, because you’ll feel a little less than perky if you stay up until 3 AM only to zonk out and get woken up by your alarm at 6 AM for your tour of the Palace of Versailles.

Deciding Whether to Travel With Caffeine & Sleep Aids

If you’re particularly concerned about getting up on time for your activities, there are always the options of caffeine pills for staying awake and sleep aids for falling asleep.

I have used both of these on occasion in times of significant need, but I normally try to avoid taking anything extra to help me sleep or stay awake. Yes, I’ll drink a few cups of coffee during the day, but that’s because I adore coffee, not because I crave the caffeine.

I’ll usually pack a few things in my carry-on, as well as in my checked luggage, just in case. But I do aim to avoid using them – especially the caffeine pills. Truthfully, you can get used to a hugely different time zone in the span of a single day or a few at most without using extra pills.

When I visited England, it was my first experience with a significant time change, and I was astonished to experience a great night of sleep the third night I was there. I was in a London hotel for a few days and then took the train out to the Oxford area, where I stayed in a B&B.

I slept so, so well in that B&B and was surprised to wake up at 7 before my alarm had scheduled me to wake up at 7:30. All I did was try to adopt the local sleep schedule and hours, and my body felt just fine after that first initial day.

Arranging Your Itinerary to Beat the Jet-Lag

My traveling partner usually likes to sit around as much as possible the first day we arrive somewhere, but I normally plan something anyway, just because I don’t want to waste extra time when we could be exploring.

However, I never plan anything crazy or stressful when designing an international itinerary. When we went to Iceland, I had us take a stroll around the capital, get a delicious meal, and hang out at a local hot springs in Reykjavik (this is the actual hot springs we went to – IT WAS AMAZING!). We certainly didn’t sit on our butts when we arrived, but the activities I chose were low-key and meant to get us acquainted with the local time zone.

It wasn’t until a few days later that we took snowmobiles over a glacier. We were fully prepared for the experience, having been in the country for about four days by that point.

When we went to Colombia, we took a red-eye flight and ended up checking in early at our hotel (like 7 AM early), after which we rested for about four hours before taking a walking tour of Bogotá. I purposefully stuck a few hours of rest time in there, just because of our time spent traveling.

The time zone of Colombia isn’t actually too far removed from Los Angeles, where we live, but traveling overnight is still a little stressful. By the time the afternoon arrived, we were rested up and ready for our walking tour.

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