Getting on a long distance flight is an exciting moment for anyone, as it means that you are about to head off to somewhere exotic far from home. However, you do need to do some planning for this sort of trip.

The following points are among the best ways of getting there safely and feeling on top of the world.

 

Adjust Your Body Clock

One of the strange things about travelling a long distance by plane is that your body clock can get really messed up. This is when jet lag can kick in and really make you feel awful for a couple of day once you arrive.

While there are different opinions on how to best fight jet lag, one of the most popular suggestions is to try and adjust your body clock before you fly. See your phone and your watch to the local time in your destination and see if that helps you.

This is especially important if you are travelling from West to East, as flying in this direction makes jet lag more likely. If you don’t cross any time zones then you should be safe from jet lag, so flying from North to South shouldn’t be a problem.

 

Use an Eye Mask

The bright lights in the plane cabin can be really distracting, while bright lights are also classed one of the contributing factors to jet lag. You will want to sleep at some point on the flight and the lights might make this extremely difficult to do.

By slipping on an eye mask you can enter into a calmer and peaceful state of mind with no visual distractions. This is a good idea even when the interior cabin lights are turned, off as there is always going to be some sort of distraction for you to avoid.

 

Wear Good Headphones

The noise on a flight can also get extremely annoying after a while. Whether you want to sleep or concentrate on reading, you will find it a lot more difficult to do if you don’t use headphones to cut out the chatter from around you.

A good pair of high quality headphones will ensure that you can enjoy some peace and quiet whenever you need it. If you listen to some of the music that you love then it could help the flight to pass a lot more quickly as well.

 

Stay Hydrated

Staying hydrated is vital for your health on a long flight. The dry air of the cabin and the recycling of this air can be bad for you if you don’t manage to stay hydrated.

The smartest thing to do in this respect is to drink lots of water before and during the flight. Stay away from alcohol, coffee and tea in order to avoid feeling dehydrated on this long trip.

If you are travelling to a hot place such as South Africa then you will want to arrive feeling well hydrated and ready to cope with the climate. By going on the likes of connecting Kulula and Mango flights you can then get around the country easily and comfortably without any problems.

 

Take Some Reading Material

Even when you fly with an airline that offers numerous films and radio channels, you could find that you run out of entertainment options before too long. Reading is a brilliant way of passing the time and it may also cause you to drift off to sleep after a while.

If you find it hard to concentrate a lot on long flights then it might make more sense to take along a couple of magazines rather than a book. Either way, you will be glad to have something to read at some point in your trip.

Going on a long flight should be a pleasure rather than something to fear. By making some sensible decisions beforehand you can make it an adventure that you remember for all the right reasons.

 

Image credit: Hideyuki KAMON – https://flic.kr/p/BK3xf