red-eye to london

we're taking a red eye to London next month and i've never taken a night time flight before and i have never fallen asleep on planes.

any advice? also, it says dinner will be served. are they just going to come around with light food since it'll be the middle of the night?

Re: red-eye to london

what flight are you flying?
We took Air France to Paris on a red-eye and they serve the way they used to back in the day. Real utensils, choice of food and a lot. I was surprised myself. Also, they had individual TV's for each seat and lots of movie choices. DH and I also brought a DVD player. I would've slept fine if one 5 year old kid wasn't crying every 5 mins.

Wasn't too bad though and they ever served breakfast in the morning.

Re: red-eye to london

we're flying with delta. i really just hope i can sleep so im not exhausted when we arrive.

Re: red-eye to london

When we flew to London -- we left JFK at midnight or so.

They served snack, dinner, then later another snack in the middle of the night if you were awake, as well as water was provided at any time if you needed it.

In the morning we were offered a light breakfast about an hour or so before landing.

I slept a little bit here here and there through the night. By the time we go to London, we were so wired that exhaustion didn't really set in. By the time we got to the hotel, settled in, unpacked, and headed back out to explore....it was early afternoon.

We stayed out until about 7 or 8pm when the exhaustion finally kicked in....then headed to bed and enjoyed the rest of the vacation.


ETA: we flew on Delta -- November 2009.

Message edited 1/10/2011 4:04:54 PM.

Re: red-eye to london

Re: red-eye to london

I fly red-eye to Ireland all the time and never, ever sleep. I just cannot sleep on a plane. Its a curse! Anyway, I am usually exhausted when I get there but just force myself to stay awake until bedtime.
I know on flights to Ireland, dinner is served about an hour after takeoff...so usually around 10pm or so? They turn off the lights after all the dinner trays are collected. Then a light snack about an hour before landing when they turn the lights back on.

Re: red-eye to london

Re: red-eye to london

We did this too.

They won't wake you up to serve you food - it's not a bad idea to pack some granola bars or something incase you miss dinner service and wake up randomly in the middle of the flight. I have a grumpy DH if he doesn't eat, so we always have snacks on flights.

Another 2 things - you HAVE to get those pillows that go around your neck. I actually have some from the Totes store in Deer Park that are inflatable - they have a nice soft cover. This supports your neck and helps you sleep. If you fall asleep without it, it could be in a weird position and you end up with a stiff neck.

Also, take a sleeping pill or 2. I just use the over the counter. It's not bad for you to use occasionally. It will help calm the nerves/excitement so you can relax and fall asleep easier. I cannot fall asleep on planes without them.

You don't want to plan your heaviest day for the first day you land. You have to stay awake, its the only way to get adjusted. I would plan a few activities and plan to have a somewhat early night. OR have a break in the middle of the day to take a nap - i.e. before dinner - just set an alarm, don't sleep more than 1-2 hours or you will have trouble sleeping at night.