Airline Passengers Are Sharing Tips For Surviving Long-Haul Flights & These Are Game Changers

Bring noise-cancelling headphones

The most common tip in the thread was boarding the flight with noise-cancelling headphones.

No one wants to sit through 10-plus hours of hearing a crying child or a group of chatty loud people, so making sure you bring noise-cancelling headphones can be a game changer, especially when you’re trying to sleep.

Avoid alcohol

Alcohol can be really dehydrating, and the air on a flight is already dry, especially when you're stuck there for nearly a day.

That’s why many users in the thread recommended people try taking other options to help sleep, such as melatonin supplements.

Others also shared that they take weed gummies, but that may not be the best recommendation given the different laws around marijuana in various countries.

Make a schedule

One user recommended making a schedule for the flight to try and break the long trip down into manageable bits.

“I made a sort of mental schedule to break the flight into chunks of time, like I do with my work day,” shared the Redditor. “Otherwise, the long flight time seemed too daunting.”

Bring a change of clothes

Another person recommended coming on the flight with extra clothes to change into for the morning and night portions of the flight. Not only does it help you stay as comfortable as possible, but it also helps divide the flight.

Brush your teeth

Many users recommended bringing a toothbrush and other toiletries on the flight to freshen up during the long journey.

“Have an evening and morning routine (brush teeth, freshen up, etc). To me, these little activities make a big difference I find,” shared one Redditor.

Another person agreed and wrote that having a little amenity kit with a toothbrush was a game changer on a long flight from South America for them.

As an extra tip, someone reminded people to "use bottled water to brush your teeth, not the sink," for sanitary reasons.

Another user backed that up by providing a 2019 study that showed that airplane water contained harmful bacteria because of "the infrequency with which aircraft water tanks are cleaned."

Wear slippers

Nothing is worse than having to wear your sneakers for hours on end, so bring a pair of slippers to change into during the flight.

“Make sure you have shoes on you can easily slide on and off,” recommended one user. "I had running shoes and needed to go to the bathroom often, and tying/retying laces and shoving them on every hour or so was a pain.”

Wear compression socks

"Please try to wear compression socks and get up every now and then," shared one user. "Just to reduce the risk of blood clots in the legs during such a long flight."

A person saying they were a flight crew member seconded this "very good tip" and shared that they use them too.