Travel 101: In-Air Flight Hacks for Your Trip to Paris

This is the second article in a “Travel 101” series offering practical advice for your trip to Paris

Your flights are booked, your bags are packed, and you’re ready to go to Paris. Now prep yourself with tips for the long-haul flight. No matter how many hours the flight, taking care of yourself in the air is crucial. Not only does this self care help with your experience on the plane, but it also helps you better handle jet lag afterward.

Drink Water

The first and most important recommendation is staying hydrated. More than you think. It may seem like a lot, but some studies show that drinking eight ounces of water per hour on the plane helps with hydration and overall wellbeing before and after the journey. You can do this by constantly sipping water throughout the flight. Bring a a reusable bottle with you, filling it beforehand, and sip on it throughout. What’s more, you should choose water as your drink with a meal or snack. (Avoid drinking carbonated beverages on the plane because of the stomach issues like bloating and cramping caused by the pressurized cabin.) Bringing secondary options with electrolytes is also a good idea if too much plain water isn’t your style. You can also keep hydrated with nasal sprays, eye masks, face sprays, and moisturizers. The recycled air in the cabin dries out the skin.

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Time Zones and Sleep

A tried-and-tested hack is to start adjusting to a different timezone before your departure. If you’re traveling from the East Coast of the U.S. to Paris, you could start going to bed earlier each night prior to the flight. There’s no way to avoid jet lag completely, but it helps if you make an effort to put your body on the correct timezone during the flight. If your plane travels overnight, even if it departs at 5 pm ET and you’re not ready to snooze, remember it’s 11 pm in France, and it’s better to get a few hours of sleep on the flight so you’re not in a haze when you go through customs.

Clothing Considerations

The next tip is to wear compression socks during the flight. It helps your blood circulation, since being on a plane up in the air, as well as sitting still for so long, can disrupt and cause discomfort. Without the socks, your legs and feet will swell from the changes in pressure, and can leave you with soreness. Compression socks are a simple hack to keep your body comfortable. It’s even said they can alleviate jet lag-related fatigue.

Wearing layers is advised during the flight. It’s hard to know if the plane itself will be cold or stifling hot, and being uncomfortable either way will make the trip feel unbearable. If you have layers of clothing pieces you like, you can take things off and put them back on as needed. That flexibility goes a long way.

Skincare Tips

If you’re interested in this sort of thing, I also recommend a level of skincare during the flight. Some studies show that there is a 2% increase in UV every 1,000 feet into the air, so I suggest wearing sunscreen on your face. You don’t have to be covered in a thick, sticky layer, but a light layer of sunscreen protects your face from any added sun or drying out from the UV light.

Airplane cabins are infamous for drying out the skin and recycling stale air. This is worsened by the fact that the air is brought in from outside and filtered in flight- at high altitudes, the air is quite dry.

While bringing bottled products is hard and messy, having disposable things such as collagen face masks or eye masks can be the perfect solution. Place them on your face and lean back, letting the moisture and vitamins soak into your skin throughout the flight. I also recommend bringing various skincare products that cleanse and moisturize your face. Preferably, things in spray or stick form to avoid touching your face with your hands.

If you really want to go all out in self-care, taking a moment to wash your face, brush your teeth, and use mouthwash in the cabin bathroom has the same effect. Some people even swear by a change of underwear mid-flight.

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A Plethora of Pillows

Lastly, and most importantly, bringing a travel pillow is a hack many people swear by. There are a variety of options based on how you want to sleep. The standard option is the wrap-around neck pillow. Some others are a bit more… creative.

One type of pillow, the Sleeper Hold Travel Pillow, is a strap that covers your eyes and then attaches around the headrest of the seat. It keeps your eyes covered while sleeping, and your head securely in place.

Another is a helmet-looking pillow that covers your entire head, and has holes for your arms so you can lay your head down on the tray table. This model is made by the aptly named Ostrich Pillow brand. It’s all about your comfort and how you’ll sleep best.

Traveling doesn’t have to be the worst part of the trip, and with a long airplane ride to Paris, making the flight enjoyable and less stressful is an important step to making your trip start on the right foot. There’s no better way for that than taking care of yourself, however that looks for you.