TennesseeVol

My wife and I are going to Madrid in April with our 3 year-old. My main concern is how he does adjusting to the time change. It's difficult enough for some adults, some I'm trying to figure out how to help him deal with it. We leave Atlanta at 4:30 p.m. our time, and arrive in Madrid at 1:30 a.m. our time (8:30 a.m. their time). So, obviously, when we get there, our internal-clocks will say it's bed-time, while it will actually be the start of a new day.

We're thinking about letting him stay up as long as he wants the night before (which he many times will stay up at least midnight, if allowed), and not taking a nap the day we leave (which he probably won't want to anyway since it will only be the second time he's been on a plane, and he should be excited). By doing that, hopefully, he will want to sleep on the plane (even though the times of the flight are not his normal sleep-times).

If he doesn't sleep much on the plane, I'm also wondering what you guys have done to help your children once you get there. The good thing is that we are staying with friends (who have a 1 year-old), and we really have no itinerary for the first 4 days. So, if he needs to sleep at odd times when we first get there, it shouldn't be that big of a deal.

eliztravels

In a word: drug him. My daughter recently made the 30+ hour trip from Perth to Toronto with a 2 year old and 4 year old. She isn't one to use medication much, but it was the only way she was going to be sane on arrival with the two little ones. If this sounds way out of line, keep in mind that the meds you used for a cold or tummy upset often have a sedative in them. Speak to your family doc/pediatrician for advice, but if you decide to go this route, give the meds a try before hand. Same daughter had an earlier experience on a cross-continent red eye with a 2 year old who had a paradoxical reaction to the medication and was VERY awake and trying to entertain the passengers until 4 a.m.

Also, keep to his routines as much as you can: PJs and stories on the plane, snacks he is familiar with if possible. Your other thoughts sound practical.

eliztravels

Just saw your other post indicating that your aren't opposed to Benadryl. So try to keep your little guy to a normal routine when you get there, making sure any necessary naps are short the first day or two, and use the Benadryl if needed at night. Sleep patterns and problems are so variable it's pretty hard to predict, and your own knowledge of your boy will be your best guide. Our grandchildren coped pretty well with a 13 hour time difference.

Hope you are able to get enough sleep yourselves, and have a great trip.

Frances

A 5 hour time difference for our daughter when she was 2 knocked out her rhythym totally. We didn't realise what had caused this at the time , just that she suddenly started waking 5 or so times a night. You deal with it but it completely changed our days. We had to adopt an "every other night" schedule when one or the other was on duty to get up to her. At weekends we didn't see each other until the afternoons as whoever had got up in the night would go back to bed to try and make up for all the lost sleep in the week.
After 6 months we took her away again- only a 3 hour time difference this time, and when we returned she went back to sleeping all night. Only then did we realise that this had all started after the original trip.
Not the answer you were looking for but IF this happens to you you know to book another trip straight away.
I hope its great! We took our elder daughter to Madrid at 3 years and had a smashing time!

StCirq

I took my kids to Europe a few times every year from the time they were infants to the time they were in their 20s. They always fared a lot better than I did with jet lag. They typically fell asleep on the plane right after takeoff and stayed asleep until landing and were in far better shape than I was upon landing. There were exceptions, of course, but that was the typical pattern. I wouldn't "helicopter" this situation - just deal with it as it plays out. Babies fly on airplanes all the time these days and no one has permanent damage from it.

BKP

If your son gets less sleep the night before and then no nap the day of the flight he might get overly tired and be a nightmare. If he is overly tired waiting in line, going through security, sitting at the gate may be miserable. But you know your son best!

For my son we would just skip the nap on the flight day. Once on the plane feed him dinner -- that we bring, dinner service always takes longer than I expect, then go through bedtime routine. Change into pjs, read a story, snuggle up with a blanket. He's out like a light!

Often times he sleeps fine on the flight but wakes on arrival and then is AWAKE for the rest of the day and just needs an earlier bed time the first night.

Your best bet will be to relax and follow his lead. You're smart to have 4 free days to adjust. St Cirq is right -- he'll probably adjust better than you!