Fellow Fodorites, In a couple of days I'll fly 7 hours from USA to Madrid, lay over for 3 hours and fly to Seville, then take a taxi to my hotel. When I land in Seville I will have not been asleep in a bed (a bed like one gets into at night!) for 24 hours. Does anyone have any tips for protecting from jet lag?Tips for the flight? Do I dare snooze in the airport in Madrid during the 3 hr. lay over? Are there any natural remedies or suggestons? What has worked for all of you? And, when I get in, should I go to bed, or make myself stay up til after dinner that night? Thanks!

Stay up. Get out into the sunshine, if you can. Try to stay awake until an hour after dinner. Problem: Spaniards eat much too late for Americans. So try to stay up until 8 p.m.

Tips For Long Haul Air Travel
(I copied & compied these from different sites a while back)

1. Treat yourself well before you fly. Exercise, eat well & go to bed early on the weeks prior to departure. Plan your work schedule well ahead so that you don’t end up staying at work late the night before you travel.

2. Avoid caffeine, it dehydrates you. Expert travelers recommend avoiding or limiting coffee, sodas alcoholic beverages when flying long haul.

3. Stay away from salty foods like nuts & pretzels when traveling. Likewise foods excessively high in sugar.

4. Stay hydrated. Drink plenty of water before & during flights. It’s a good idea to stay hydrated all though your trip.

5. Start taking extra vitamin C, “Airborne” or a similar product 2-3 days before & during the flight.

6. Use a hand sanitizer frequently at airports and on the plane. Upon boarding wipe down your food tray etc. with antibacterial wipes.

7. Reset your internal clock ASAP. Immediately upon departure, set your watch to the destination’s time. (Some people even do this a day or two in advance!) Resist the urge to dwell continually on what time it is back home.

8. Be comfortable. Wear non-binding clothes, socks & shoes. (Fellows, wear you old stretched out BVDS & save the new thong underwear for later on .) Take a neck pillow &/or your favorite wrap. Avoid using the blankie provided on the plane….it may not be so clean.

9. Every so often refresh yourself. Brush your teeth. Wash your face. Get up and stretch on a regular basis to encourage circulation. Do foot circles & point your toes while in your seat.

10. Upon arrival, get out in the daylight & breathe. (Remember you’ve been breathing recycled air.) At the hotel, resist the urge to take a very long nap. This is most important in avoiding jet lag. A deep nap for several hours upon arrival may prolong that groggy feeling. If you must nap make it no more than 1 hour. Settle in, freshen up quickly & unpack later. Take a walk outdoors. Then plan to make the first night an early night.

We always find it easier to have a light lunch after checking into the hotel, usually between 2:30 and 4:00, take a short walk before heading back to the hotel for a siesta until around 8:30 or 9:00, go out for the evening (tapas and a little wine) and be back in bed around midnight. You should be fairly well adjusted the next morning, but sometimes it does take a couple of days to become fully adjusted.

PS: You can't beat jet lag, you can only try to adjust to the time change as quickly as possible and get back into your normal rhythm, or the rhythm of where you happen to be, in this case, Sevilla.

The problem about staying up (as recommended above), fighting jet lag and going to bed early is that you will be up before dawn and the next day will be a one very long day indeed.

I wear earplugs and an eyemask on the plane and skip the shrink-wrapped chicken dinner so I can try (and may even succeed!) to sleep on the plane. The most I've gotten is about 3 hours. I set my watch to Europe time before I get on the plane, too.

I don't drink caffeine or alcohol before or during the flight, but I do drink lots of water.

The other key for me to feeling good is saline spray for my nose. I am very sensitive to dryness and airplane air just zaps me...I usually end up with a major sinus headache if I don't shoot up with saline spray as much as possible before, during and after the flight.

And, when I get to my destination, I usually take an hour long nap (no more, then I'm a zombie), take a shower, then hit the streets for sunshine and coffee. I try to stay outside and avoid museums, etc on the first day, or I get too sleepy.

If I do this, I'm usually good to go till 8 or 9 pm, then I crash, happily, for a good 9 - 10 hours of sleep.

You'll be fine. I swear, most of it is mind over matter...don't think about what time it "should" be, don't keep complaining you didn't sleep, etc. Just let the adrenaline take over and enjoy the thrill of traveling. That's enough to keep me revved up the whole day! Have fun.

Forgot to mention before...if you DO take a nap, set the alarm! Make yourself get up, otherwise, the day will be done. Poof!

Great list, amsdon,
No 10 is really, really essential for me when I arrive.

Get lots of sun and fresh air upon arrival. Walk outdoors until you drop and have the early dinner. I take melatonin before going to bed.

Fabulous........just what I was looking for. Thanks!

I have to admit to taking a sleeping pill (or 1/2 of one) for the first night. It means that I sleep right through and wake up feeling as though my time clock has reset itself. For me it's better than waking at 2am and not being able to sleep any more that night. I know it's not everyone's solution though.

I also agree with other posters who recommend getting out into sunshine which is what we've managed to do each time we've arrived in Europe. We've arrived back in Sydney twice in mid June (our winter) to cold, grey, sleeting days, with no option to get into the sunshine and the jet lag has been AWFUL!!

Don't assume you will be jet lagged. I never get jet lag flying to Europe. I hit the ground running.My problem is when we return home to the US. Then I'm out of it for several days!

I should add that your personal sleep style is a big factor.

At home I go to bed very early & wake early. But in Spain I would love to sleep a bit longer (if I could) as the locals & shops do not get cooking till 9 or 10am (Late for us!).

So perhaps staying up later in preparation for Spain would be a good idea?

I am like avalon. I never get jet lag going to Europe. All the excitement may help me recover quickly.
But coming home is a different matter. I try not to go back to work the following day but it wipes me out for 3-4 days. That second day when I go back to work is so rough about 2 PM I am ready for bed.
Follow the rest of the replies and you should be fine.

another vote for # 10.
This is a must for me.
Also this acclumates me to my new area.
I scout out grocery stores,ATM's, or whatever.

I agree with the sleeping pill solution. I take one immediately when I get on the plane I skip the meal, cover up and zone out. This allows me to get up to 6 or 7 hours of sleep and arrive ready for a new day. As you often arrive in the early morning you have an opportunity to enjoy the full day in your new surroundings. I try to stay up all day, have a somewhat early dinner and then take one more sleeping pill that night and I am on track for the rest of the trip

I've had great success with using Tylenol's Simply Sleep on the plane and sometimes on the first night away. It's very mild, no after effects, no grogginess, no metallic taste in the mouth like Lunesta or Ambien. If I sleep even just 3-4 hours on the plane, it makes all the difference.

When I get to my destination, I get outside and walk, eat lunch and walk some more. I wait unti late afternoon to unpack, then I take a short nap of an hour. Shower and dress for dinner. I think getting on the time schedule of the destination helps alot.

Resist the temptation to sleep late the next day. Get up, eat breakfast, and walk some more.

There is a significant amount ot fresh air on commercial planes. Look at the current "Ask the Pilot" on Salon.com.

Simply sleep? I was curious on that and wanting to try it beacuse I knew Tylenol PM has Benadryl in it.

But here are the ingredients for Simply Sleep from their site.

Diphenhydramine HCl 25 mg in each caplet Carnauba wax, cellulose, croscarmellose sodium, dibasic calcium phosphate, FD&C Blue #1, hypromellose, magnesium stearate, polyethylene glycol, polysorbate 80, titanium dioxide

I always sleep on the overnight flight as much as I can (I use xanax, but whatever works for you)--with eye shade and ear plugs, skip the meal if possible. Drink plenty of water; use lotion, lip balm, nasal spray to combat dryness.
I usually freshen up; get a snack, etc. at the layover (the bathrooms at Madrid Barajas are clean; there are some decent food options). Then, I always sleep like a baby on the 2nd flight (seats are usually larger on smaller plane and more comfy). Definitely hit the ground running in Sevilla--I always sleep late the next morning, then I'm recovered.