Noise canceling headphones. I swear by the Bose Quiet Comfort series. Personally I still have the 25 model (with a third party Bluetooth dongle), that way when the battery dies I can simply swap it out, takes simple AAA ones.
Else I’d recommend to bring slippers to wear during the flight. Feet tend to swell up a bit, so wearing shoes is uncomfortable, and walking in socks as many people do is not exactly hygienic, especially in the bathroom (seriously, who does that???).
I’m also freezing easily, so I’ll bring a thin scarf to protect my neck from the long exposure to low temperatures.
Lastly, have a set of fresh underwear, t-shirt and wet towels in your hand luggage, along with a toothbrush & paste and deodorant (make sure the volume is hand luggage capable). Then about 1.5h before landing, lock yourself in a bathroom (ideally the ones in the middle, they are a bit more spacious), strip naked, give yourself a through wash, change of clothes etc., and land arrive somewhat refreshed.
I swear by my WH-1000XM4’s. I don’t even usually play anything, just turn the noise-cancellation on. Makes flying so much more chill.
These are what I have and use every flight… and to mow the lawn.
I love how good they are at noise cancelation.
Loved my QC25s until they broke. The new versions are a pain to keep charged…
Yeah that’s what I heard, especially for longer flights that’s super annoying. And the 25s can at least still play mono sound even with dead batteries, I heard that the newer models are simply dead.
On my 25s the left speaker died after 5 years, I contacted Amazon and they swapped them out for a new one, no questions asked, way out of warranty. That was pretty awesome, and the ear pads are cheap and easy to swap out.
I’ll ride them to the end and then see what happens after…
This is good advice, though honestly I would advise waiting till you arrive and doing your washup at your destination.
If your airport is only 30min from the hotel, I say forgo his and just endure. If you land and the. Have 2+ hours more to your final destination, the I’d do it in the much larger and more accomodating airport bathrooms.
Unless on a very tight schedule or travelling in a big group, just ask your partners to wait and give you 10 to 15 to manage business. Be quick, but it shouldn’t take too long to strip down and hit your body with some body wipes. When you come out refreshed and in different clothes they will understand.
Noise-canceling headphones. Eye mask (some planes might provide one, but get a nice one that fits you). A good mask (planes can be very low-humidity so even if you aren’t worried about anything else, this can help keep you more comfortable).
Wear loose-fitting clothing (except compression socks if that’s something you want to do) or otherwise comfy clothing.
Other than that, get up and stretch every couple of hours if you can and are not sleeping.
I have flown from NY to Tokyo multiple times (which is like 15 hours depending upon weather).
This is a great list.
I wear loose athletic pants for long flights. Not bedtime sweatpants, but Adidas style pants. I wear comfy shoes, that I unlace once I start napping.
I bring a sweatshirt so it becomes a pillow and something to pull over my eyes if it’s needed.
I also have a couple of airplane blankets and I bring my own. It comes in handy on flights where we cheap seats people don’t get blankets, and in airports when it’s nap time. I roll it up tight and strap it on the bottom of my backpack.
I also bring Sudoku puzzles. It’s a nice diversion from watching videos the whole way.
I got a Manta Sleep mask on the recommendation of a friend last year and it is so, so good. I take it everywhere with me now, and use it on any flight where I need to get some rest. That and good earbuds make a huge difference if you’re a light sleeper like me.
Which type of Manta did you go with. They apparently have quite a few variants, and I might invest in one for my next flight.
I have the Pro version because I’m a side sleeper and their site said it was great for that. They were right! Other sleep masks I tried would come off by morning but this thing stays put. It’s really comfy.
I sound like an ad but I usually wake up as soon as sunlight creeps into the room, and this thing helps me get an extra 1-2 hours during summer, which is huge. I really love it.
Noise cancellation headset
Elastomeric respirator like 3M 6200. It will be more comfortable than an N95 if worn for a long time. But wear an N95 (maybe change them every few hours as they get damp) if you have to. Plane rides are super spreaders and so are airports.
Absolutely this. I went on a trip recently with my coworker for a conference overseas. I wore a N95 and he didn’t. And he has 'bad coughs" after the flight and was coughing up a storm for the whole trip and even lost a few days being sick.
Maybe it’s Covid. Or maybe just nasty air.
Ear plugs or noise canceling headphones
As an alternative, IEM style earbuds or circumaural headphones. Both can offer a lot of isolation from exterior noise without active electronics.
