15-hour flight

If you have a 2 prong outlet and plug in your 1 prong headphones, you'll only get sound in one ear… at least that's what happens on Delta! There are still some older planes that only have the 2 prong outlet… That's why they still put the adapter in those earphones they pass out "free" on intl flights - you can take off the adapter and use them at home normally...

I should have been more specific...the two-prong jack is a pair of mono jacks which together provide stereo...one for left and the other for right. Inserting a single-prong headset into either side of a dual-prong jack will provide one-ear audio.

(The pin on a single-prong headset jack has 3 metal areas which are left, right, and ground. Each pin on a dual-prong headset jack has 2 metal areas; left+ground and right+ground).

Gardyloo, I am still very intrigued by this "soft landing" you have recommended. :) You have me hooked with that picture! I am considering switching my hotel from the Radisson Narita to Mercure. Naritasan still be feasible if I do this?

Sure, according to the G-word-that-must-not-be-mentioned maps, it's a 15 minute walk from the Mercure to the temple grounds. Here's the street scene as you approach the temple - very fun. https://flic.kr/p/dTBdMY

Our first trip to Europe from the east coast was last year. This time we will be flying to New York from Atlanta to meet up with one of our party. We have a long layover in NY simply because we want to have a cushion of another flight that would still get us to NY, should there be a problem. We then fly to Dublin and then to Rome. We did the same route last year and here's how it worked. We were excited, eager and got to NY. Bored to death waiting. By the time we boarded our plane at 5:30 pm for Dublin, I fell asleep before we left the ground. I woke up in time for the meal, went to the restroom and fell back asleep. Landed in Dublin and had a bite of breakfast and immediately boarded the plane for Rome. Watched a movie and we landed. Because of the sleep I got on the plane, I was able to check in at the hotel by lunchtime. Went for a quick lunch. Took a short nap after lunch (1-1/2 hours). I showered and changed and we had a fabulous night in Rome. Got to bed at a decent time (Rome time) and we had zero jet lag. It sounds exhausting because it was, but it resulted in enough sleep at the appropriate time to make the trip pretty easy...and I'm a smoker so only being awake to eat was a big help. I had lots of incentive to sleep through the flight.

Our first trip to Europe from the east coast was last year. This time we will be flying to New York from Atlanta to meet up with one of our party. We have a long layover in NY simply because we want to have a cushion of another flight that would still get us to NY, should there be a problem. We then fly to Dublin and then to Rome. We did the same route last year and here's how it worked. We were excited, eager and got to NY. Bored to death waiting. By the time we boarded our plane at 5:30 pm for Dublin, I fell asleep before we left the ground. I woke up in time for the meal, went to the restroom and fell back asleep. Landed in Dublin and had a bite of breakfast and immediately boarded the plane for Rome. Watched a movie and we landed. Because of the sleep I got on the plane, I was able to check in at the hotel by lunchtime. Went for a quick lunch. Took a short nap after lunch (1-1/2 hours). I showered and changed and we had a fabulous night in Rome. Got to bed at a decent time (Rome time) and we had zero jet lag. It sounds exhausting because it was, but it resulted in enough sleep at the appropriate time to make the trip pretty easy...and I'm a smoker so only being awake to eat was a big help. I had lots of incentive to sleep through the flight.

I do this for any eastbound TATL I do. That little "power nap" about 3pm sets me up for a good evening and no jet lag. And, I do like to break up my TATL with one stop (helps with my claustrophobia, too).

You really need to get up and walk around to avoid deep vein thrombosis (blood clots). Even just walking to the galley or facilities a couple of times during the flight would help.

 

You can get this even if you are a healthy person. Its been reported some Olympic athletes will also wear compression socks during flights to avoid this.

I always wear compression socks on a flight of 5 hours or more.

Our first trip to Europe from the east coast was last year. This time we will be flying to New York from Atlanta to meet up with one of our party. We have a long layover in NY simply because we want to have a cushion of another flight that would still get us to NY, should there be a problem. We then fly to Dublin and then to Rome. We did the same route last year and here's how it worked. We were excited, eager and got to NY. Bored to death waiting. By the time we boarded our plane at 5:30 pm for Dublin, I fell asleep before we left the ground. I woke up in time for the meal, went to the restroom and fell back asleep. Landed in Dublin and had a bite of breakfast and immediately boarded the plane for Rome. Watched a movie and we landed. Because of the sleep I got on the plane, I was able to check in at the hotel by lunchtime. Went for a quick lunch. Took a short nap after lunch (1-1/2 hours). I showered and changed and we had a fabulous night in Rome. Got to bed at a decent time (Rome time) and we had zero jet lag. It sounds exhausting because it was, but it resulted in enough sleep at the appropriate time to make the trip pretty easy...and I'm a smoker so only being awake to eat was a big help. I had lots of incentive to sleep through the flight.

To be fair, a 12:50 hour nonstop from Toronto to Tokyo is very, very different than a 6:40 hour flight from New York to Dublin. At twice as long, it often completely changes how one approaches the flight. I know for me it does - going to Europe is completely different than going to Asia or Australia as far as what I do during my flight.

For example, I find flights to Europe too short, because you can't get a full nights sleep like you can going to Asia or Australia. Even the 12:50 hour flight from Toronto Tokyo is relatively short compared to, say, Los Angeles to Melbourne (15:50), New York to Hong Kong (15:50), or Jo'burg to Atlanta (16:45).

The time you arrive can very well change your mindset as well. It looks like a 5:30pm departure from JFK gets you in to DUB around 5:00am, which to be is absolutely brutal. In my mind, the later the departure, the better - Give me a 10:30pm departure/10:00am arrival any day, even if it means losing some time in my destination. To me, it leads to a better rest on the plane and a more productive day at my destination, even if it's a shorter day at my destination.

The "best" (if that can be used to describe a 13 hour flight) that I have ever been is the EVA Taipei to Vancouver. The flight leaves Taipi at midnight arives into Vancouver at around 9:00 pm at night. The return flight leaves Vancouver at around midnight.

When you get on the aircraft you are tired and you nap. When you arrive at the other end it is time to go to sleep anyway. Any get adjusted to the new time zone quickly.