The perfect way to sleep on an airplane

No-one wants to spend the first couple of days of their holiday recovering from a flight. If you’re travelling long-haul, you should try and settle down to sleep at some point. But how? And when? We’ve put together the following top tips to help you arrive feeling refreshed.

Splurge on your seat

Let’s start with the most obvious one. If you want to sleep comfortably, fly business class. Or better still, first class, says Dr Richard Dawood, the Telegraph’s travel health expert. It’s a great option if you can afford it.

“Unfortunately, airlines recognise the high premium passengers place on being able to sleep in comfort while they travel,” he says. “They have turned the lie-flat, premium seat into almost an art form – but they can also charge premium fares for the privilege. Nonetheless, it is sensible to travel in the highest or most comfortable class that you can afford.”

Even if you can’t travel in a premium class, you should be able to pay a little more for a seat with extra leg room. Most airlines offer this option when booking. Alternatively consider a less expensive upgrade to premium economy class.

Pick a quiet spot

Research carried out over the years has revealed that the most in-demand seats on a plane are those in the bulkheads, which have more legroom. Those in row 1, in first or business class at the front, also offer ease of disembarkation.

The downside of the bulkheads – especially for those seeking peace and quiet – is that these seats are often recommended for parents with babies. Aisle seats give you freedom but window seats mean you won’t be disturbed by others needing to go to the loo. You can also rest your head on the side of the cabin. Depending on how busy a flight is, you could always try asking at check-in to be seated somewhere quiet.

Keep it loose – except around your calves

If you are aiming to sleep, travel in comfortable, non-constricting clothing (except for any compression stockings). Wearing loose clothing will help you drift off and also protect against deep vein thrombosis (DVT), which is more likely to occur when your blood flow is restricted.

Don’t drink too much

While the soporific effects of booze are well known, Dr Dawood suggests avoiding caffeine-laced drinks and alcohol on a flight. “Try drinking herbal tea,” he recommends instead. “It’s a good idea not to eat a full or heavy meal too.”

Keeping hydrated will help you avoid waking with a dry mouth later thanks to the air conditioning and lip balm adds a preventative barrier. The cabin air on a Dreamliner plane is the least drying as the pressure is lower, making moisture and oxygen levels higher.

Which position?

For those who can stretch out on their backs in first or business-class, this is a no-brainer.

What about the rest of us? While there are some who prefer catching 40 winks hunched over their seat-back tables, Dr Dawood believes that the best position (controversially for those behind you) is to put your seat back as far as you can. “Recline as much as possible and make yourself as comfortable as conditions permit,” he says. “A low back cushion can also help provide some extra comfort and support.”

Sitting up straight also contributes to lower back pain, according to research for the British Chiropractic Association, which suggests that leaning slightly back at a 135 degree angle is best as the least pressure is placed on the spinal discs.

Movement of the disks was most likely in a 90-degree upright position, it added, making it the least safe, while a hunched-over-the-table position resulted in some wear and tear on the lowest spinal levels.

Other downsides for those who like to slump forward include undue pressure on the neck and the likelihood of being woken by the movements of the chair in front of you.

There may be unoccupied seats on the flight that you can spread out into – consider asking the cabin crew if you can move should you spot an empty row.

Get your buckle out

There is nothing more annoying than being on the verge of nodding off, only for a member of the cabin crew to have to shake you to check that you’ve buckled up. Keeping your seatbelt visible above your clothes, or above a blanket, before take off will prevent this.

Be in no mood to chat

Politely deter your neighbour from engaging in mid-flight small talk by getting out a book or plugging in headphones.

Don’t watch TV

The light from the screens keeps your brain awake. “If the environment is noisy, try some relaxing music,” advises Dr Dawood, “perhaps with noise-cancelling headphones.”

Ear plugs

Which brings us onto ear plugs, which are designed to block sound and let the wearer sleep. These have come on leaps and bounds in recent years. Now, as well as disposable foam ear plugs, you can buy biodegradable wax plugs that you can squish into shape and specially-designed silicone plugs that you can reuse. Not only do they cancel out sound in varying degrees, but they should feel extra comfy on a plane, as  you won’t be pressing one ear into a pillow.

Sleep apps

There are also apps that you can plug into and zone out. Sleep-inducing sessions would need to be downloaded first so they can be listened to offline, in the cabin. Three of the best apps to try are:

• Calm, which offers a mix of stories, music and breathing exercises.

• Headspace, which produces ‘sleepcasts’ that are like meditations to get you dozing and describe relaxing scenarios.

• BetterSleep, which provides more than 150 soothing sounds to help you drift off. These feature not just white noise but pink, deep brown and green noise, plus a host of other pacifying sounds.

Failing that, listen to music that puts your mind at ease, be it Bon Iver or Debussy.

Try a pillow

Airport shops sell ring-shape neck pillows for the desperate but ideally, you should bring your own pillow that you know you’re comfortable with. “My current favourite pillow is a Tempur,” said Dr Dawood.

Alternatively, try one of these more unusual sleeping aides. The “ostrich” pillow, for example, is a good choice for narcoleptics everywhere. The brand also offers scarf-like pillows designed to keep your head upright, as does Trtl.

Alternatively, this BauBax multi-function jacket, dubbed the “world’s best travel jacket”, has a neck pillow attached, as well as an eye mask. These are the best travel pillows tried and tested by the Telegraph.

Sleep masks

You could keep it simple with a light and silky eye mask or use the mask that comes in your amenities bag on a long-haul flight. Eye masks have become more technologically advanced in recent years, though, so it’s worth considering an upgrade. Many of these are specially contoured to fit your brow and aim to provide total darkness, like the 100 per cent blackout Manta Sleep mask. Or try the nodpod, which can be refrigerated to provide a cooling feel, but it’s also gently weighted in the belief that a little pressure will help keep lids closed.

If all else fails, pop a pill

“Sleeping tablets can help overcome noise and discomfort,” said Dr Dawood. But they should only be used on journeys that are long enough, and only if you can lie down flat.

“Sleeping deeply in a cramped, upright, seated position can significantly increase the risk of deep vein thrombosis (DVT), and should therefore be avoided. If you really must do this, be sure to wear compression stockings.

“Short-acting sleeping pills can be used to provide as little as four hours of sleep – but it is difficult to get more than four hours of uninterrupted sleep on anything shorter than a six-hour flight.

“Taking a longer-acting pill on a short flight can leave you feeling drowsy and disorientated, unable to act in a crisis, and with an impaired memory of events around the time of the flight. Discuss the best choice with your doctor or travel clinic.”

Dr Richard Dawood is a specialist in Travel Medicine at the Fleet Street Clinic (020 7353 5678) and the editor of Travellers’ Health: how to stay healthy abroad (OUP).