Sitting on a plane on flights to Hawaii, with 31 inches of seat pitch for 5 or more hours, isn’t a comfortable or necessarily healthy way to begin your Hawaii vacation. And the last thing you want is to feel exhausted or even worse, sick on arrival, for your long-awaited trip to Hawaii.
We’ve just updated our best suggestions for what to do before and during your flight to arrive in peak shape in Hawaii:
1. Reduce stress and get into a vacation state of mind one week before departure.
Get work projects and packing done early. Start your focus on Hawaii. Check Instagram and Google photos for ideas. We also do that by checking the weather where we are headed and looking at local events.
Regarding stress reduction, we’re guilty of not always being the best at it ourselves.
2. Boost your immune system 2-3 days prior to flight.
Taking a daily zinc tablet, probiotics, and vitamin c supplements may make a difference according to some health experts. Others swear by fresh juices. What do you do?
3. Stay calm on the day of travel.
We avoid stress at the airport by allowing extra time for getting to the airport, flight check-in, security lines, and maybe a visit to Starbucks. You can save time by paying for TSA Pre-Check and/or qualifying for an airline’s premium check-in.
4. Drink room temperature non-tap water on the plane.
Buy a bottle at the airport or bring an empty bottle and fill it at an airport water fountain before boarding. Drink more than the flight attendants will offer. Chilled water on the plane is allegedly not as good for you as warm water, according to health experts. Neither is the tap water on-board that is potentially polluted and is also used to make coffee and tea.
5. Reduce carbonated beverages and alcohol on board.
These just make dehydration matters worse. Tea is a better choice than coffee although the water may not be healthy.
6. Stretch your calves. Avoid DVT.
While moving around the plane is recommended to prevent the risk for DVT blood clots, it’s also good to stretch your calf muscles during the flight which can be done while sitting. The calf is often called your second heart and helps to pump blood to your lower extremities. For long flights, compression travel socks might not be a bad choice.
7. Keep an eye on your hands.
We’re already at increased risk of disease from the dry environment leading to cracked skin. It’s good to consider packing a small container of liquid hand cleaner or sanitizing wipes. We also use Clorox wipes to clean the tray, surface areas around the seat, and controls.
8. Eat less on the plane.
Even with those free meals and wine on Hawaiian Airlines and other carriers, you may want to consider eating at the airport or elsewhere before departure. While in the air, try to limit really cold foods. Fennel seeds are reputedly good for digestion. When packing snacks from home, we consider things including nuts, sandwiches, pasta, salads, and some sweets.
9. Hydrate skin.
Massage key sinus points on your face. Take a saline solution to spray inside your nose. Hydrate skin if so inclined.
10. N95 respirators.
We bought these ourselves and have tried using them after getting sick too many times following flights. We hear mixed reports on their effectiveness at preventing disease.
Please add your ideas below. We also want to thank Cheryl Yamamoto, a physician assistant, for her contributions to this article.
Updated 8/21/19.
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WOW … all this advice cracks me up.
I was a B-747 Captain, First Officer, and Second Officer for 24 years flying the Pacific routes. I was based in HNL and “on the road” 12-14 days/month for 24 years.
I susbscribed to NONE of these “suggestions” … well, maybe drink more water out of a bottle … and I had to take extensive physicals 2 X year just to make sure I was “safe” to fly people and cargo all over the world.
Good ideas you’ve presented — at least most of them — but some folks just need to “toughen up” a little instead of whining about each and every discomfort.
YOU’RE GOING TO HAWAI’I FOR A VACATION !! ENJOY IT AND QUIT WORRYING ABOUT EVERYTHING !!
Aloha …
I made the mistake a directing an air vent directly on my head for 5 hours. Boy was I sick for a few weeks after I got home. Guess I dried out my sinuses and the bugs flocked in. Never again.
I suggest taking a widebody plane like a 767 (Delta) or A330 (Delta/Hawaiian) 777 (United/American) so you have room to get up and walk around. Of all the planes I’ve mentioned I prefer the A330.
When my son was under going cancer treatment his Dr. told us that cold germs enter through hands and nose. He recommended we use Zinc nasal swabs and hand sanitizer whenever we were in public places. We now use those recommendations whenever we fly and we have never had problems again.
I fly pretty often- and have over the years learned what products work for me to (hopefully) stave off getting sick, and/or help with comfort.
Being a strong and rested as possible-
Starting about 3 days before travel, I take small doses of the following in capsule form: Multi-mineral complex supplements, branched chain aminos (collagen tablets), pre-natal vitamin with DHA. (You don’t have to be pregnant or a woman to benefit)
Several days prior and during the actual flight, I use a throat spray called BeePropolis. It is basically all of the goodness of honeycomb without the sugar bomb of eating honey. (It’s naturally anti-bacterial) It is lightly sweet tasting and soothes a dry throat. (And it’s TSA friendly!) Also during the flight I use non- medicated nasal drops by the Fresh Breath Company. It surprisingly does reduce bad breath, and it hydrates your nose from the forced air in the cabin.
For my face and other exposed areas of skin, I stay hydrated with Medix Collagen Caviar lotion. If SUN is an added factor, the. INSTEAD, I use Cremo brand spf 30 Clear facial sunblock all over. It’s ridiculous how silky smooth it makes your skin, and protects you from sunburn!
In flight, I use Emergen-C or Liquid IV drink mix with my own water, NO ICE! You don’t know where that ice has been! Besides, have you seen how ice and the ice scoop gets
handled in-flight? The horror!
The evening before the flight and for every night while on vacation that I know I will get at least 6 hours of sleep, I take Dreamwater (melatonin) at bedtime. Experience tells me this is the most effective of the brands I have tried to ensure deep sleep. I don’t usually take it when flying, because I never want to knock out that deeply when flying!
Every product I use I got online from the store that rhymes with “GLAMAZON!” LOL. It’s what I really use. I don’t represent ANY company, and DO NOT receive any compensation whatsoever. I’m simply sharing what works for me. I know what a pain it is to catch cold when you’re on vacay!
Best wishes to all for safe travels!
Hi Rick.
Thanks for all of those. We’re taking notes.
Aloha.
My pleasure! Thank you for running a great and helpful site that is friendly and respectful and encourages others to be the same.
Hi Rick.
Thanks for what you said! Much appreciated.
Aloha.
Good luck talking with the engine noise in plane while wearing an N95. Also good luck breathing thru an N95 for hours. I think hand gel is a good idea but won’t protect you from inhaling infectious droplets from someone who coughs or sneezes without covering their mouth near you.
Three of us will be travelling from Hilo to Los Angeles from 26 Jul-7 Aug 2017. Will airfares go lower than $800? Thank You.
Hi Donna.
No one can say for sure. But gut call is that it will not.
Aloha.
I agree with Deborah, what a great idea! I’m a physician assistant and many health providers recommend coughing and sneezing into your shirt by pulling it up over your mouth, if feasible and you don’t have a handkerchief or tissue readily available. It keeps viruses from spreading better than the elbow trick, although that’s certainly better than nothing!
Also, you may want to consider boosting your immune system with daily zinc tablets or capsules and probiotics 2-3 days prior to flying. As well as eating lots of fruits and vegetables, if you don’t already. Interestingly, stress can actually boost your immune system because your body’s in a kind of crisis mode but once the stress diminishes (hopefully once you arrive!) your immune system crashes to well below normal levels. This is especially bad if you’re traveling to an isolated area like Hawaii because we have cold strains and other bugs that are completely different than where you come from. Meaning you could get sicker and your symptoms could last longer than you’re used to. Oh joy!
As mentioned above, keeping stress down the week before a flight will also help your immune system. I usually start packing 1-4 weeks in advance and try not to leave anything for the last minute prior to getting to the airport, in addition to getting to the airport well ahead of time, if at all possible.
Hope this helps!
Ask airlines to have flight attendants demonstrate how to properly cover coughs and sneezes with a handkerchief or inside of elbow, covering mouth and nose completely.
You must have been on my flight from Atlanta yesterday to HNL, because it seemed as though fully half those on the plane were coughing. I was recovering from a cold myself, but I wondered if I weren’t being re-infected. I’ll make your suggestion to the flight attendants next time.
RT, Hilo
Having BOTH of us very sick on our last two trips to Hawaii – what a bummer – we plan to go the ‘extra mile’ and try our best to avoid illness this trip – early next year.
We use disinfectant wipes on all armrests, tray tables, magazines, EVERYTHING. I use sinus spray already. I have face masks that I bought a while back – but I plan to use one this trip! Not sure if hubs will.
Read that the bins going through security are HORRID harbors of germs.Dirtier than public toilets! Plan to take rubber gloves to wear through security – until I get my shoes back on :0) Turn them wrong side out as you take them off before tossing.
All of the above suggestions will be tried this trip! ANYTHING to have a healthy trip this time. Being sick in Hawaii – or on ANY vacation (we both got sick on a lovely trip to Durango as well) is the pits.
Personally, I think the airline rules for charging a fortune to reschedule a flight is part of the reason so many folks travel – even if they are sick. Spreading it to everyone on the plane. If airlines were like Southwest – and allowed easy flight changes without enormous cost, maybe sick people would be more likely to reschedule their trip when they felt better. Of course, not all hotels or other accommodations are easily changed either – but, just sayin…. maybe it would help those who COULD reschedule for health reasons.
Thanks for the tips. Hope everyone has a healthy trip!
We are all surrounded by germs all day long. If our bodies are weak than we can succumb to illness. Simply saying that germs cause disease is like saying that rats cause dumps. Just as the rats wouldn’t be there if the dump wasn’t there, we would be much less likely to succumb to illness (rats) if our bodies were healthy. Eat healthy, get your rest, reduce stress (meditation is great), exercise–these will give you the best likelihood of making it to your hawaii vacation healthy and keeping healthy.
I highly recommend the Humidiflyer! http://humidiflyer.com
A friend read about it, and I took the bait. It’s an Australian product, but they must have an American mail center, because it arrived very quickly. It’s expensive (around $70), but I travel a lot, and, like you two, found myself sick afterwards all too often. I’ve used it about 6 times on trans-Pacific flights (I live here), and it helped make the journey easier. To me, it is worth every penny.
We use the travel packs of Clorox wipes soon as we sit in our seat. Wipe the buckles of the seat belt and all hard surfaces within reach….trays, armrest, window shade handle etc.
We also take Airborne the day before and day of.
So far, so good!
We have been contemplating masks too.
What’s the situation regarding flight status to the BI with the dengue fever outbreak?
Hi Gina,
There is no issue with flights to the Big Island.
Aloha.