Kiddos & Time Changes on European Cruises About This Page:

[modisney]

I was just hoping to get a general feel for how kids do with the time changes going to and from Europe for the European Cruises. We've got the middle school ages.

[dmpyron]

I would honestly recommend arriving at least one full day in advance. If the cruise leaves on the 12th, get in on the 10th. Which would mean leaving the US on the 9th. Getting back won't be quite as bad.

I was 10 when we moved to Germany. The Air Force flew us out of McGuire at midnight and we got to Rhein-Main a little after noon. I felt like c*** for about a day.

When Carol flew back from Paris in 2001 (the second attempt) they left at 10 am and got to Houston around 3 pm (IIRC) the "same" day. But 10 am (GMT +1) to 3 pm (1500 GMT -5) is long.

The trick is to get sleeping patterns set ASAP. If you have the luxury, try changing your sleeping and eating times a few days early.

[chezp]

I think it's a good idea to get in a day or so before as well. I know whenever we come home, the first day we're like zombies, but by day two, it's much better. I have to say as well, from my experience, I handled jet lag much better when I was a child. It's now it seems to really kill me.

[gzmtlock]

When my mother, DDthen9 and I took our trip to Paris a few years ago, we left the East coast about 10 pm. DD took a melatonin and stretched out over our laps, while Mom and I snoozed upright. After arriving in Paris in the am (about 8ish, if I'm remembering correctly), we made sure to stay awake all day, then went to bed early at about 7-8 pm. We did make sure it was a low-impact day. That night, we slept like logs. Woke up early on day 2, then stuck to "local time" for the duration in Paris. DD handled it great! Better than Mom and I!

[ecuagoddess]

Originally Posted by dmpyron

I would honestly recommend arriving at least one full day in advance. If the cruise leaves on the 12th, get in on the 10th. Which would mean leaving the US on the 9th. Getting back won't be quite as bad.

The trick is to get sleeping patterns set ASAP. If you have the luxury, try changing your sleeping and eating times a few days early.

I second this advice. Resist the urge to nap during the 1st day you are there! We're hoping to go on the 10-night Med Cruise in 2010, and I plan on arriving in Barcelona the morning of the day before the cruise leaves at the latest. That way we can do LIGHT sightseeing, get into bed early and wake up on cruise day feeling better.

On a side note, I just noticed that I should update my "trips coming up" list below. Whoo-hoo!

[dmpyron]

When I went to Australia in 2005, I had a flight that left LAX at about 1 pm Sunday and arrived in Sydney at about 8 pm Monday. I got up at around 6 am Austin time for my flight to LA. When I got on the plane, there were two of us in a three seat window row. The guy on the aisle said he took that flight about once a month. His advice was to stay awake the entire time. He said I'd get to the hotel around 10 and crash and wake up fresh. Well, that was about 25 hours of wide eye, but I did it. And it worked. I woke Tuesday morning around 7:30 fresh and ready to rock. Of course, the flight with Carol and her co-workers got in at about 6 am. But at least they all had some place to come and shower.

But the important thing, again, is to sync up to local time.

[BevS97]

We live in the UK and vacation quite frequently in Orlando, so we experience the time-change "the other way", I find travelling to the USA is not too bad, we have a very long day, go to bed early and wake up very early for a few days and then it settles down. I don't mind the early starts as it means we can hit the parks early.

On the way back to Europe it's more tricky. You normally lose a night's sleep, as most flights to Europe are overnight, and unless you are a better sleeper than me, you won't get much sleep on the plane. By the time you've boarded, had a meal and watched a movie, there's not that much time on a 7 hour flight anyway


We used to try and stay awake all day, but it never worked for us, so now we normally get home around 8am and go to bed for a few hours, get up around noon and then stay up until a normal bedtime. This works pretty well but we still feel washed out for a few days

[Tink and co.]

I traveled to Europe with a group of Middle-Schoolers this past summer and none of them (even the ones with medical issues) had trouble with jet lag. The adults were another story...
One thing that really helped me was an herbal supplement I got at REI called No Jet Lag. I chewed one tablet every two hours while traveling, unless asleep, and I didn't have any troubles either. I live on the west coast, so we had to arrive at the airport at 4 am our time, flew all day to reach the east coast, and then boarded an overnight flight to Rome.