# How do you pass the time on long flights? (Need answer fast-ish) **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [March 7, 2011, 4:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-you-pass-the-time-on-long-flights-need-answer-fast-ish/573746 "2011-03-07T04:25:18Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 8\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![desert29rat](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/5fc32e/32.png) [@desert29rat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/desert29rat)\ **Post date:** [March 8, 2011, 5:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-you-pass-the-time-on-long-flights-need-answer-fast-ish/573746/41 "2011-03-08T05:19:19Z")
Kindle ---
**Author:** ![Runs\_With\_Scissors](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/278dde/32.png) [@Runs\_With\_Scissors](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Runs_With_Scissors)\ **Post date:** [March 8, 2011, 5:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-you-pass-the-time-on-long-flights-need-answer-fast-ish/573746/42 "2011-03-08T05:41:24Z")
Advil PM or whiskey. (Never at the same time.) ---
**Author:** ![madmonk28](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/madmonk28/32/20811_2.png) [@madmonk28](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/madmonk28)\ **Post date:** [March 8, 2011, 6:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-you-pass-the-time-on-long-flights-need-answer-fast-ish/573746/43 "2011-03-08T06:18:11Z")
Depending on the airline, you might not get free booze anymore. I know United did away with it in coach on international flights a few years ago. Personally, I don’t drink or take sleeping pills as I find that they make my jet lag worse. I do stay up late the night before to try to sleep on the plane, but even then I usually manage just a couple of hours. ---
**Author:** ![China\_Guy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/779978/32.png) [@China\_Guy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/China_Guy)\ **Post date:** [March 8, 2011, 6:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-you-pass-the-time-on-long-flights-need-answer-fast-ish/573746/44 "2011-03-08T06:29:29Z")
Repeat after me: Ambien is your friend. Sheesh, man, that could be a 2 hour flight. Although i would do a trial run of am bien first (or zopiclone or sominex) as \*some \*people get some wierd side effects. I just did Seattle to Amsterdam last week. Was asleep after the meal and woke up for the descent both ways thanks to my friend. I remember the 15+ hour direct flight I had from Atlanta to Shanghai in the back of the bus. One and a half Ambiens and it was a two hour flight that was “too” short to finish my book. Otherwise, I always took a lot of books. I’ve done at least 50 transpacific flights and probably more like a hundred in the past 25 years. Other thing is to have a music player with noise cancellation earphones, ear plugs (for when you sleep), eye shade and the neck pillow. Actually, the neck pillow really is the number one accessory for me otherwise I always wake up with a sore neck. ---
**Author:** ![DivineComedienne](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/c67d28/32.png) [@DivineComedienne](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DivineComedienne)\ **Post date:** [March 8, 2011, 9:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-you-pass-the-time-on-long-flights-need-answer-fast-ish/573746/45 "2011-03-08T21:25:31Z")
A Nintendo DS or other hand-held game. They do sell games for grown-ups, although I passed a very pleasant 3-hour flight playing my 7-year-old’s LEGO Indiana Jones 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![ctnguy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/6de8d8/32.png) [@ctnguy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ctnguy)\ **Post date:** [March 8, 2011, 10:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-you-pass-the-time-on-long-flights-need-answer-fast-ish/573746/46 "2011-03-08T22:59:26Z")
> [@Machine\_Elf](#): > > Which reminds me, they don’t give you _nearly_ enough to drink on these long flights. You can go without for a couple of hours on a domestic flight but for thirteen hours in a bone-dry cabin, you need to buy at least a liter of water once you get through airport security. This is one of the reasons why I really like the long-haul Airbus - IIRC it’s the A340. It (at least the SAA and Lufthansa ones I’ve flown in) has a little area down a flight of stairs where, apart from a bunch of toilets, there’s a water dispenser where you can get as much water as you need without having to keep on calling the flight attendant. ---
**Author:** ![Autolycus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/22d042/32.png) [@Autolycus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Autolycus)\ **Post date:** [March 9, 2011, 1:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-you-pass-the-time-on-long-flights-need-answer-fast-ish/573746/47 "2011-03-09T13:37:43Z")
Nintendo DS. A few books. Ipod. I also will attempt to strike up a chat with my seat-mate if he or she seems amenable to such a potentially awkward exchange. ---
**Author:** ![CalMeacham](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/calmeacham/32/35_2.png) [@CalMeacham](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CalMeacham)\ **Post date:** [March 9, 2011, 1:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-you-pass-the-time-on-long-flights-need-answer-fast-ish/573746/48 "2011-03-09T13:39:05Z")
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