Sleep Strategy for 2:30pm departure ORD-FRA-FCO

That route and those times sound good to me. I much prefer arriving at the final destination in the 9AM hour. If my math is correct, that is only 12 hours total travel time. Some routes can stretch to nearly 24 hours. Yikes!
I would bet your layover in Frankfurt is very short. The day prior to trips, I just go about my normal activities, quite frankly. I can usually get at least a few hours of sleep on the plane unless I am TOO rested. It still takes me about 2 days to adjust once there. I have a much worse problem readjusting upon returning.

Forgot to mention, that on your first day, try to walk around and get as much daylight as possible. Avoid sitting on trams or subways. You may nod off pretty quickly. Go to sleep in the evening like 9 or 10 PM local time. You WILL be tired by then!

I was enquiring about strategies for the flight. Do you think I should take a sleeping aid at some point during the flight and at what time? Should I give something to the kids? Would I expect the airline to serve an early dinner and to be awakened for breakfast?

If you check the airline site, you will likely find their meal plan and appx. timing. I can't help you with the kids. As or sleep aids, I would not take anything I was not familiar with, and also avoid alcohol and caffeine (and in my case, caffeine's dilation effects give me real problems in dealing with the cabin pressure changes). Just try to nap quietly for a couple hours, even if you don' actually get to sleep it will make areal difference that 1st morning. Just keep yourself going, go to be as early as is feasible that 1st night there, and you should be fine the next AM . Set your watch to the new time zone just prior to your first landing, that really helps psychologically.

Can't help you regarding sleeping pills. Sorry. I have never taken them on a flight, nor have I given any for my children. But some people do take them at meal time (about an hour following departure) so it kicks in within the next hour. After dinner, the lights are lowered until breakfast time about one hour prior to arrival. I never see the flight attendants disturbing anyone for breakfast. However, you will be awakened in preparation for landing if asleep. I know of someone who took Ambien on a transatlantic flight. They had never taken it before. This person started hallucinating and sleepwalking. Taking a medication for the first time on a long plane ride is not a good idea, unless of course it is an emergency drug.

The best thing is to check with your MD and the kids pediatrician if you are considering medication for sleep. Even something as seemingly benign as benedryl for sedation can have the OPPOSITE effect on some people.

What has helped me in the past is starting to reset my internal clock a week or so ahead of departure - going to bed and getting up earlier each day. With kids I would do that and get them up very early on the day you leave so they will sleep as much as possible on the flight. That 9:20 FCO time is 2:20 at home.

I do the same as Jeff suggested (though usually by accident because I don't have everything ready to go) -- get up early on departure day. I leave through ORD, too, usually. They will serve dinner almost immediately once you are at altitude. They will also come around with drinks, etc. later on. Then they dim the lights to encourage people to sleep. An hour or so before arrival, they will serve a light breakfast but they will not wake you for it. Chances are at least one of you won't be sleeping then, anyway, so you won't miss it. I would not suggest any kind of sleep aid on the plane. Even with the excitement of the trip, after running around all day at home, the stress of getting to/on the plane, etc., you should be able to relax enough to at least doze. Then, on arrival, keep moving (outside, if possible) until as close to your normal bedtime as you can.

I do take gravol or some other motion sickness aid when taking long flights as I get queasy and it helps. It also makes me dozy and I find I usually get a few hours sleep on overnight flights. Otherwise I do the usual things - start operating in local time, stay outdoors and move around. You probably won't be able to get into your room until the afternoon unless you have made arrangements for an early check-in. I follow the Italian tradition of taking a siesta in the afternoon but set my alarm so I don't sleep too long. A light lunch and supper and bed as close to my normal time as I can stay awake. Different people have different ways of coping. This works for me (and I am traveling from the west cost). I find coming home is harder - takes about a week to catch up!

Thank you all for your thoughtful replies. I will try to get everyone up earlier and to bed earlier the week prior and bring eyeshades and neck pillows, avoid alcohol and tough it out once we get to Rome. I can't imagine how all of those frequent flyers cope.

I'd suggest also bringing earplugs for yourself (and the kids, if they will wear them). Since planes are generally full of odd noises, they will help. Alternatively, you can wear the headsets provided by the airline and turn the channel to very soft music (or no sound at all). You already mentioned eye shades, which I found very important on my last flight. So many people use the lighted Kindle type readers now, and they can cast the oddest bright light for others trying to sleep, even several rows away. You are very lucky to have such a late departure....we usually have to get up earlier to catch a flight to a hub first. As others have said, naps are all you can really expect. The only time I ever really slept (and arrived rested) was when we were upgraded to Business Class. Oh if only I could do that all the time!! We usually plan a light day for arrival...keep going until we crash around 3pm, then nap, then get a light dinner around 7 or 8pm when we wake up....then early to bed, we are totally adjusted by the second day.

"I know of someone who took Ambien on a transatlantic flight. They had never taken it before. This person started hallucinating and sleepwalking. Taking a medication for the first time on a long plane ride is not a good idea, unless of course it is an emergency drug." Fly often enough and at some point you will see one of your fellow passengers display this reaction with your own eyes. Most often, these people make the mistake of combining the ambien with alcohol, although it can happen with ambien alone. Ambien is actually my sleep aid of choice for flying. Not so much to avoid jet lag (which after trying every trick in the book, I know I can't personally avoid), but to pass away the time during the flight. Whether or not this is an appropriate choice for you should be a decision between you and your doctor. As the other poster implied, you should test any sleep medication in the safety of your own home before taking it on a flight. Also worth mentioning are noise-canceling headphones. Even if you don't listen to music, if you turn them on, they can considerably reduce the background noise of the plane.

Don't overlook the fact that you can cut the Ambien in half or even into 1/4s to moderate the effects. If you do that put the piece under your tongue instead of swallowing it.

I have friends who swear by 1/2 an Ambien that I think they take with the first meal. I've tried Tylenol PM which did nothing but make me feel like the twilight zone after landing. Last flight I had a glass of wine and that seemed to take a bit of the edge off and we arrived at 9am and lasted until 10pm.( we're coming from the west coast). I have a big scarf that I can use as a blanket substitute since I don't think airlines give those out anymore. That might be a help for the kids and I would second the neck pillows.

They still give out blankets on international flights, and if you ask early enough you can get a 2nd one

After more than 40 trips to Europe and the UK this is what we've found works for us- We make a point to get up early (not sleep in) on flight days. A benedryl, dramamine, tylenol pm, or a glass of wine will usually help me get to sleep. Hubby usually eats a light supper before the flight and takes a dramamine about 10 min. before we board. He's out like a light soon after takeoff. I usually eat the supper on the plane and sometimes will have one glass of wine with my meal (wine makes me sleepy). If I didn't have the wine, I may take one of the things listed above if I can't doze of quickly. I usually get 3-4 hours of sleep before they bring breakfast (usually about an hour-hour and a half before landing). We make a point of getting out and walking on our first day. It really helps to re-set your biological clock. We've found it best NOT to try to nap that first day, but usually do go to bed fairly early (9:30-10:00 ish). As mentioned above, it's the return flight (and the day that seems never to end) that bothers me more.
I would suggest you talk with your children's physician for suggesstions for them.

I take Advil PM quite frequently to help me fall asleep at home. One tablet will give me 7 hours of sleep, but I'm not sure the effect would be the same after only having been up for 8 hours. Any thoughts on slepp aids taken midday? I plan to put a "sleep CD" onto my IPod and listen to it with eye shades, hopefully shutting out the world. I'm pretty convinced the teenageers will do whatever they want to! But it's up to me once we land organize the troops, so I don't want to be too doped up.