Jetlag?

Advil PM or Nyquil works for me. If that stuff does not work for you there are some over the counter sleeping aids you could try. Talk to your doctor and see what he/she suggests.

That will be the local time in Rome. If your time in Rome is limited, don't waste that day. I would spend that day going to the colosseum and the forum. You will be exposed to fresh air and exercise which will help with the jet lag. To also combat the jet lag buy ear plugs, a sleeping mask, take a sleeping aid and sleep on the flight over. If you can get some sleep on the plane you will be feel pretty good when you land.

Thanks Scott. I was thinking about sleeping aids, but don't know much about them. Can anyone suggest some mild, but effective options? I'm not usually very sensitive to drugs...I don't typically get drowsy when I take 'night-time' cold meds or gravol. I will stock up on ear plugs and a mask I guess.

I think you'll be alright>just get out in the sun when you get there to adjust to their time.You can try melatonin to adjust to their time schedule..I"m really bad with jet-lag.I sleep at my friend's house in the mountain there for like 15hours!...

Patricia,

As the others have mentioned, the time specified on your ticket is always the local time in each case. In other words, your departure time will be your "home time", while the arrival time will be European time at destination.

Although your flight will arrive at 08:45, you probably won't get to your Hotel before about 10:30 or 11:00. Are you planning to use the Leonardo Express from the airport to Rome?

If you can manage with the jet lag, you might plan a bit of "light touring" after you get settled in the Hotel. While I can appreciate trying to "make the most of limited time", you might find that you don't have the energy for too much touring.

Booking tickets to the Vatican Museum for 08:00 on the morning AFTER your arrival should work well. Which part of Rome is your Hotel located in? Be sure to allow enough time to reach the Museum from your Hotel (perhaps a 09:00 appointment would be better?). You'll probably find that you need a short "siesta" following the tour at the Vatican, so you might plan a short rest stop back at the Hotel in the afternoon.

Happy travels!

Thanks everyone. The link to Rick's info was very helpful. We're staying near Termini, so 8:00 at the Vatican may be a bit ambitious...9:00 will be an early enough start for us since we're not particularly morning people :) Thanks again!

the sun plays a big role in moving internal body time clocks; get outside in the morning WITHOUT sunglasses. Do a google search and you can find out more about this.

Also, I use Ambien on the flight over, which is long enough from CA to get the equivalent of a nite's sleep.

Hi Patricia,
We have similarities in our trips! My plan also lands at 8:45 A.M. and I am also going to the Vatican the day after my arrival. However, we planned for the afternoon tour time (I believe our options were 8:00 AM and 2:00PM). I chose the afternoon time because I was really nervous the jet lag would get to at least one of the four of us (if it doesn't, we can see other things before our 2:00PM time), and also because people on this website say the crowds are thinner in the afternoon and I want to not be fighting the crowds.

I sleep terribly on planes. I have read that sleep masks are very helpful in sleeping if you purchase one that reduces light exposure. They trick your brain into thinking it's night time.
Happy Travels!

I usually take an hours nap when I arrive in Europe, that little cat nap seems to help a lot. I might not feel totally awake, but I can still enjoy myself. I will then keep myself up until 11ish at night to reset my clock.

Last year I arrived in London at 8 am, I went to my hotel and dropped off my bags and then went to the National Gallery. Big mistake, the lack of sleep hit me like a ton of bricks. I almost felt like passing out. I went back to the hotel and took a 2 hour nap. I then returned the the museum and enjoyed the day.

Everybody is affected differently and have different solutions for dealing with jet lag. We think we have nearly beaten jet lag after years of trying different approaches but it does require some effort. First we try to time shift three maybe four hours during the two weeks prior -- an hour at a time. On the day of departure we try to function on the time of the destination. In other words, if you are landing at 9AM that is probably one or two AM your time. Up at two AM, breakfast at 3AM, lunch at 8 or 9 AM, dinner 3 to 5 pm. Within 30 minutes of wheels, comfortable as you can get, eye shades on ear plugs in, and ignore everything on the plane. An hour or so before landing, fresh up as much as possible, eat their breakfast, and hit the ground running. By mid to later afternoon will generally hit a low spots, take a max nap with the alarm set for two hours -- no more. That seems to recharge us for the evening, nice dinner and to bed around 11pm. We have found almost no jet lag effect the next day. And in two days totally adjusted. But as I said it takes some effort.

Patricia,
We had an early morning flight also, 7:15 but by the time we checked in to the hotel it was about 10:30 and we still couldn't get in to our rooms because the rooms were not ready. I had booked a tour of The Vatican for 8:00 the next morning but they called (Angel Tours) and ask if we would mind changing it to noon. That time worked out to be better than the earlier time because we could sleep in a little. The day we arrived we just took out walking, 12 miles that day, not sure how, just excited I guess. I had marked all the piazzas and fountains we wanted to see, some famous some not as famous. We also went into smaller churches that were truely amazing. All this, just to tell you, if you have the time to sleep in that morning I'd do the Vatican later. Also this depends on the amount of time you have in Rome. Don't forget to go to Piazza Novona and others at night too, different from the daytime Have a great time