My husband and I are planning to spend Christmas in Paris with our 4 children; ages 18, 11, 8, and 7. I am looking forward to it except for the overnight nonstop flight from JFK. The 18 and 11 yr olds shouldn't be difficult. It's the 8 and especially 7 yr olds who will probably give me the problems; ie. jetlag, boredom, getting them to sleep. Does anyone know how I can minimize these problems? For jetlag, I seem to remember reading that one must start changing the sleep schedule. But how? Was any of this discussed before?
Posted by
Gettysburg, PA
1589 posts
Dear Jeannine,
At their ages it should not be a big problem. Each seat will have videos/movies and it is only a 7 hour flight from NY to Paris.
When you arrive early the next morning, keep them moving all day. They will sleep well later that night.
Posted by
Knoxville, TN, USA
7209 posts
There's also Dramimine or Benedryl either of which would induce the much wanted sleep on the overnight plane.
Posted by
Portland, OR, USA
389 posts
Jeannine, when I first traveled with my son when he was 1 the doctor recommended a combination of benedryl and tylonol. I wouldn't pass this on if he hadn't confirmed it, but it is a long standing calming influence for kids and can't be too hard on their systems. I also agree at 7 & 8 if they play on the plane instead of sleeping, just keep them moving and teach a bit of consequences. They'll be grumpy but a 7 or 8 p.m. bed time should resolve that and you'll pretty much be on schedule after that.
Posted by
Portland, OR, USA
805 posts
The trick my parents used to use with me was to give me and my sister small presents every hour or so if we had been good for the previous hour. That keeps the kids excited. I agree, however, that with PTVs in your seat (with good kids programming, Continental showed Charlie and the Chocolate Factory and Disney cartoons on my flights), you should be fine.
Posted by
Elk Grove, CA, USA
6898 posts
On our Lufthansa flight out of Los Angeles, we saw several good children's movies listed on screen menu. Also, our flight from LAX to Frankfurt was 10.5 hours. Being in CT, your flight should be about 4-5 hours shorter.
Posted by
Atlanta
800 posts
Jeannine - I found it very important to have my younger children be asleep on the flight over. It is not that they can't watch movies all night but I wanted to be able to sleep too so I made this a priority for the whole family. Our plan for several trips was as follows: Wake up VERY early the day of the flight - 4:00 am for an early evening flight. Breakfast, lunch and dinner was eaten on the early schedule so we did not have to eat on the plane. If they served dinner right away they could eat a little of it, but we often just left most of it. Then dispense "sleeping aids" which were tried out ahead of time - very important! My son took Benadryl and my daughter took Dramamine (regular, not non-drowsy). A final warning to the kids that it was very important that they not wake us up. No more movies, books, etc. - it was bedtime. We slept for maybe 4-5 hours then it is up for breakfast on the plane and an almost full day of sightseeing. Early to bed on the first day and we were fine!
Posted by
OP
NYC, USA
219 posts
I thank all of you for the suggestions. I now have some really great ideas to think about and use.