For most people, flying for several hours is a draining experience though it doesn’t always have to be like that.
Though tedious and tiring for most people, long haul flights can be a positive experience, if you come well prepared.
Preparing for a long flight is never easy with so many things to consider and think about packing.
But a few essential travel accessories can significantly improve your long-haul flight experience. So, be sure to remember all these must-haves for the long plane ride.
Accessories That Make A Difference On Long Haul Flights
It’s vital to consider all the situations that might arise during a long flight, and prepare yourself for those times.
For example, you might have trouble falling asleep, with all the noise and light around.
It’s much easier to fall asleep with an eye mask blocking all the lighting (ever have that ONE person that just has to have their light on overhead?) while listening to a relaxing tune through your noise-canceling headphones (instead of the conversations of the people behind you).
Travel accessories make long flights more tolerable, comfortable, and boredom-free.
If you’ve never been on a long-haul flight, or you’re just looking to improve your travel experience, here’s a list of best travel accessories for long flights.
1. Bose QuietComfort 35 II
Falling asleep on a plane, during a long flight can be an actual achievement since it’s not easy to do.
People’s chattering, babies crying, and jet noise can keep you away during your flight, so a pair of noise-canceling headphones are what you need.
They’ll prevent ambient noise interfering with your most favorite relaxing tune.
Bose practically invented noise-canceling headphones, so it shouldn’t be surprising that QuietComfort 35 II features top-notch active noise-cancellation.
The new model is designed to be quite comfortable, making them suitable for long flights, with a sturdy overall build, featuring premium high-quality materials.
QuietComfort 35 II does an excellent job of handling any music you play through them, offering an exceptional level of audio detail you might not hear otherwise.
The sound quality is outstanding, with the adequate midrange, punchy bass, and spirited treble.
Noise-cancellation offers satisfactory results, making 35 II one of the top competitors on the market when it comes to noise-canceling.
The headphones offer a battery life of 20 hours when connected via Bluetooth, and 40 hours if you’re using a wired connection.
Reasons they are a must-have:
- Excellent noise canceling, excellent sound quality
- Extremely comfortable and travel-friendly
- Great gift for those traveling by plane
2. Trtl Pillow
A fairly stiff neck is something to be expected when sleeping on a flight, especially if you don’t own a neck pillow. You can expect it, even if you own one.
Travel pillows are designed to offer neck support for those relaxing or sleeping while sitting in an upright position.
However, most people agree that neck pillows sound good, and they seem like they should work, but in reality – they don’t.
The design is lacking, since most of them offer a horizontal surface area, without any vertical head and neck support.
Thanks to the two Glasgow-based engineers, and hours of sleep ergonomics research, that is no longer true – Trtl Pillow is a neck pillow that works.
The Trtl (pronounced “Turtle”) is a product that makes the travel experience more comfortable.
Unlike conventional U-shaped neck pillow, Trtl looks like a scarf or a small blanket.
The design is pretty simple: a thin frame is ergonomically designed to hinge at around 90° angle, covered in soft fleece.
Though compact, the frame is pretty sturdy. An arms-length fabric is attached to the frame, which is used to secure the frame in place.
After positioning the support frame on your shoulder, and tilting against the brace, you can wrap the fabric around your neck, like putting on a scarf.
This way, your neck stays in a neutral position, offering higher levels of comfort while sleeping in an upright position.
This product is well worth checking out, due to its amazing features:
- Allows for a restful sleep
- Reduces neck pain after long flights
- Soft and comfortable
- Suitable for tall and long-necked sleepers
- Travel-friendly, as it takes minimal luggage space
3. Bedtime Bliss Sleeping Mask
Human sleep corresponds to the presence of natural light. It causes us to be more alert during the day, and more tired at night.
Falling asleep during the day, or in the presence of a light source can be difficult.
Sleep masks are lightweight barriers, typically held by an elastic band that is placed over the eyes during sleep, creating artificial darkness.
They are pretty useful for shift workers, people who sleep during the day, or for people who like to nap while traveling.
Bedtime Bliss sleep mask features a molded design which naturally adapts to your facial features.
The cover creates a personalized fit to your face, with the contoured shape around the nose, without putting pressure on the eyes.
Bedtime Bliss is made from breathable bamboo cloth lined with cotton. It’s soft and prevents the mask from rubbing while cutting down the excessive warmth.
It blocks out light while still providing enough space for you to open and close your eyes, which can be vital for your REM sleep.
REM stands for “rapid eye movement,” which happens during deep sleep, with your eyes flickering and darting around during this phase.
The combination of soft material and excellent design makes this mask easy to wear, and incredibly easy to fall asleep with.
- No pressure on your eyelids
- Offers temperature neutrality
- Compatible with CPAP machines
- Conforms closely
4. Peak Design Packing Cube
Packing cubes enable you to organize your luggage better. It’s satisfying to open your suitcase, and know exactly where everything is, and that’s why packing cubes are unique travel accessories.
They keep your things organized, clothes neatly folded and compressed, and they make unpacking easier.
Peak Design won the hearts of travelers with their fantastic collection of travel cubes, which turned out to be incredible.
These travel cubes come available in two sizes, small and medium.
The exterior fabric is a 70D nylon and polyester blend of a bit lower denier.
However, you don’t need an excessively durable fabric for a travel cube since the blend offers enough strength while maintaining its light weight.
The zippers are YKK brand, which is considered to be a higher-quality zipper.
Peak Design cubes feature a Hypalon pull tab – an innovative “quick access system.” You grab the two pull tabs and quickly pull them apart. This move instantly opens the whole cube.
Hypalon pull tab system offers quick access to the contents, and it’s satisfying to use. However, it does put some strain on the zippers, but YKK should be able to manage it.
Peak Design features a “Packing Unit System,” which allows you to fit both, the small and medium cubes into the Peak Design Travel Backpack.
With the cubes filled, you get a tight fit inside the backpack, holding everything in place.
- Lightweight
- Waterproof
- Stacks well
- Quick access system
5. Kindle Oasis e-Reader
For those who like to read during a flight, Amazon offers its newest e-reader – The Kindle Oasis, which is the largest Kindle so far.
Unlike its predecessors, Kindle has an all-aluminum design that doesn’t feel slippery in your hands. It’s somewhat more massive than the previous models; however, it’s not too heavy.
The new Oasis is also waterproof, capable of surviving up to an hour submerged up to the depth of 6 feet.
Arguably the only negative side of the all-metal design is that it can feel uncomfortably cold to the touch.
This model features a 7-inch Carta E Ink display, with a screen resolution of 300 pixels per inch.
It’s pretty clear and easy to read, enough to display images if you’re reading a comic book or newspaper.
The adaptive lighting sensor takes into account the surrounding lightning to brighten or dim the display, making it easier to read.
It’s handy if you’re reading in a different location, but it can be easily turned off, in case you don’t need it.
If you want to read at night without disturbing other passengers, you can invert the display to read white text on a black background.
The battery is improved and can last up to six weeks. But, if you’re reading daily, with all the features turned on, the battery lasts about a week.
Excellent battery life puts Oasis in front of the competition.
- Great battery life
- Waterproof
- Can listen to audiobooks using Audible
6. Travelon Compression Socks
Frequent travel on long haul flight can lead to a condition called “economy class syndrome,” or more precisely known as deep vein thrombosis. This condition may be prevented by the use of compression socks.
Compression socks are unique socks designed to help prevent the occurrence and further progression of venous disorders, which can occur during long walks.
The veins get a boost pushing the blood back to your heart.
Travelon is one of the industry’s leading names in travel products and accessories, with over 400 products in their product line.
Its travel socks are great for air travel because of the exceptional compression they offer.
Made from a highly reliable elastane, these travel socks stimulate blood circulation with about 15-20 mmHg of pressure.
Though made specifically for travel, they are great for other purposes like sports, for example.
However, they are a bit on the thicker side, so you might want to skip pairing them with tight shoes.
Good compression makes them ideal for a long flight, and these socks come in three different colors. The one downside is that they’re available in only one size, which is quite limiting.
- Great for long flights
- Reliable material
- Good compression
- Affordable
What Every Traveler Needs
Next time you’re thinking about what to pack for your trip and questions like these come up:
- What are the best travel accessories?
- What should I take on a long flight?
- What should I pack in my carry on for international flight?
- How can I make my airplane seat more comfortable?
Take a look at the above simple list for reference and you will be happy you did!
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