I'm sitting here looking at my flight to Botswana in May. I leave Boston at 4:15 in the afternoon and get to Frankfurt at 5:20 am their time. Now the idea of a day room sounds good as it will feel like 11:20 PM to me. I'm sure I could easily sleep for 8 hours and then catch my flight that leaves at 10:40 pm their time for Windhoek.

Problem with this is that I'll be on the totally wrong schedule when I get to Botswana wanting to sleep when I should be awake etc.

The other plan is to take ambian on the plane to Germany and catch 5-6 hours sleep. Then tough it out for the day in Frankfurt to adjust with the help of some caffeine. Then some more Ambian on the plane to Windhoek. Caffeine in Maun. This way it seems I'll be better adjusted when I get to Botswana.

Geoff

My advice to you will probably not apply.

I worked a job where I changed schedules from "very early day" one month, to "very late at night" the next. Also durring the month my work hours would change. Many times I never worked the same hours 10 days in a row.
Most days were 15 hour days.

SO, each time I left for Africa I did not sleep much on the plane. Too excited. I did stay in SA 2 nights before leaving for Zim.

Cannot say I kept regular hours there either, as I am by nature a night owl.

However after a day or two I adapted to "hunt time".

So the best advice to you is, do not worry about it too much.

But since my "internal clock" is used to a crazy schedule, someone might give you better info.

In the past I have tried to get on "Africa time" a day or two before I left.

I know that most people work until the day before they leave. But if you can go to bed at noon or 2pm for a couple of days and get up at 8 or 10pm, you will be ahead of the ball game.

I would not sleep in Germany if I was getting there at the time you are.

I like the ambien/caffeine idea. It will help you be adjusted when you hit Africa. That day in Frankfurt is really going to be tough, but better suffering in the airport than while hunting the first few days.

If you don't leave until 1615 from Boston, why don't you try going to sleep earlier (Ambien maybe) the night before and getting up very early on departure day.

That would give almost two days on the adjusted schedule before you arrive in Botswana.

Everything I have read says it takes approx three days to get your body adjusted. Mostly studies dealing with alternating shiftwork and health imnplications.

One other thing is that the longer the stretches between switching shifts, the better it is healthwise. So my suggestion to you is to stay in Botswana as long as possible before subjecting your body to switching back to USA time. So make sure you add a couple extra weeks to your hunt.

You can justify it for health reasons.

I commuted and flew routes world wide for 35+ years. Jet lag is a function of daylight exposure. You can figure that it will take you about one day to adjust for each hour of time change, although the adrenaline factor of the hunt will help.

When you return home, you may suffer what i call "post-trip depression." The reverse jet lag and the abrupt end of the high generated by the hunt and your return to the mundane and ordinary often results in a let down of sorts. It affects differennt people different ways.

I've taken day rooms on some trips. It often helps, particularly if you can't sleep very well on a plane, which has always been a problem for me.

Personally, I'd get some sleep in Germany. That way, you won't be so exhausted and dehydrated when you arrive at your destination.

Drink a lot of water enroute. Aircraft air conditioning systems are very effecient and will dehydrate you if you don't drink water constantly. Minimum alcohol and caffiene, grab some sleep at your stopover if you feel the need, and enjoy your hunt.

We did the same flight last year. I cannot rest on a plane. Got to Frankfurt, hit the day room a took a nice hot shower. Slept well and they even fed us in a lounge upstairs. For me personally it was a good move. I cannot remember being tired or sluggish in Africa. It must have been the adrenaline.

I'm flying to Namibia in just over 2 weeks via Frankfurt. My normal routine when flying east is to just tough out the first day and get on local time with very little sleep the night I fly. This normally works well - the last time I was on UK time on day 2.

The layover in Frankfurt, throws a big old monkey wrench in this plan. I'm tempted to try and stay awake during the layover, but I'm sure I'll want a shower. So I still haven't decided if I'll get a dayroom.

You can see from my profile info I travel from the east coast to the middle east and Europe a bit and have been doing so in one capacity or another for nearly 30yrs. This is what helps me adjust fairly quickly.

1. The week before shift my daily routine as much as possible to the time zone I am going to.

2. On the flight, sleep as much as possible -also helps the time pass faster - I use a couple of Nyquil PMs.

3. On a long layover, if it is daytime I stay awake by moving and NO Caffeine - once back on the plane, two more Nyquil and sleep as much as possible.

4. When I get to the destination, and if it is morning - now caffeine until about 3pm and none after that.

5. For the next 5-6 nights I take a couple of an OTC supplement called Melatonin. Goggle it for info.

Before I figured this out back in the 90's, it would take me a week to ten days - for me, it now only takes a day or two.

I did not have as long off a layover on my last flight.

My belief is to get on Euro time and then you are good to go.

My advice is sleep on the plane over to Frankfurt, use ambien or what have you.

When you get to Frankfurt, get your day room, but don't go to sleep, catch a workout if you can, shower up, eat a decent meal, catch up on emails or the like.

Then get your flight to Africa and you will sleep part of the way and when you get there you should be good to go.

When I get to Africa, I'm so excited about hunting that my biorhythms don't seem to influence me at all. I'm ready to HUNT!!! No jet lag for me.

Geoff,

I have taken that route several times. I have tried it several ways, the best way for me was to take ambien on the way over and catch 4-5 hours of sleep on the way to Frankfurt. Then I rented a dayroom, took a shower and then went into Frankfort for a few hours. I tried skipping the day room one year and it was just too long in Frankfurt. I then headed back to the day room for a couple of hours of sleep and relaxation. I then took ambien again when I got on the plane to Windhoek. When I arrived I was ready to go, no real problems with adjusting to the time. I then use ambien that night to force my self to sleep at the appropriate hour. After that I put the ambien away and I am ready to go for the whole trip.

Do you know if you will be hunting with Jaco or Riann?

Shaun

Everyone has differences in how they react to time zone changes but personally I'm a big believer in sleeping when I'm tired. If I were you I'd get the day room and take a nap or whatever unless you would prefer visiting downtown Frankfurt (which is mildly interesting but hardly a must see). I'd also take a restoril ( now generic tamazepam (sp?) a somewhat antiquated sleeping pill with 12 hour half life as opposed to ambien's approx 8 hour but it works for me and I can function on it even if I have to get up one or two hours after taking it.......how do I know, timed dose perfectly for Aerolineas Argentina flight from BA to Miami, about two hours after nodded off, we had to disembark in Sao Paulo.....they just decided to add a stop )or similar (ambien) on the flight to Windhoek and sleep for a few hours. After that, I'd nap when I could and when hunting, I'm always sleeping LESS not more....the adrenalin rush shortens my normal sleep period of about 6 to 8 hours to less than 5.

In short, the time zone shift really affects some people, and doesn't seem to bother others. I'm closer to the latter group. I wouldn't spend a lot of time worrying about it.

BTW I almost never take sleeping pills except on long flights (bottle of restoril I used up last fall coming back from SA was from 1995) but I'd advise you to take an ambien or two (whatever dose you need) before leaving to see how it affects you.

I slept on the way to Frankfurt, stayed up all day...went to the zoo and ate lunch on the "square" there, just outside the zoo. Didn't get a dayroom, next trip w/the wife will probably get on just to get cleaned up. Slept on the plane to Windhoek. Didn't use any pills. I'm used to extra shifts and wierd hours @ work so the change in hours was no big deal. Once I saw the sunrise I was good to go! The walk down the steps into the cool dry air and the morning sun in my face made any "tiredness" go away as we walked toward Customs!

With similar thoughts to those already expressed, my experience has shown the flight is long enough that you can use that time to start adjusting to the new time while you're on your way. A rest stop would just seem to delay the inevitable adjustment to me.
I change my watch time as soon as I get on the plane and start living Africa time as soon as possible. This includes every effort to make myself go to sleep and get up on the new time with the help of Ambien. By the time I arrive for my hunt, I’m way ahead of the game on the time adjustment and pretty can hit the ground running.

Drink water from the time you leave until you are back home. This and Ambien made more difference to me on second and third safaris than anything else. If you can, stay awake instead of trying to switch to Africa time. That worked for my wife, but I just did Ambien,

Drink lots of water, take lots of showers. Other than that drink caffenated drinks when your awake, and drink alcahol moderatly.

I fly back and forth across the pond about 8 or 9 times a year.

Be a man, drink lots of water, and not to much booze and you will be fine.

Cry and moan, and you'll have a miserable trip.

quote:

Originally posted by Spring:
With similar thoughts to those already expressed, my experience has shown the flight is long enough that you can use that time to start adjusting to the new time while you're on your way. A rest stop would just seem to delay the inevitable adjustment to me.
I change my watch time as soon as I get on the plane and start living Africa time as soon as possible. This includes every effort to make myself go to sleep and get up on the new time with the help of Ambien. By the time I arrive for my hunt, I’m way ahead of the game on the time adjustment and pretty can hit the ground running.

Currently Frankfurt is one hour LATER than Windhoek and the same time as Botswana. So if you stay in Frankfurt you will be adjusting before arriving in Africa.

Thanks for the tips guys.

I think the day room as a place to rest a little, maybe catch a nap and shower from is probably the ticket. 17 hours in Frankfurt is just to much time to walk around.

I think I'll try sleeping only a little in the room and then sight see around the city to wear myself out for the flight to Windhoek.

I also like the idea of starting to change my schedule a few days ahead of time at home.

Thanks for the tips.

I didn't take the time to read all the posts so if I repeat I appologize. Since there is no good way to sleep on a plane take a cervical pillow with you to help catch some sleep. I didn't on my trip to Tanzania and now I never take a plane ride without one. The only thing worse than arriving with no sleep is arriving with no sleep and a neck that's killing you!

Brett

I never have taken any dope myself.
Would not want a single Ambien.
Never had any benzo's or narcotics unless it was given to me IV for an alien abduction, such as for a screening colonoscopy.
When I go in for those, I sign in at the reception area, and state in a loud voice: "Reporting for alien abduction, take me to your leader."

I just catnapped and read some "Hatari" going over to Botswana.
Got up and walked around the jumbo jet every two hours, it was good to get out of the cheap seats as frequently as possible.
Drinking lots of water going over is a good excuse to visit every latrine in the plane.

The excitement of the trip tided me over through the first night in Africa. The second day I experienced a poor appetite, mild nausea, and just felt unusually tired for no reason, but charged onward! By the next day I was 100%, battery recharged.

I noticed no "jet lag" on the return from east to west two weeks later.

Don't worry about it, unless you are so jaded and bored with it that you cannot be distracted by the adventure.

And go barefoot when sneaking up on an elephant.
That seems to bring good luck, and is a good antidote for anything that ails you.

quote:

Originally posted by SDHall:
Geoff,

I have taken that route several times. I have tried it several ways, the best way for me was to take ambien on the way over and catch 4-5 hours of sleep on the way to Frankfurt. Then I rented a dayroom, took a shower and then went into Frankfort for a few hours. I tried skipping the day room one year and it was just too long in Frankfurt. I then headed back to the day room for a couple of hours of sleep and relaxation. I then took ambien again when I got on the plane to Windhoek. When I arrived I was ready to go, no real problems with adjusting to the time. I then use ambien that night to force my self to sleep at the appropriate hour. After that I put the ambien away and I am ready to go for the whole trip.

Do you know if you will be hunting with Jaco or Riann?

Shaun

I just found out that I will be hunting with Jaco!

Geoff,

You really won't know what works for you on this route until you've done it. Listen to your body and act accordingly. One thing I can tell you is do not take Ambien until you are settled down on the plane if you plan to use it. Both Sadie and I took it in the departure lounge once and by the time Sadie was walking down the jetway she was hallucinating. Neither of us actually slept at all on the flight.

Mark

I think the best choice is to sleep on the way to Frankfurt. You can buy a day pass ($25) to Delta's Crowne Room or other airlines lounge and shower there. I think Delta's room has three showers, food, and an open bar. My wife and I got a day room on our first trip to Namibia and used the lounge last year. I will use the lounge in the future. We hopped onto the subway and went into Frankfurt on both trips. Last year we took a Main River Cruise and ate at a local cafe. You can leave your bags at the terminal luggage room and grab them when you return to the airport.

I highly recommend the program from www.stopjetlag.com I have used their program on five of my last six trips over. I will never make the trip again without their program. The one time I did not use their program was drastically different from the times I did use it.
It's a nominal fee and well worth it.

I have done several trips to Amsterdam then to Arusha on a similar schedule. Try to sleep on the way to Germany. Stay awake until your flight leaves for Namibia. Sleep on the way to Namibia and you should start getting your clock reset. Don't wait until you get to your hunting area to start to change your sleep habits to the hunting area's time as any jetlag will cost you hunting time. I've started laying over in Amsterdam and it really helps getting a fresh start in Africa.

I do not routinely take sleeping pills. The only time I do so is on trips to Africa. I have the doctor prescribe Ambien and take it my first night there and for the next week or so. It makes a tremendous difference in beating off jet lag. I used to travel internationally a bunch. I suffered from jet lag on trips to India, Pakistan, Singapore, Turkey, etc. Fighting off that hung over feeling when your mind is in a fog. In retrospect I realize I was foolish for putting my body through that when I could have used a sleeping pill to calibrate my system. On four trips to Africa, I have not suffered from any ill effects associated with jet lag. In October, I will have my Ambien with me again.

I retired early from aviation because of jet lag. The older you are, the worse it becomes. I was doing around the world stuff in the 747 and it really hammered me. Different people react differently. Time and sunlight exposure are the only cures for jet lag. Melatonin seems to help some people, but I've never had any luck with it.

I would get as much sleep as possible, in whatever fashion. I wouldn't do a 17 hour layover in FRF without napping in a dayroom, but that's just me.

Hi Geoff

My 2 cents. Like a lot of people here, I travel extensively and have done so for 10-12 years. Like others, I notice the older I get the harder traveling is.

Lately, (the past few years), I seem to get ill every other trip.

It is because before a trip I seldom sleep enough, if at all, the days before departure- too much to do. And then I press on from the 30+ hours of traveling from the (sometimes) west coast to Africa. Then get ill and lose a few days of a trip, or am ill upon return.

My advice, no matter what, sleep plenty before you leave. Second, definitely take the day room and for me, I will now always plan a day in my destination city to check in to a comfortable hotel, sleep, eat and recuperate. Better to lose a day resting than several to illness.

Lastly, I will now firmly refuse all coffee and tea on flights, as I think the water may be the cause of lots of distress, and I also don't accept drinks from the flight attendants- have you noticed their poor hygiene handling cups and ice? Call me a germ-o-phile, but I am tired of being sick.

I took a trip to Europe 10 days ago and was ill in bed for two days upon arrival with a "stomach virus". Miserable. I am even contemplating not eating their crappy airline food- either go hungry or pack my own food!

Best of luck on your trip.

Here's what worked for three of us on almost exactly the same schedule to Windhoek:

1. Get up very early on the day you leave (not hard to do since you'll be excited).

2. Sleep on the plane on the way to Europe. Take whatever helps if needed -- benzedrine (hay fever/cold tablets) knock me out, but some of the newer "designer" sleep aids might do better for you. Or you may be able to sleep with no help at all if you slept little the night before.

3. Go downtown and enjoy the day in Frankfurt; eat sausages and drink a modest amount of the local beer. You can leave any carry on baggage checked at the facility on the main floor. Take the train from the airport -- it's cheap and easy. Stay active. You may be weary by this time, but unless you're very different from me, you won't feel like sleeping. Getting a day room would be expensive and just represent a place to toss and turn while you fail to rest.

4. Return to the airport and board the plane at 10:30 PM or so for the departure to Windhoek. Before it's off the ground, you'll be asleep. And BELIEVE me, sleep is what you want to do on that 10-hour ride on the plywood torture chair in the Airbus.

5. When you arrive in Windhoek at 8AM you'll feel like it is morning and you'll be well-adjusted to the time difference. We ate breakfast and shopped after our guide picked us up, then had a four hour drive to the hunting destination, arriving mid-afternoon. Even though we had not planned to hunt on the first day there, our hosts insisted that we go for a "game drive" and take our guns. We felt fully up to it, so we did, and one of us killed a warthog that afternoon.

Any way you cut it, the 30+ hour trip from the U.S. to Windhoek is tough. But we will definately follow the same schedule the next time we go since it worked so well for us before.