Jet lag: how to adjust faster
Planning tips from the CDC for crossing time zones, with a focus on light, timing and sleep.
By Best Sleep Trackers · Updated October 18, 2026
Jet lag is a temporary mismatch between your internal body clock and the local time after fast travel across time zones. Symptoms include tiredness, trouble sleeping at night and difficulty concentrating.
Before you go
The CDC’s travel guidance suggests:
- Choose a flight that arrives at a good time for light exposure, so you can use daylight to help your body clock adjust.
- Shift your sleep before departure, moving your bedtime and wake-up time a little toward your destination’s schedule.
- Consider a jet lag planner that personalises the timing of bright light and light avoidance.
During and after the flight
- Time meals and light to the destination time zone.
- Stay hydrated.
- Avoid long-acting sedatives.
- Get as much natural light as you can at your destination.
Bedtimes on arrival
On your first nights, work out a bedtime in local time with our bedtime calculator, and keep to it as closely as you can, even if you feel wide awake.
The CDC mentions melatonin only in general terms, and we don’t give dosing advice. If you have a health condition or take medication, ask your doctor or pharmacist before using any sleep aid. Read the CDC’s jet lag chapter for the full guidance.
Sources
Related articles
- Special situations Plan your jet lag recovery: a day-by-day approach How to shift sleep and light before and after a flight, and which direction is harder.
- Adult sleep Sleep cycles explained (and how accurate the 90-minute rule is) What happens during a night of sleep, what a cycle is, and why 90 minutes is an average rather than a rule.
- Adult sleep White, pink and brown noise: do sleep sounds help? What white, pink and brown noise are, who finds them helpful, and how to use sleep sounds safely.
General information only. This tool gives general sleep information and is not a substitute for medical advice. If you're worried about your sleep or your child's, talk to a doctor or pediatrician.