BenA

I find in-ear monitor style headphones to be the best solution here - for those who aren't familiar with them, they're basically headphones embedded in an earplug. They help save your hearing because they block out the ambient noise, so you can listen at a lower volume - and the combination of the plug and the headphone is often even more effective than noise cancellation or earplugs alone, particularly at drowning out irritating conversations. And they don't take up half of your carryon space...

Shure and Etymotic are two brands you can't go wrong with, but they're both a little pricey.

For onboard use where things might get broken/lost/damaged, I really like the Xiaomi headphones at a lower cost - http://www.mi.com/en/headphonespro/ is their site. They're only $25.99, but you may need to stalk the site a little as they frequently go out of stock... Amazon also sells them, but there are lots of problems with fakes, so I recommend going straight to the source.

princeville

If you're the type that can actually get 6+ hours of solid sleep on a plane, try to do that as early in the flight as possible. As someone above mentioned, getting up early the day of the flight will help. If not, catch some catnaps when you can. A 3pm arrival is pretty ideal. It will probably take a couple hours to get through immigration, collect bags and get to your hotel. At that point, resist the urge to collapse on the bed and get out and walk around and have dinner. Try to stay up until 9-10pm, then no matter how tired you are, take a melatonin (or your sleep aid of choice). Even if you're exhausted and fall asleep easily, the body has a way of realizing it should be awake in the middle of the night, and the melatonin increases your chances of sleeping through that. If you can get a solid night of the sleep the first night and wake up at a relatively normal time, you'll be well on your way to shaking off jet lag. Good luck!

BigOrangeTerp

Thanks for the input, everyone. If I have time I'll report back on what I did and how I felt. Which reminds me, I ought to register for a VPN sooner than later

Proudelitist

I would add a bit of general advice beyond the flight alone, and that is in regards to travel exhaustion and jet-lag.

There is a "wall"..a point where you feel you may just pass out and sleep for hours on the spot..if you manage to get past this wall, you will get a second wind and feel a bit better. I find it most useful on eastbound travel to Europe ( I live on the US west coast)..when I get to Europe which is usually around 4 pm local time I want to just collapse. I do everything in my power to resist that urge because if I do give in I will find myself wide awake at 3 am. I eat dinner, shower, and try to stay up until a reasonable local bedtime, around 9. I find that I can get past that wall and feel mostly ok until bed. I tend to wake up at about 6 or 7 am local time, which is more in line with the daylight cycle.

Counterpointing

I mostly fly TPAC out of LAX on the late nite flights.

Getting some "decent" sleep on the flight and arriving in HKG at 5-6am, I am usually good to go. It sort of aligns with my existing sleep cycle.

The return is a different story. It takes me a few days to not want to nap mid-day back in LA. I use the "wall" but still takes a little time to get acclimated.

Your outbound will be conflicting with your natural sleep cycle. Do what you can to be tired when you depart so you can sleep after meal service.

matrixwalker2012

iPad 256GB capacity + Bose QC 35 must have.

For international flights, over the pacific, if it's in coach, I limit any segment I take to 10.5 hours. Any longer, I go in Premium Economy or I connect. NRT is a good connecting point. Being LAX based, if I were to go to China, I'd probably do westbound in Premium nonstop and eastbound in Economy with a connection in Tokyo and go relax/freshen up in the lounges during my layover there.

Going to London in coach, eastbound is just short enough for me to do nonstop, return, I go via JFK and upgrade the domestic transcon. Admirals Club access via my membership plus OneWorld J lounges via my AA platinum ensures smooth and pleasant airport experiences. This way, the only hard part is the flight, where I can enjoy the MCE seats for free.

The thing that I've noticed that makes a HUGE difference in my travel mood is the ability to take a shower during my layovers. HUGE HUGE HUGE difference! This is the number 1 amenity I use with my admirals club membership. It significantly boosts my energy and makes it easier for me to get some quality sleep too.