I HATE sleeping in transit. Bleck. I can’t get a good sleep on any moving vehicle. I am always envious of the people who can sleep from beginning to end.

My first train experience in Europe was a long over night train. It was an overnight train from Paris to Florence. I tried to sleep for a few hours, it was more like 15 minute naps. So after a few hours of this, I decide I might as well read or journal. So I got up and went to go to the dinner car that was right next to my couchette (sp?). What I found was our train parked in some train yard not moving. The dinner car was gone – and nothing was in its place. The view from the windows in the hall was of a HUGE cross all lit up on a big hill. Not a soul was up. I was a little freaked out.

My favourite trip was from Germany to Belgium. My friend and I were in a couchette and were greeted with coffee and breakfast in the morning for free! I didn’t sleep any better but I was in a better mood after the coffee in the morning.

I’ve had a few empty flights where there are multiple seats to sprawl across, which were luxurious. It’s been many years since that has happened, however.

I asked my doctor for a low dosage of sleeping pills on one trip. They didn’t help. I’ve tried the gravol route too but haven’t had any luck. I’ve tried travel pillows, eye covers, ear plugs… no luck yet. Now I try to avoid overnight travel and if I do have to have an overnight trip, I plan an easy day after to recover and nap!

I usually don’t sleep at all on a plane or a bus or in a regular seat on a train, but I can usually a few hours of sleep in a couchette bunk, ferry berth or if otherwise lying down.  Hubby’s the opposite.  He falls asleep in a seat almost as soon as we’re moving and manages to sleep at least a couple hours at a time.  He usually gets next to no sleep in a bunk on something that’s moving.

I’ve never really been able to sleep on planes, in cars, on buses or trains (if seated).  At best, I can occasionally doze off for an hour or so.  I’ve had good and so-so experiences with sleepers. The best were when I was in a two-person compartment with just my travel companion, and when I’ve gone to the bar car and consumed a lot of wine before drifting off to sleep.

For planes, I take an extra strength Reactant (supposedly non-drowsy over the counter allergy medication from Canada) before I leave for the airport.  I am usually out by the time the flight taxi for take-off (I have no recollection of the take off on my last 4 trips).  The Reactant doesn’t make me sleepy, but once I go to sleep it’s a very deep sleep (such that I avoid taking it unless my allergy is REALLY bad, because I would have a problem getting my butt out of bed for work the next morning).I would wake up briefly, and wonder how come we are in the air already , then I take out my eyeshades (on long flights it REALLY helps me), noise-cancelling headphones/mp3 player and snooze the rest of the way.  Another thing that helps is a thick scarf made of natural fibers around my neck.  None of that horrible airline blanket, it totally suffocates me.
 
On trains, I have no problem sleeping in seats, but I can never get a decent night sleep on night trains, not even the time I had a private cabin.  It’s just so damn uncomfortable, the shaking, the feeling I am going to fall off the bed, the cheap polyester sheets that makes me all sweaty…eeek.  And it’s worst in the morning, because I am not quite human until I have my morning shower.  Overnight train trips just aint’ for me, because once I wake up (usually at 5 am), I just pace the hall way outside the cabin until we reach the destination. 

Yeah, I totally get the one hour nap thing. I’ve only had a handful of train trips where I tried to sleep, but I just ended up feeling gross. I hope I can change that somewhat on this next trip. As for sleeping on the plane, forget it. Airplanes make to many scary noises

I’ve never taken an overnight train- I don’t think I would be able to sleep at all. I once slept four solid hours on a plane, but I was really sleep deprived. Antihistamines knock me out for too long- I’d be afraid of being too groggy when getting off the plane. I’m a nurse and have seen too many bizarrre side effects from sleeping pills, so I don’t really want to try them at all, least of all on a plane.

I try to pick train cabins that are the most likely to be gassed, otherwise I won’t be doing much sleeping. 

Good one Nadrazi, maybe it’s all the duty free, but I sleep like a baby on flights, the last time I flew back from London back to New Zealand, I slept upstairs in business class despite worrying about my cat been downstairs in the holdall, I have done night trains as well, and maybe I have been lucky in fellow travellers, again the motion sends me to sleep

We’ll be able to sleep much better on some longer, direct flights in the near future.  Several orders have been put in for the new Boeing 787 Dreamliner, and they will be in service in late 2008 to 2009…  This thing is a marvel in technological, environmental, health, and comfort.  Check it out on the Boeing.com site.  The Engineers at Boeing consulted with Scientists and Doctors, along with some pretty smart Technicians on innovative ways to have passengers comfort the utmost concern.  The thing I was most impressed with is the process they will be using to ensure fresh air, not re-used & abused air will circulate thru the aircraft.