What I Always Pack for a Long-Haul Travel Day (After Dozens of Overnight Flights)

Long-haul travel days have a way of exposing bad packing decisions.

On a 9-hour overnight flight to Europe, there’s no hiding from what’s uncomfortable, unnecessary, or completely unrealistic. You can’t “power through” it, and you can’t fix it once the cabin doors close.

After dozens of long-haul flights—most of them red-eyes—I’ve stopped packing for hypothetical scenarios and started packing for how travel days actually feel. This is what consistently earns its space in my carry-on, and why.

Most of my flights to Europe land in the morning. I’m not going home to shower or change—I’m stepping straight into a city. And while I want to be comfortable on the plane, I don’t want to get off wearing sweatpants and an oversized hoodie. An airplane isn’t my couch at home, and I’m still very much out in public.

Instead, I pack one intentional comfort layer—something warm, soft, and flexible, but still presentable. The goal is simple: an outfit I can sleep in and walk through Paris, Madrid, or Rome without immediately wanting to change. Comfort matters, but so does feeling like myself when I land.

Food is where long-haul flights quietly go off the rails.

Airlines—especially in economy—aren’t known for their cuisine. Even when meals are included, they’re unpredictable and rarely something I want to rely on for energy. So I always pack snacks I know I enjoy and that actually keep me going. For me, that usually looks like almonds, Chomps meat sticks, and either a Liquid I.V. or a vitamin C packet I can add to water.

I’m not trying to replace the airline meals entirely. I just don’t want my energy level to depend on them. Having food I like makes a long-haul travel day feel calmer and more controlled.

This is also where I stopped trying to be productive and started being realistic.

I always download TV shows or movies before a long flight—usually whatever I’m currently binge-watching at home. Long-haul flights are one of the few times you can watch hours of TV without feeling guilty for not doing something more productive, and I fully lean into that.

Yes, most overnight flights to Europe have seatback entertainment. But I prefer using my own noise-canceling headphones and watching on my laptop or iPad. Familiar shows, familiar setup—it makes the flight feel like my time.

The way I arrive matters more than how I look mid-flight.

In my personal item, I always carry a small pouch with the same essentials on every long-haul travel day: mints, a toothbrush and toothpaste, deodorant, a thick lip balm—usually Aquaphor—and hand lotion. About an hour before landing, often during the morning meal service when the bathrooms are quieter, I’ll brush my teeth and freshen up.

It’s a small ritual, but it makes a huge difference. I step off the plane feeling human again, not groggy and disoriented.

Packing for a long-haul travel day—especially an overnight flight to Europe—is different from packing for the destination itself. When you travel carry-on only, every item has to earn its place, and travel days are where that becomes obvious.

If you read my recent post about the carry-on rules I actually follow, this is how those rules show up on a real travel day. Simple, intentional, and shaped by experience.

Because the goal isn’t just to get there—it’s to arrive ready.