# Jet Lag Planner > Plan when to sleep and when to seek or avoid light before and after a long-haul flight, day by day, with a caffeine cut-off and calendar download. Plan when to sleep, when to seek daylight and when to avoid it, from a few days before you fly to your first days at the destination. Based on published guidance on how light shifts the body clock, with a calendar download for the trip. - Use the tool: https://globalluxagency.com/tools/jet-lag-planner - For: Travellers - Price: free, no sign-up; calculations run in the browser and nothing is stored - Last updated: 2026-11-12 - Publisher: Luxury Travel Tools by Global Lux Agency (https://globalluxagency.com) Estimate only. Results are indicative and based on the inputs you provide and any published sources listed on this page. Always confirm figures with your supplier. ## Frequently asked questions ### How long does jet lag last? Without any special measures, the body clock typically adjusts by about 1.5 hours a day after flying west and about 1 hour a day after flying east, according to the CDC. Crossing eight time zones east can take a week or more, while three zones west may take two days. Shifting your sleep for a few days before you fly, and timing your light exposure, can shorten this. ### Why is flying east worse than flying west? Flying west asks the body clock to move later, and flying east asks it to move earlier. The clock finds moving later easier: the CDC gives average rates of about 1.5 hours a day westward against 1 hour a day eastward. After an eastward flight you are also trying to sleep and wake at what your body still treats as the middle of the night. ### When should I seek or avoid light after flying east? Light just after your body clock’s low point (roughly 2–4.5 hours before your usual wake time) moves the clock earlier; light just before it moves the clock later. After a moderate eastward flight, that low point falls in the destination morning, so very early light can work against you and late-morning light helps. The planner works out these windows for each day and moves them as you adjust. ### What about long trips east, such as London to Tokyo? For 8 or more time zones east, the body clock often shifts the other way, later rather than earlier. Some researchers therefore suggest deliberately delaying the clock on these trips; others still advance it. The planner delays from 8 hours east by default and lets you switch. ### Should I take melatonin for jet lag? The NHS says melatonin tablets are not recommended on the NHS for jet lag because there is not enough evidence that they work, and that medicines are not usually needed. In the UK melatonin is prescription-only. The CDC notes that its timing matters and taking it at the wrong time can make things worse. This planner does not advise on melatonin or any medicine: speak to a doctor or pharmacist. ### Can I use this to plan a client’s trip? Yes. Set the home time zone to your client’s, enter the flight times from the itinerary and their usual sleep pattern, then copy the plan as text or send the calendar file with their travel documents. Nothing is stored: the plan is created in the browser and the share link holds only the inputs. ## Related tools - [Yacht Charter True-Cost Calculator](https://globalluxagency.com/tools/yacht-charter-cost-calculator): Work out the real cost of a crewed yacht charter: charter fee plus VAT by cruising area, APA, delivery, local fees and crew tip — per guest and per day. - [Flight Arrival Time Calculator](https://globalluxagency.com/tools/flight-arrival-time-calculator): Work out the local arrival date and time of a flight across time zones, with daylight saving and the International Date Line explained: next day or day before. - [Luxury Trip Budget Estimator](https://globalluxagency.com/tools/luxury-trip-budget-estimator): Estimate a luxury trip budget: accommodation, flights, transfers, guiding, dining, park fees, insurance and tips, per person and per night. Free to embed. ## Sources and default figures - **Typical body-clock adjustment per day after a flight (eastward advance / westward delay):** {"advance":1,"delay":1.5} hours per day. Confidence: high; last verified 2026-11-12. Source: [Jet Lag Disorder (CDC Yellow Book: Health Information for International Travel, 2026 edition)](https://www.cdc.gov/yellow-book/hcp/travel-air-sea/jet-lag-disorder.html) (US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 2025-04-23); [How to Travel the World Without Jet Lag (Eastman & Burgess, Sleep Medicine Clinics 4(2):241–255, 2009)](https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC2829880/) (Sleep Medicine Clinics (Elsevier), via PubMed Central). - **Recommended pre-flight shift of the sleep schedule per day:** 1 hours per day. Confidence: high; last verified 2026-11-12. Source: [Jet Lag Disorder (CDC Yellow Book: Health Information for International Travel, 2026 edition)](https://www.cdc.gov/yellow-book/hcp/travel-air-sea/jet-lag-disorder.html) (US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 2025-04-23); [How to Travel the World Without Jet Lag (Eastman & Burgess, Sleep Medicine Clinics 4(2):241–255, 2009)](https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC2829880/) (Sleep Medicine Clinics (Elsevier), via PubMed Central). - **Suggested number of days to shift sleep before departure:** 2–3 days. Confidence: high; last verified 2026-11-12. Source: [Jet Lag Disorder (CDC Yellow Book: Health Information for International Travel, 2026 edition)](https://www.cdc.gov/yellow-book/hcp/travel-air-sea/jet-lag-disorder.html) (US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 2025-04-23); [How to Travel the World Without Jet Lag (Eastman & Burgess, Sleep Medicine Clinics 4(2):241–255, 2009)](https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC2829880/) (Sleep Medicine Clinics (Elsevier), via PubMed Central). - **Body-clock low point (core body temperature minimum) before usual wake time:** 2–4.5 hours before waking. Confidence: medium; last verified 2026-11-12. Source: [How to Travel the World Without Jet Lag (Eastman & Burgess, Sleep Medicine Clinics 4(2):241–255, 2009)](https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC2829880/) (Sleep Medicine Clinics (Elsevier), via PubMed Central); [Jet Lag Disorder (CDC Yellow Book: Health Information for International Travel, 2026 edition)](https://www.cdc.gov/yellow-book/hcp/travel-air-sea/jet-lag-disorder.html) (US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 2025-04-23). - **Light timing rule (phase response curve): light after the body-clock low point advances it, light before delays it:** {"advanceAfterTmin":true,"delayBeforeTmin":true}. Confidence: high; last verified 2026-11-12. Source: [How to Travel the World Without Jet Lag (Eastman & Burgess, Sleep Medicine Clinics 4(2):241–255, 2009)](https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC2829880/) (Sleep Medicine Clinics (Elsevier), via PubMed Central); [Jet Lag Disorder (CDC Yellow Book: Health Information for International Travel, 2026 edition)](https://www.cdc.gov/yellow-book/hcp/travel-air-sea/jet-lag-disorder.html) (US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 2025-04-23); [Interventions to Minimize Jet Lag After Westward and Eastward Flight (Roach & Sargent, Frontiers in Physiology 10:927, 2019)](https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC6684967/) (Frontiers in Physiology, via PubMed Central, 2019-07-31). - **Window either side of the body-clock low point where light has the largest effect:** 3–6 hours. Confidence: medium; last verified 2026-11-12. Source: [Interventions to Minimize Jet Lag After Westward and Eastward Flight (Roach & Sargent, Frontiers in Physiology 10:927, 2019)](https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC6684967/) (Frontiers in Physiology, via PubMed Central, 2019-07-31). - **Eastward time difference from which delaying the body clock is suggested instead of advancing it:** 8 hours (time zones) east. Confidence: medium; last verified 2026-11-12. Source: [How to Travel the World Without Jet Lag (Eastman & Burgess, Sleep Medicine Clinics 4(2):241–255, 2009)](https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC2829880/) (Sleep Medicine Clinics (Elsevier), via PubMed Central); [Interventions to Minimize Jet Lag After Westward and Eastward Flight (Roach & Sargent, Frontiers in Physiology 10:927, 2019)](https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC6684967/) (Frontiers in Physiology, via PubMed Central, 2019-07-31). - **Stop caffeine this long before bedtime:** 6 hours before bed. Confidence: medium; last verified 2026-11-12. Source: [Caffeine Effects on Sleep Taken 0, 3, or 6 Hours before Going to Bed (Drake et al., J Clin Sleep Med 9(11):1195–1200, 2013)](https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC3805807/) (Journal of Clinical Sleep Medicine, via PubMed Central); [Jet Lag Disorder (CDC Yellow Book: Health Information for International Travel, 2026 edition)](https://www.cdc.gov/yellow-book/hcp/travel-air-sea/jet-lag-disorder.html) (US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 2025-04-23). - **Official position on melatonin for jet lag (NHS and CDC):** NHS: not recommended on the NHS for jet lag because there is not enough evidence that it works. CDC: timing matters, and taking it at the wrong time can make misalignment worse.. Confidence: high; last verified 2026-11-12. Source: [Jet lag](https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/jet-lag/) (NHS, 2023-05-31); [Jet Lag Disorder (CDC Yellow Book: Health Information for International Travel, 2026 edition)](https://www.cdc.gov/yellow-book/hcp/travel-air-sea/jet-lag-disorder.html) (US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 2025-04-23).