Late night flights, different time zones, full days exploring new cities……getting the perfect night sleep while travelling can be tricky. Being a night owl, and approaching a 10 day trip to Morocco, I was looking to improve my sleeping habits, so I could make the most of my mornings exploring a new country. This is why I decided to take on Bed Guru’s ‘Choose Sleep Challenge’.
Who are Bed Guru?
Bed Guru are an online bed retailer and sleep specialist who focus on selling beds, providing advice on mattresses, headboards, and quality beds, and helping solve the sleep loss epidemic.
The Choose Sleep campaign was established to raise awareness and educate people on the importance of sleep, and how to ensure you get enough sleep to live a long and happy life. The challenge lasts 2 weeks, in which you are required to follow Bed Guru’s #ChooseSleepChallenge guide, as a first step to transforming your life!
The Challenge
- Go to bed at a similar time every day.
- Exercise daily, but not right before bed.
- Enjoy your caffeine early, not after 2pm.
- Avoid the night cap. Alcohol disrupts sleep.
- Keep your room dark and below 18 degrees.
- Ban electrical devices an hour before bed.
- Stop eating two hours before bed.
I received my booklet the night I was flying to Morocco, and with my flight getting in at 1am, I decided to wait until the day after I had arrived to begin. I was pretty sceptical of completing the challenge whilst on holiday. I mean, I was taking late night trains, going to bed at different times, sleeping in unfamiliar places, and spending my final hour awake on my phone or laptop editing photos I had taken that day. How was this going to work?!
How to adapt the challenge to fit with your schedule?
Bed before midnight
Rather than going to bed at the same time every night, I decided to make sure I went to bed before midnight every night. I like to be up early when I’m travelling, so I can begin exploring as soon as possible. By ensuring I was asleep by midnight, I was able to get the recommended 8 hours of sleep every night.
No Caffeine before bed
This one was easy for me, as I don’t drink caffeine. It’s weird, I know, but as a child I always saw tea and coffee as ‘adult drinks’. Having never really started with them, I’m in a good habit of just sticking to water – not only is it better for your sleep, but it also provides vital hydration in the sun. For those caffeine lovers out there, try to stay off the espressos after lunch or switch to decaff! .
Finish ‘scrolling’ before winding down
No electronic devices one hour before bed is probably the one I struggled most with. Being a blogger, I spend the hour before sleeping editing my photos I’ve taken during the day, uploading my stories to Instagram, or researching what I want to do the following day. My top tip would be to do all of your researching and editing before you begin your night time routine. That way, you get around 30 minutes without any electronic devices, meaning when your head hits the pillow, you fall asleep a lot quicker!
Find the fun in exercising
When you are on holiday, the last thing you want to be doing is exercising; but exercising while travelling is probably the most fun! Take full advantage of your hotel’s facilities. Whether it’s a quick morning session at your hotel gym, or a few laps of your hotel pool, it’s a great way to get you pumped for the day ahead. If you want to stay away from the traditional ways of working out, rent a bike, for an alternative (and fit) way to see a new city, hike a mountain, or climb to an incredible view point.
Keep your room dark and cool
My top tip for this is to buy a sleep mask. They do a great job of blocking out the sunlight when it begins to rise the following morning, and they are perfect for late night transits such as trains and flights. Keeping your room cool can be tough when you’re traveling to hot places. Lose the duvet and opt for a summer sheet instead, and make sure you keep the air con on!
Did You Know?
- Better sleep means a less fatigued appearance including fewer wrinkles & clearer skin
- Our species sleeps less today than at any point in our existence
- A full night’s sleep promotes the hormone, leptin, which makes you feel less hungry and regulates energy
- Good sleep improves productivity, attention span, memory & problem solving skills
- Chronic tiredness has been linked to many major diseases including Alzheimer’s Diabetes, Cancer, Strokes, & poor Mental Health
My Verdict
I was very impressed at how easy it was to keep to a schedule while travelling. I found the fun in exercising, by making sure I did some kind of physical activity every day – even if it was simply walking instead of taking a taxi. The biggest achievement for me, was when I took the night train from Chefchaouen to Marrakech. I have never been able to sleep in transit before; I can never sleep on flights or busses. By using my sleep mask, avoiding caffeine and alcohol, and keeping my phone out of sight, I was able to sleep aboard a night train for the first time ever!
Now that I am back in London, I will be making an effort to keep to my new sleep routine and make it my mission to finally become a morning person.
So, whether you’re travelling the world, or just want a better sleep routine, take the #ChooseSleepChallenge with Bed Guru. You can see all the relevant info on their website: Bed Guru
Disclaimer*
This is a paid partnership with Bed Guru. Views are my own.
I will have to try this out as I struggle with sleep
When it’s my turn, I fall to sleep shortly when I’m on travel. I noticed that when I’m tired and pass a day with hard work, sleep comes to me fast. But in a new place like traveling it’s hard to fall to sleep. So in this way, I find this post helpful for me. Ashley, a bunch of thanks for sharing this helpful content with us. as I’m a solo traveler, I have to follow this post.