Are you wondering how long flights to Tel Aviv are? 10 hours and 30 minutes. That is how long a flight from New York to Tel Aviv is. It sounds like an exceptionally long flight, but there are worse. There are 15-hour long flights, even 27-hour longer. But then again, half an hour of waiting in line is already testing my patience.

Flights to Tel Aviv are relatively long and for most of us, it’s quite a challenge.

Ever had the experience of flying ten hours straight only to land, ride a taxi and proceed to your scheduled meeting right? I have. I didn’t even have the time to drop my bags at a hotel, but it was my fault for taking a last minute flight of out of NY to speak at a conference somewhere far.

Long flights are hard. But long flights with little time in between a meeting is harder. Then there’s jet-lag. Flying for hours across time zones is tiring, dizzying and weakening to say the least.

So how do we survive long flights to Tel Aviv?

As a very impatient middle aged woman, I’ve come up with five tips for everyone to try when stuck in a long metal tube several feet up in the air.

1. Fuel your inner escapist tendencies.
Sure, work and stare at spreadsheets if you want to. Whatever pushes your buttons. But if you ask me, the perfect way to forget that you’re a hundred feet away from land and forgetting the time as well is to be entertained. I like to unleash the escapist side of me and go on binge watching while some read books or listen to music. If you have an iPad load it up with stuff to watch before your flight and remember the headsets.

2. Try to sleep.
Even though it will be hard at first, when you get bored enough, you can just close your eyes and put on the eye cover and some earplugs and sleep away an hour or more. You’ll be thankful for the time you get to catch up on sleep. If you just can’t sleep anywhere outside of your home, try sleeping aids. Have a doctor prescribe a sleeping pill that is safe and effective before you embark on your journey.

3. Choose the best seats.
If the plane does not get fully loaded, have the attendant and a traveling partner (or a fellow passenger who also wants to get the long flight over and done as hassle-free as possible) assign you to a window and aisle configuration. You both get a seat and a half and a whole lot of comfort. Plus, it will be least likely possibility of someone wanting to sit in the middle.

4. Hydrate.
Use electrolyte drinks like Gatorade to keep you from dehydration while in a long flight.

5. Don’t get drunk before a long flight.
If you get wasted the night before a long flight, you know what will happen next. Nothing is worse that having to fly for a full ten hours while hungover.