Cruise

The plan to overcome jetlag while traveling from London to the West Coast was pretty straightforward: start with a 3-day cruise. It’s the perfect way to ease into the time difference, allowing you to sleep whenever you’re tired while letting the ship do the traveling for you.

Our flight plan was a bit of a marathon: we left London in the evening, landed in Washington DC around 11 PM, and two hours later, took another flight to Orlando, arriving at 2 AM. I was smart enough to book a hotel right inside the Orlando airport, so I could roll the kids straight from the plane into bed with minimal hassle.

The next day, an Uber whisked us to Port Canaveral, where we faced some COVID inspection delays before finally boarding the ship around 1 PM. This cruise wasn’t about exploring exciting ports—it was all about relaxing, soaking up the sun, and enjoying the all-inclusive amenities while we let the jetlag fade away.

Speaking of Jetlag Oliver was up at 5 AM the next day, so we had the ship almost entirely to ourselves as we explored in the early morning quiet (waiting for Starbucks to open…). The next stop was CocoCay, a private island owned by Royal Caribbean. It’s like a mix between a resort and an amusement park—a perfect place to relax and have fun.

This was our second cruise, and we loved it. The food, the activities, the entertainment—everything was top-notch, especially for the kids. And the best part? All of it was just an elevator ride away. By the time the third day rolled around, and we returned to where we started, we were fully adjusted to the new time zone and ready for the main part of our trip. The cruise did exactly what we hoped it would: it gave us a smooth transition into our West Coast adventure