You’ve been dreaming for two years about this vacation to a far-off land — once you get past that 9-hour plane ride and the number the parched cabin air and all the germs it circulates will do on your skin.
You probably don’t want to spend your first couple of days in paradise trying to reconstitute your complexion, so here are a couple of preflight, inflight and postflight tips to ensure your skin can glow with your excitement once you arrive:
BEFORE YOU GO
- Keep hydrating your skin with moisturizers containing hyaluronic acid and/or lipid oils night before and the morning of.
- Drink lots of water but don’t spray water onto your face, since it will just evaporate during the first part of your flight and could suck the rest of the moisture out with it.
- When getting ready to board, don’t wear makeup if you’re comfortable with that, but don’t forget to use a moisturizer or sunscreen with SPF 30 or higher, because you’re going to be closer to the sun and airplane windows won’t filter out the UV rays.
IN THE AIR
- Warnings against wearing makeup during a flight still hold some water, but moisturizing, non-comedogenic products likely won’t do any damage, especially on rides of about four or fewer hours.
- Use ice cubes to calm puffy eyes while taking off and landing, then apply a couple drops of eye cream to protect this especially sensitive part of your face.
- If you’re sans makeup, apply more moisturizer every hour and don’t be stingy with the lip balm.
- The salty, sugary food normally provided in-flight may leave you even more dehydrated, so pack a healthy snack with protein, whole grains, nuts and veggies
- Avoid wearing a cloth face mask.
AFTER YOU LAND
- This is when you should remove all makeup, cleanse and exfoliate your skin to wash off any bacteria and other irritants that did make it through your inflight defenses.
- Maintain your regular skin-care route, with a little extra moisturizer during the day to keep you looking and feeling your best.
