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Route guide

Los Angeles Tokyo

Los Angeles International (LAX) — Narita (NRT)

Westbound
Distance
8,810 km
Duration
11.5h
TZ shift
16h west
Best side
right

Overview

LAX to Tokyo Narita — one of the most-served US-Asia routes. Despite the headline TZ shift, the body reads it as a manageable westbound delay thanks to the dateline.

Jet lag

16-hour TZ jump, but crossing the dateline makes it feel like an 8-hour westward delay — the friendlier direction. Stay up into Tokyo evening, light the next morning, expect 3-4 days for full adjustment.

Estimated recovery

Without intervention ~11 days
With timed light + melatonin ~7 days

Estimates only — based on ~1 day per time zone west, compressed roughly 40% with a timed protocol. See how long jet lag actually lasts .

Build a LAX→NRT adaptation schedule

Best window side

Westbound across the North Pacific — the right (north) side is the calmer pick through the long daylit cruise.

Typical economy row (3-3-3)

Left

Middle

Best · Right

The right window is the calmer pick on this route. For sleep, the window itself matters more than the side — see how to sleep on a long-haul. For the exact rows and seat letters on this aircraft, use the seat picker.

Cabin atmosphere

ANA/JAL 787-9 and the Singapore Airlines A350-900 are the cabin-atmosphere picks here. A 777-300ER on this route is dry but bearable for 11-12 hours.

Expected cabin humidity at cruise

This route's typical aircraft ~15-20%
Indoor air at home ~40-60%

Composite-fuselage aircraft (787, A350) run higher humidity than older aluminum-fuselage types. See what the 787 actually fixes.

What to pack for this route

Read before you fly

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