To me the topic of time zones is interesting, both as it impacts where one chooses to live, and in terms of choosing where to vacation. I love traveling far away, and in a way jetlag has its charms, but there’s also something nice about not having a major disruption to your typical schedule.
In this post:
My favorite time zone to live in
Over the years I’ve lived on both the East Coast and West Coast of the United States, though I’ve also spent a significant amount of time over the course of my travels in virtually every time zone. While I have a general preference for the West Coast lifestyle, personally I far prefer living on the East Coast in terms of the time zone. Why?
- I’m a morning person nowadays, and I naturally wake up well before 5AM (in fairness, I also go to bed really early); not only do I love watching the sun rise every morning, but I also love the feeling of getting a head start, and being able to get stuff done before most people are even awake
- For the purposes of my work, most news and other commitments happen during East Coast business hours, so I have a pretty easy time staying on top of things
- Given that we have two young kids, it’s useful to be able to get some stuff done before they wake up in the morning, or else I’d feel very behind; I almost feel like half of my productivity happens before 7AM
- The downside of the East Coast is that in the afternoons you might have more going on, though personally I kind of call it quits at around 4PM, and can deal with anything from the afternoon the following morning, before others are awake
There’s no denying that the West Coast has its advantages as well. Specifically, the much more laid back afternoons, because when it’s 2PM on the West Coast, it’s 5PM on the East Coast. That being said, I just don’t like waking up and feeling like I’m already behind.
Of course this just reflects my personal situation. The whole world doesn’t revolve around the East Coast, but this is what works best for me, based on my circumstances.
My favorite time zones to travel to
Just as I have a favorite time zone to live in, I also have favorite time zones to travel to. Increasingly, time zones impact where I have the desire to travel to, which probably reflects that I’m getting older, and staying up for weird hours is significantly less appealing.
I should mention that I “work” when I travel, so I never really have a traditional vacation where I truly disconnect. Roughly in order, below is my take on the time zones I enjoy traveling to most.
The less time change, the better
On many levels, traveling to somewhere that doesn’t require much of a time change is pretty awesome. I’ve realized this more than ever before living in Miami, given all the international destinations you can travel to that don’t involve huge time changes:
- It’s pretty awesome to be able to travel to the Caribbean, Central America, or South America, all without dealing with any sort of a major time change
- On some level I’d almost rather travel to a place like Los Cabos rather than the Maldives, because it’s oh-so-nice to not be jetlagged the entire time you’re there (though it is still a time change of a few hours)
Europe & Africa are easy enough to deal with
If I have to deal with jetlag, I like being in Europe or Africa, where you’re typically five to seven hours ahead of the East Coast of the United States. I’ve been going to Europe since I was young (since my family is from Germany), and it has never been an issue for me.
My general approach in Europe is the following:
- I wake up fairly early (as usual), and then work for a couple of hours
- Then I have most of the day free to explore stress-free, while most people in the United States are still asleep
- Then in the late afternoon I’ll work for a few more hours before dinner, for anything I missed in the morning
- Then I’ll enjoy the evening, and before going to bed I might work again briefly, depending on what’s going on
Personally I think this is pretty great, whether you’re exploring a city in Europe, at a beach resort, or on Safari in Africa. I find I’m much more relaxed when traveling to Europe and Africa, since I don’t always feel like I’m “missing” everything going on in the world, but rather feel like I’m ahead of the curve.
Hawaii is tough, but I make it work
I absolutely adore Hawaii, and how laid back and relaxing it is. The time zone is of course tricky, as it’s like the West Coast on steroids, being five or six hours behind the East Coast. When I’m in Hawaii, I typically get up ridiculously early, around 3AM, but I make it all work.
What I love about Hawaii is that by late in the morning, most of the action on the East Coast is over, so I can really make the most of my time, and disconnect. I’m usually so tired by the time the sun sets in Hawaii anyway (given how much time I spend outside), so going to bed before 8PM isn’t any sort of sacrifice.
So while this is a time zone that always sounds bad to me on paper, in practice I usually end up liking it.
Asia & the South Pacific are really complicated
As much as I love traveling to Asia and the South Pacific, from Tokyo, to Hong Kong, to Bali, to New Zealand, I struggle with the time zones… a lot.
Much of Asia is around 12 hours ahead of the East Coast of the United States, so the time difference is quite literally night and day:
- I get that this is appealing for some people, since they say you can answer emails when you wake up in Asia and catch people as they go out of the office, and then you have all day without being bothered
- However, for those of us who try to stay overlapped somewhat with the first half of the US East Coast business day, it’s much trickier
- In Asia my strategy is usually to get up very early (let’s say 4AM or so), work for a bit, have the whole day to explore, then work again in the evening before dinner, and then work again after dinner; suffice it to say it’s brutal, especially as I get older
Australia is even trickier. 7AM to 12PM on the East Coast of the United States (usually my prime working hours) is 11PM to 4AM in Sydney, so that’s especially rough. In Australia and New Zealand I usually just say “to hell with my schedule,” and try to adjust as much as possible, because I’m going to be miserable if I try to maintain US hours at all.
Bottom line
Over the years I’ve found that being in the right time zone can both maximize my productivity and my general happiness and stress level. Nowadays I’m a full-on morning person, so I love being on the East Coast, and being ahead of the curve.
In general I’d rather vacation somewhere without as much of a time change, even if there are other (slightly) nicer destinations. When it comes to traveling further away, I personally love being in Europe and Africa, while Asia and Australia are tough for me.
Anyway, that’s my opinion based on my situation, though I’m curious to hear how other OMAAT readers feel.
Do you have a favorite time zone, either for living or traveling?
How does on pick a “favorite” time zone?
What an odd premise.
I have the privilege of living in Amman, Jordan, for a few years. Location is perfect - at the intersection of Europe, Asia, and Africa. And therefore traveling is super easy and nothing is really far and differences in time zones are minimal - only 1-2h to Germany, my home country or 4h with Bangkok for example. Everything is easy to manage. Highly recommend. :)
The ease by which a person’s login can be misappropriated by someone with ill intent is disappointing Ben.
One would be best advised to plug your website security gaps before the holes down your flight old bean …. Yes?
Just live where you want to live, and to hell with the other time zones around the world. We're up at 0500 every day and in bed by 2200. It wouldn't matter if lived in Mumbai, Helsinki, Santiago, Los Angeles, Apia, or Melbourne, those times wouldn't change. For me it's more about the latitude than anything else - I enjoy the changing of the seasons and the variability of daylight as they change. As such...
Just live where you want to live, and to hell with the other time zones around the world. We're up at 0500 every day and in bed by 2200. It wouldn't matter if lived in Mumbai, Helsinki, Santiago, Los Angeles, Apia, or Melbourne, those times wouldn't change. For me it's more about the latitude than anything else - I enjoy the changing of the seasons and the variability of daylight as they change. As such I'd be happier in Melbourne or Helsinki than in Apia or Mumbai. The time zone is irrelevant.
Spent most of my adult life on the west coast and now I'm back on the east coast. No matter how long I'm here on Sunday afternoons around 5pm, I think about how it's only 2pm on the west coast. I recognize this is totally irrational. After all, all days have 24 hours, but it's still how I feel.
Dealing with intense jet lag at the moment, so what a timely post. Gotta try to adopt the new zone as best you can and quickly as possible. Easier to stay up than to try to force yourself to sleep. Sometimes the coffee/tea is never enough. Exercise can help, but do it in the mornings. Look at the sunrises, if you can. Good tricks of the trade. I admire the flight crews who do this for a living and make it look easy (because it is real work.)
A true conundrum. Over the years, many ideas, but no solution until four years ago. Then I started the practice setting my watch to destination time zone, or check it out on digital watch by checking it out in Auckland, Singapore, Tokyo or Tahiti is at the moment. Get on it. Wake when they wake, sleep when they sleep. An d never go to sleep when I reach destination, if it's daylight. Usually mitigates the...
A true conundrum. Over the years, many ideas, but no solution until four years ago. Then I started the practice setting my watch to destination time zone, or check it out on digital watch by checking it out in Auckland, Singapore, Tokyo or Tahiti is at the moment. Get on it. Wake when they wake, sleep when they sleep. An d never go to sleep when I reach destination, if it's daylight. Usually mitigates the lag. Never a prob going east to west.
Of course, keeping hydrated is vital. Just cut back on booze.
For me I like PST. I have to start the day very early but by 2-3PM it's over.
No wonder, because you do like whining about those tiny PHX Admirals Clubs, so you must spend ample time there when not in CLT/MIA.
Keep in mind it's only Standard Time for 4 months a year.
An underrated perk of living on the west coast is that, in my opinion, most international flights are in the sweet spot of 10-14 hours long that allows for a full night’s rest (if you’re flying business class, of course). This is true regardless of whether you’re going to Asia, Europe, or Australia. From the east coast, Europe is only 7-8 hours away, which is far too short for a full rest, while Asia flights...
An underrated perk of living on the west coast is that, in my opinion, most international flights are in the sweet spot of 10-14 hours long that allows for a full night’s rest (if you’re flying business class, of course). This is true regardless of whether you’re going to Asia, Europe, or Australia. From the east coast, Europe is only 7-8 hours away, which is far too short for a full rest, while Asia flights are a few hours too long to enjoy (and Australia is simply too far).
Totally agree. Time changes become less fun with every passing year for me.
Why did you steal my username, slut?
Is there only one Jessica in the world? Is only one person allowed to use the name Jessica? There are a few who use the name Jack. Do I care?
Let the battle of the Jessicas begin! Who will slink off tail between legs??
Ladies, is this gonna be on pay-per-view? Is it getting hotter in here? I’m excited.
If the website was set up and administered correctly then the misappropriation of login names should be impossible.
This site is getting ridiculous….mindless ramblings about time zones and airline catering with a huge portion of credit card pandering. Get a life and relate to those of us who love aviation and the news about the industry.
Can't think of another article in recent memory about time zones? Not sure why are you so bent out of shape?
Hmmm. I wonder why there aren't articles about time zones. It is a pretty silly article. Especially about news only occurring during the eastern time zone. Ben is a good writer but this article is pretty silly
I agree. Ben’s schtick is becoming increasingly transparent.
This is actually one of the more interesting articles rather than a weird post about how the Boom CEO tries to sleep on redeyes.
Reality is: the owner of this site has grown out of this site's original lifestyle. When he was young he traveled the world and posted about it on this site.
Now that he has husband and two kids and a dog he rather stays at home (understandably!) and doesn't travel the world like he used to.
Hence no content but ramblings, repostings and things like summaries of air traffic control videos etc.
I am...
Reality is: the owner of this site has grown out of this site's original lifestyle. When he was young he traveled the world and posted about it on this site.
Now that he has husband and two kids and a dog he rather stays at home (understandably!) and doesn't travel the world like he used to.
Hence no content but ramblings, repostings and things like summaries of air traffic control videos etc.
I am not blaming Ben for having a different life at all. But he's got to figure out if this 'job' is for him anymore.
Then, stop reading. No one is forcing you. Just move on.
Just increase your daily intake of AVHerald and you’ll be fine.
Let the man and his concept be.
BtW, that username of yours is a mindless ramble.
Click-bait articles promote clicks ….
More clicks equals more cents ….
More cents equals more miles ….
More miles equals more review articles ….
More review articles equals more happy little bunnies clicking away to bring in more cents …. It all makes sense, yes?
Problem with flying to Central America/South America, still often requires an overnight flight (coming back), even tho they shouldn’t!
Terry, from reading many, many posts, one gets the impression that numerous travellers are fearful or avoid overnight flights. With the introduction by BA, decades ago, to offer the world’s first lay-flat seat, overnight travel is now much preferred. It is much less likely to induce jet-lag if one is fully rested and the following day in country is not lost.
If you work with people all over the world, nothing beats US Central time.
It's called Central Time, dummy, not 'US CENTRAL TIME'. American superiorist! Thanks PUTIN!
Actually, "Central Time" is also used in Australia and Indonesia.
Central Standard time (CST) in Australia actually. Or CDT during daylight saving months.
In that situation I'd plump for GMT which is instantly recognised worldwide rather than some random BF US one.
Here we go again …. A misappropriation of a login name so that a mindless moron can make mischief …. do get a grip Ben, yes?
Apart from GMT...
Anyone who doesn't believe in tike changes is a dummy!
When I lived in San Francisco I traveled to Tokyo and Osaka several times a year. The difficulty for me was after lunchtime in Japan trying to work when my body just wanted to shut down around 2:00pm to 4:00pm Japan time. After lunch is tough enough wherever you are but jet lagged added a certain rough layer to that.
Fake information!
I find US to Japan is easy, given that most flights tend to arrive in the afternoon or evening.
I also love being up early - I'm always up by 5am. Especially with the days being so short now with DST.
I've lived most of my life on the East Coast but really, really wish I could live on the West Coast, primarily for sports watching. I hate that I have to stay up until 11:30pm to watch all of Monday Night Football, or Midnight to finish a World Series game. I've spent a decent amount of time in CA for work, and it was always such a treat to leave the office, go to dinner,...
I've lived most of my life on the East Coast but really, really wish I could live on the West Coast, primarily for sports watching. I hate that I have to stay up until 11:30pm to watch all of Monday Night Football, or Midnight to finish a World Series game. I've spent a decent amount of time in CA for work, and it was always such a treat to leave the office, go to dinner, and football is already underway, and the game is done by 8:30pm.
Also, I don't know how Ben does it with the 4am start to the day - 4am is squarely still "last night" in my world (and I say that as someone with three small children who are up early!).
Lol. I've also lived most of my life on the East Coast (all over the place though), and I've thought many times how nice it would be to live on the West Coast for better timing of live broadcasted events. I wanted this even more as a kid, because my parents would never let me stay up late :)
World Series game? What countries in the WORLD participate? From which WOLRD?
This year it was USA & Canada.
This year it was USA & Canada.
I completely agree with you for US sports, but the flip side to this is as a big Premier League fan, the east coast is the absolute best for watching games and west coast is miserable. Pros and cons to everything.
Y'all can record it or save it in many places so you can later go over what you think are highlights or lowlights.
Thanks Ben, this is helpful info.
Here we go again …. A misappropriation of a real login name so that a mindless moron can make mischief …. do get a grip Ben, yes?
I love Newfoundland time! LOL. 9 AM in Miami/NYC. 10 AM in Halifax, 1030 in St John's NL - i think the only place in the world on the half hour - LOL
(You may want to check out India)
(You do not want to check India out, actually)
False!
Shut up, skank.
In Australia, South Australia and the Northern Territory are also on the half hour.
Nepal is on 15 mins, as are the Chatham Islands in New Zealand.
No, Adelaide and all South Australia is 30 minutes behind the east coast (Sydney etc.)
Uh? You just ignored the 1.5 billion residents of India at UTC+5:30.
Okay, Karen. This sounds like a first world problem.
yru here?
first world problem is still a problem..
Everybody is entitled to an opinion, William.
Except for fake hoes who commandeer others’ handles, “Jessica.”
Disagree with your comment, William. This is a forum for sharing opinions and there should be no room for divisiveness.
Jason
This whole blog is about a first world problem, and we all love it. I’m mean the piece is literally about time changes when Ben flys out of the first world, Duh!…well maybe not miami :)
And how is this even a Karen issue??
Your name calling doesn’t even make sense. Honestly Dave you and your judgement sound like the true Karen
sorry to stoop to your level! Ha
Time zone chatter …. really?
Why don’t you take your daily whinge about the blog’s owners choice of topic somewhere else, you douche! Jesus wept.
Relax please, Ronald. Your verbiage has crossed the line. Don't make me get Ragin' Russ McArthur involved.
Shush Multi.
Ronald,
I also do not appreciate your use of the c-word and would ask that you retract your statement and issue an apology to the community.
Jason
F off, whore.
My thanks to those above who have posed in a manner most appropriate for the stereotypical trailer-trash residents.
With each vile incident you are condemning this website to the depths of iniquity from which it may never recover.
Please remember that the foul comments posters might well mean cents today …. but how many cents are being lost because decent click generators are flying to appropriately moderated websites.
Think on one and all, yes?
Ben, when you travel way off the east coast time zone (like Asia) can't you schedule your non-time sensitive content for the following east coast day? Just curious
Always surprises me how early everyone goes to bed in Hawaii. Once you get into that rhythm, it does work.
Boring life