Jet lag when you fly to Ahmedabad

Ahmedabad is on Asia/Kolkata. How much jet lag you get depends entirely on where you start — how many time zones you cross, and in which direction. Travelling east is the harder direction. Shift your bedtime earlier for several days beforehand and seek bright morning light on arrival.

Jet lag to Ahmedabad by departure city

From Time zones Direction Distance Flight (approx.) Recovery
Los Angeles 13 → east 13,566 km 16½ hours ~13 days
New York City 10 → east 12,131 km 15 hours ~10 days
São Paulo 9 → east 13,857 km 17 hours ~9 days
London 5 → east 6,844 km 9 hours ~5 days
Sydney 5 ← west 10,436 km 13 hours ~3 days
Paris 4 → east 6,677 km 8½ hours ~4 days
Tokyo 4 ← west 6,531 km 8½ hours ~3 days
Johannesburg 4 → east 7,275 km 9½ hours ~4 days
Singapore 3 ← west 4,149 km 5½ hours ~2 days
Dubai 2 → east 1,768 km 3 hours ~2 days
Mumbai same zone 441 km 1½ hours none

Distances are great-circle; flight times are rough nonstop estimates. Recovery uses ~1 day per zone east, faster west.

Beating jet lag in Ahmedabad

Jet lag happens because your body clock stays on home time for a while after you land. The bigger the offset between Ahmedabad and where you flew from, the longer it takes to catch up — roughly a day for each time zone when you travel east, and somewhat faster when you travel west, because it is easier to stay up late than to force yourself to sleep early.

A few days before you fly, nudge your sleep schedule toward Ahmedabad time — earlier if you are heading east, later if west. On arrival, get outside: daylight is the strongest signal for resetting your clock. Morning light helps after an eastward trip; evening light helps after a westward one. To see the exact current offset, check the current time in Ahmedabad.

Frequently asked questions

How bad is jet lag flying to Ahmedabad?
It depends where you start. From Los Angeles you cross 13 time zones travelling east, which typically takes about 13 days to shake off. From cities in a similar longitude to Ahmedabad there is little or no jet lag at all.
Is jet lag worse flying east or west to Ahmedabad?
Flying east — where you lose hours and have to fall asleep earlier — is generally harder than flying west, for the same number of time zones. The table above marks the direction of each route so you know which kind of adjustment to expect.
How long does it take to get over jet lag in Ahmedabad?
A common rule of thumb is one day of recovery per time zone crossed when heading east, and a little faster heading west. Bright light at the right time of day and adjusting your sleep before you fly both speed it up.

See also: current time in Ahmedabad · time zones in India · all jet lag guides