Do you have ‘jet lag face’? It’s the puffy, dehydrated look your skin can get when you are tired and have spent many hours on the go, or on the plane. If so, you need one of the best face masks to instantly recharge your skin.
Including travel-friendly under-eye masks that our beauty editor never flies without, to super nourishing face masks that will revitalise and refresh your skin in a flash, these are the best face masks to use after – or during – a long-haul flight.
The perfect size to fit into your carry-on cosmetics case and in a mess-reducing squeezy tube, this nourishing mask is a travel essential for many frequent flyers. Instantly cooling on your skin, it contains a host of soothing ingredients, including ceramides, vitamin B5, allantoin and bisabolol, which leave even sleepy complexions looking ultra-dewy.
Your eyes often show the first signs of a jet-lagged or sleep-deprived face, with dark circles and dry skin the biggest complaints. That's why our beauty editor swears by these clever under-eye masks, which she wears under her sleep mask on the plane. Not just super hydrating, the gel patches contain retinol and peptides to help with fine lines (with frequent use) and arnica and cucumber to soothe puffiness in just five minutes.
This award-winning mask is a favourite among makeup artists for helping brides-to-be quickly banish signs of fatigue, and it's just as good for frequent flyers (consider it your absolute destination wedding essential). Working in just 20 minutes, the hyaluronic acid and marine-complex enriched gel mask plumps and hydrates, while the addition of tranexamic acid and anti-inflammatory peptides make light work of any discolouration.
Aesthetic doctors swear by this mask for use after intensive treatments such as laser and microneedling (which can make your skin red and sore), so you can really trust it to revitalise travel-worn skin. Our advice: use it to treat yourself when you arrive in your hotel room by applying it for 20 minutes. You can lie back and relax while the blend of hyaluronic acid and peptides plump and soothe.
111Skin has a talent for making sheet masks feel glamorous, so you shouldn't feel as self-conscious popping this sleek one on during your travels. Inspired by cryotherapy and the way that icing your face helps with blood flow and hydration, this cooling mask is really good at depuffing and it also comes in two pieces for easier application, even when you are tired.
Love a bit of beauty tech? You'll be obsessed with these clever under-eye patches that go one step further in the quest to banish dark circles and crepey skin around your eyes. They combine traditional stick-on under-eye patches (which contain peptides and niacinamide to instantly hydrate and brighten) with a mini LED device that is secured on top to revitalise your eyes using light therapy.
Described as 'beauty sleep bottled', this overnight mask is not only brilliant at treating the side effects of jet lag face, but can also stop puffiness and dehydration occuring in the first place. Simply apply the nourishing formula, which contains jojoba seed oil, ceramides, hyaluronic acid and rose water, the night before you fly and it will help protect your skin from looking tired. It's super soothing too, so could help you drop off if you struggle with pre-flight nerves.
You can't go wrong with having Garnier's Moisture Bomb sheet mask in your carry-on – not least because it's so affordable. Offering a quick and no-nonsense solution for boosting skin hydration, in a way that's suitable for your kids as well as you, it's also the product to look for if you forget to bring a mask from home, as it can easily be picked up at the airport in Boots.
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Lead image credit: Summer Fridays
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