A woman enjoys her vacation with well-managed POTS symptoms.

Traveling With POTS: Tips for Flying, Driving, and Managing Symptoms

Traveling with POTS can take extra planning, but having Postural Orthostatic Tachycardia Syndrome doesn't automatically mean giving up vacations, flights, road trips, or new experiences.

POTS is a form of chronic orthostatic intolerance that can cause symptoms including lightheadedness, palpitations, fatigue, brain fog, and exercise intolerance when upright.¹ Changes in routine, prolonged sitting or standing, heat, and difficulty maintaining your usual hydration habits can make symptom management more challenging while you're away from home.

Whether you're planning a flight, road trip, camping weekend, or relaxing vacation, preparing for your individual needs can make traveling with POTS more manageable.

Key Takeaways

  • Traveling with POTS often requires extra planning around hydration, medications, compression, rest, and accessibility.
  • Flying with POTS may be more challenging because long periods of sitting can contribute to lower-body fluid shifts, while the dry cabin environment can affect hydration.²
  • Water and sodium are commonly used as part of non-pharmacologic POTS management, but your individual fluid and sodium targets should come from your healthcare provider.⁴
  • Compression garments can reduce orthostatic tachycardia and symptoms in people with POTS, with abdominal and lower-body compression showing greater benefits than lower-leg compression alone.³

Preparing for Traveling With POTS

Preparation can help make changes in routine more manageable. Before leaving, think about the climate, altitude, accessibility, transportation, and medical resources available at your destination.

1. Research Your Destination

Consider whether your destination involves extreme heat, high altitude, steep terrain, or extensive walking and standing.

If you're traveling somewhere at elevation, familiarize yourself with altitude sickness treatments and talk with your healthcare provider about whether altitude presents any specific concerns for you.

2. Talk With Your Healthcare Provider

Discuss major travel plans with the clinician managing your POTS, particularly if your symptoms aren't currently well controlled.

Ask about:

  • Your usual fluid and sodium targets
  • Medication timing across time zones
  • What to do if your symptoms flare
  • Whether any medications require special storage
  • When you should seek medical care while traveling

Don't make medication or major sodium changes specifically for a trip without guidance from your healthcare provider.

3. Locate Medical Facilities

Before traveling, identify nearby hospitals, urgent care facilities, and pharmacies. Save important phone numbers and insurance information somewhere you can access even if your phone isn't connected to the internet.

4. Build Rest Into Your Itinerary

Avoid scheduling every part of your trip back-to-back. Travel days alone may be physically demanding, so consider leaving time to rest after arrival before starting more strenuous activities.

5. Prepare Medical Documentation

Keep medications in their original labeled containers when possible. Depending on your needs, you may also want to carry:

  • A medication list
  • Your healthcare provider's contact information
  • A medical alert card or bracelet
  • A brief description of your condition
  • Documentation for medications or medical equipment required by your airline

What to Pack When Traveling With POTS

A POTS travel kit can help you keep your normal symptom-management tools within reach.

Consider packing:

  • Medications: Bring enough for the trip plus extra in case of delays. If you're flying, keep essential medication in your carry-on.
  • Compression garments: Compression can reduce orthostatic tachycardia and symptoms in people with POTS.³
  • Electrolytes: Pack a travel-friendly option such as Buoy Rescue Drops if electrolyte supplementation is part of your usual routine.
  • Reusable water bottle: An empty bottle can usually be taken through airport security and filled afterward.
  • Salty foods or salt products: Bring these if increased sodium is part of the plan recommended by your healthcare provider.
  • Cooling products: A small fan, cooling towel, or other temperature-management tools may be useful in hot destinations.
  • Comfortable layers: Travel environments can shift quickly between warm and cold.
  • Medical ID: Consider carrying identification explaining POTS or other important conditions.
  • Noise-canceling headphones or earplugs: These may make crowded travel environments more manageable.
  • Mobility aids: If you use a cane, portable seat, wheelchair, or another aid at home, consider whether you'll benefit from having it while traveling.

Keep your most important supplies accessible rather than putting everything in checked luggage.

Flying With POTS: What to Know Before You Board

Many people with POTS can travel by plane, but flying may require additional preparation.

Commercial aircraft cabins have lower pressure and very low humidity compared with typical indoor environments. Long-haul air travel also involves extended sitting and fluid shifts toward the lower extremities.² For someone already managing orthostatic intolerance, it makes sense to plan ahead for hydration, prolonged sitting, and navigating the airport.

Hydrate Before and During Your Flight

Water and sodium intake are common components of non-pharmacologic POTS management because increasing intravascular volume can improve orthostatic tolerance in some patients.¹ ⁴

Follow the fluid and sodium plan recommended by your healthcare provider rather than dramatically increasing either one specifically for your flight.

For more general strategies, read our guide to electrolytes for travel.

Consider Compression Garments

Compression can be particularly useful during periods of prolonged sitting or standing.

In a randomized crossover study of adults with POTS, abdominal and lower-body compression reduced upright heart rate and improved orthostatic symptoms. Full abdominal and leg compression produced greater effects than lower-leg compression alone.³

Wear compression only if it's appropriate and comfortable for you.

Move When You Can

Long periods of immobility can contribute to fluid pooling in the lower extremities during air travel.²

If you're able to do so safely, change position periodically and move your legs while seated. An aisle seat may make getting up easier for travelers who benefit from periodic movement.

Keep Essentials in Your Carry-On

Keep medications, electrolytes, medical documents, compression garments, and other essential supplies where you can reach them during the flight.

Delays and lost checked luggage happen, so avoid checking anything you can't comfortably go without.

Navigating the Airport With POTS

The airport can sometimes be more physically demanding than the flight itself because it may involve long walks, security lines, standing at the gate, and carrying luggage.

Consider:

  • Requesting wheelchair or mobility assistance in advance
  • Asking the airline about preboarding if standing in a boarding line is difficult
  • Checking your gate location before walking across the airport
  • Using elevators or moving walkways when available
  • Sitting instead of standing while waiting
  • Giving yourself enough time that you don't have to rush
  • Asking someone else to handle heavy luggage when possible

Using assistance isn't about whether you could walk through the airport. It can be a way to conserve energy for the rest of your trip.

Managing POTS Symptoms While Traveling

Your usual POTS-management routine may be harder to maintain away from home, so focus on the strategies that matter most for you.

Keep Up With Fluids and Sodium

Hydration with water and salt is widely used as a non-pharmacologic strategy for orthostatic intolerance.⁴ Your appropriate intake depends on your health, medications, blood pressure, kidney function, and treatment plan.

Keep fluids accessible throughout the day rather than waiting until you feel poorly to think about hydration.

Wear Compression When Appropriate

Compression garments can help reduce blood pooling and orthostatic symptoms in POTS.³ They may be especially practical on travel days that involve long periods of sitting or standing.

Pace Yourself

Travel often means more walking, standing, heat exposure, and stimulation than a normal day.

Build breaks into your plans, prioritize the activities that matter most, and leave room to change your itinerary if symptoms increase.

Maintain Your Normal Eating Routine

Travel can disrupt meal timing. Keep snacks available and try to maintain the eating pattern that normally works well for you.

If sodium is part of your POTS treatment plan, make sure you have access to the foods or supplements you normally use rather than relying on what's available at airports, gas stations, or attractions.

Prioritize Sleep

Early flights, delays, unfamiliar hotel rooms, and changing time zones can all disrupt sleep. Protecting your normal sleep routine where possible may make an already demanding travel schedule easier to manage.

Prepare for Heat

Heat can be difficult for some people with POTS because dilation of blood vessels can worsen orthostatic intolerance.¹

Check the forecast before your trip and consider scheduling outdoor activities during cooler parts of the day, choosing air-conditioned locations when possible, and carrying whatever cooling tools normally help you.

Traveling With POTS by Car

Road trips offer more control over your schedule than air travel, but sitting for long periods can still be challenging.

Plan regular stops so that you can change position, use the restroom, eat, hydrate, and move around as needed. Keep your medications, fluids, electrolytes, snacks, and cooling supplies within reach instead of packing them in the trunk.

If your trip involves outdoor destinations, our guide to hydration and electrolytes for camping can help you prepare for fluid and electrolyte needs away from your usual routine.

Can People With POTS Drive?

Having POTS doesn't by itself determine whether someone can drive. Your symptoms and how reliably they're controlled are what matter for safety.

Symptoms such as fainting, near-fainting, severe dizziness, visual changes, or impaired concentration can make driving unsafe. If you experience symptoms that could interfere with your ability to operate a vehicle safely, don't drive while they're occurring and discuss driving with your healthcare provider.

Rules regarding medical conditions and driving can also vary by location, so check the requirements that apply where you live or travel.

If you're a passenger during a long road trip, changing position and taking regular movement breaks may help make prolonged sitting more comfortable.

Travel Accommodations for People With POTS

Accommodations can reduce the amount of energy you spend simply getting from one place to another.

Airlines and Airports

Depending on your needs, consider:

  • Wheelchair or cart assistance
  • Preboarding
  • An aisle seat
  • Seating closer to the front of the aircraft
  • Extra time for connections
  • Assistance with luggage

Contact the airline before departure to learn what assistance is available and how far in advance it needs to be requested.

Hotels

Before booking, you may want to ask about:

  • Rooms close to elevators
  • Accessible rooms
  • In-room refrigerators for medications or drinks
  • Air conditioning
  • Room service or nearby food options
  • Distance from the entrance to your room

Cruises

If you're considering a cruise, contact the cruise line before booking to discuss accessibility, medication storage, dietary needs, and medical facilities onboard.

Other Activities

Think beyond transportation. Museums, theme parks, tours, concerts, and other destinations may offer accessible entrances, mobility aids, seating, or reduced-standing accommodations.

Researching those options before arrival can save significant energy during the trip itself.

What to Do if Your POTS Symptoms Flare While Traveling

Have a plan before symptoms start.

If you experience symptoms you recognize as part of your usual POTS pattern, use the strategies already recommended by your healthcare provider. That may include resting or reclining, cooling down, drinking fluids, consuming your usual prescribed or recommended amount of sodium, wearing compression, or adjusting the day's plans.¹ ⁴

Don't assume every new symptom while traveling is caused by POTS. Seek appropriate medical care for symptoms that are severe, unusual for you, rapidly worsening, or otherwise concerning.

Enjoy Traveling With POTS at Your Own Pace

Traveling with POTS may look different from traveling without a chronic condition, and that's okay. The goal isn't to pack the most activities into every day. It's to create a trip that works with your body.

Plan ahead, keep your essential supplies accessible, use accommodations when they're helpful, and leave room for rest and flexibility.

If hydration and electrolyte support are already part of your POTS-management plan, Buoy's portable electrolyte products can make it easier to maintain your usual routine while you're away from home.

Explore Buoy's Travel-Friendly Hydration Products

And visit our POTS resources for more guidance on living with and managing POTS.

References

¹ Vernino, S., Bourne, K. M., Stiles, L. E., Grubb, B. P., Fedorowski, A., Stewart, J. M., Arnold, A. C., et al. (2021). Postural orthostatic tachycardia syndrome (POTS): State of the science and clinical care from a 2019 National Institutes of Health Expert Consensus Meeting — Part 1. Autonomic Neuroscience, 235, 102828. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.autneu.2021.102828

² Zubac, D., Buoite Stella, A., & Morrison, S. A. (2020). Up in the Air: Evidence of Dehydration Risk and Long-Haul Flight on Athletic Performance. Nutrients, 12(9), 2574. https://doi.org/10.3390/nu12092574

³ Bourne, K. M., Sheldon, R. S., Hall, J., Lloyd, M., Kogut, K., Sheikh, N., Jorge, J., Ng, J., Exner, D. V., Tyberg, J. V., & Raj, S. R. (2021). Compression Garment Reduces Orthostatic Tachycardia and Symptoms in Patients With Postural Orthostatic Tachycardia Syndrome. Journal of the American College of Cardiology, 77(3), 285–296. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jacc.2020.11.040

⁴ Snapper, H., & Cheshire, W. P. (2022). Oral and intravenous hydration in the treatment of orthostatic hypotension and postural tachycardia syndrome. Autonomic Neuroscience, 238, 102951. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.autneu.2022.102951

Back to blog