After Air New Zealand delivered the details of its lie-flat economy pods last week, there’s been one question that has left passengers restless:

How much would you pay for an hour’s sleep?

From next year, the Skynest bunk beds will be bookable in economy cabins flying to Chicago and New York, giving passengers the chance to sleep in one of six enclosed bunk beds.

With beds available for four hours at a time, your 40-winks will cost about $100 an hour. That’s about twice the cost of a night at an airport hotel.

So is the upgrade worth the money, or are you better investing in a good face mask and catching what sleep you can? Sleep experts were enthralled by the idea, but said not all snoozes are equal.

Dr Abhinav Singh, of the Indiana Sleep Centre, says it depends largely on how long you are flying and when you book the service for.

“If you are asking a sleep purist — then no,” says Dr Singh. It’s never going to replace eight hours in your own bed. However, the quality of sleep versus sleeping in your plane seat promises to vastly improve the chance of getting some deep, restful “sleep cycles”.

The neurologist, who wrote the book Sleep to Heal: 7 Simple Steps to Better Sleep, is optimistic about the sleep pods.

 “Something is better than nothing,” he says. Four hours gives you the chance for just over two and a half sleep cycles, which are around 90 minutes, plus the half-hour changeovers. With a gradual, 30-minute transition time before flight crew wake passengers, Dr Singh says there’s a chance to sneak in three uninterrupted sleep cycles. “So, waking up may theoretically be easier.”

Is there a perfect flight length for sleep pods?

The Skynests are due to be launched on the Auckland to Chicago and New York routes, from September 2024. These are two of Air New Zealand’s longest routes at 17-18 hours, which may be an issue for passengers.

The first passengers getting into the pods may awake well rested, only to discover there are 12 hours still to their destination.

Dr Singh says the quality of rest may be vastly improved, depending on the flight length and when passengers book their pod.

“For any flight that is less than 10 hours, I would say a sleep pod is worth it,” he says, though on flights that could be double that length, the benefits are muted.

He suggests if paying more for longer in the pod were possible, even five or six hours would be worth the money on longer flights.

The Skynests are due to be launched on the Auckland to Chicago and New York routes, from September 2024.

When is the best time in a flight to book the Skynest?

Air New Zealand is planning a fixed four-hour period, to allow for rotation of passengers and to change bedding.

Within these parameters, Dr Singh suggests passengers choose carefully when they book a sleep session. He says passengers should book closest to their natural bedtime on a flight to get the best quality sleep.

“Closer to the destination may be a second-best choice as it would leave you less fatigued or sleepy upon arrival,” he says.

“Even if the person didn’t sleep all the four hours (which most won’t) it would still mean a good two or three hours of rest.”

Details of the Skynest reveal each bunk will include a USB outlet to charge devices and a reading light. Dr Singh suggests you don’t waste your time reading. Passengers should try to keep their pods dark and use the time to meditate, relax and, above all, avoid screens.

Dr Nilong Vyas, who a medical review expert for SleepFoundation.org, says there are benefits to getting quality sleep on a flight, even in a four-hour burst.

“Having an opportunity to sleep in a space without disturbing light or sound would help remedy jetlag to an extent and assist in synchronising the sleep-wake cycle,” says the paediatric sleep consultant.

Qatar Airways' Qsuite on a 777-300. Photo / Greg Bowker

Skynest economy sleep option a first

Since jet flights stretched beyond the tedious eight-hour mark, airlines have long realised that beds are something passengers will pay for. Sleep is something passengers value on long-haul flights. For the past 15 years, Singapore Airlines’ A380s have been flying a luxurious double bed in its first class suite. Other honourable mentions include Etihad’s A380 Residences (flying apartments with a single bed and linen), and Qatar’s Qsuite pods from 2019 that allow two business pods to be transformed into a double bed.

However, Air New Zealand’s beds in economy class are a first.

The airline says sleep pods were not built overnight.

Speaking at Trenz in Christchurch last Wednesday, the airline’s chief of customer and sales Leanne Geraghty said it had put over 170,000 hours of research into the concept.

By the time they arrive in Air New Zealand’s US Boeing 787 fleet, the carrier will have spent more than five years developing the product.

“At this stage [we] are looking at around $400 to $600 for the four-hour period,” she said.

Having launched a Skycouch in 2010 — a bookable insert to lie across three economy seats — Air New Zealand passengers couldn’t help but feel it didn’t quite measure up to a proper bed. Despite the disappointment, this didn’t stop other airlines launching similar products.

In 2014, Taiwan’s China Airlines created a “family couch”, which converted economy seats into a sofa, with similar products from Air Austral’s Couchette and ANA’s Couchii in 2019, along similar lines.