How To Occupy A Long Coach Trip

Contributed post.

Long-haul coach trips have become a popular travel option for those on a tight budget. For the fraction of the price of a train or a plane, you can cross entire countries and even continents. However, you need to be prepared to spend hours sitting in the confines of a coach seat. Planning how to occupy yourself is essential - otherwise you’ll quickly get bored. Here are just a few tips on how to stay entertained on a long coach trip.

Plan your itinerary

If you haven’t already planned what you’re doing when you arrive at your destination, your coach ride could be a great time to come up with an itinerary. Provided you’ve got an internet connection and phone signal, you could even book hostels/hotels or even look into places to eat. Having a physical travel guide book (such as a Lonely Planet guide) could allow you to plan an itinerary without the internet. 

Bring a book
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Talking of books, a long coach ride could be the perfect time to get through a novel. This could be a physical book, an ebook or even an audiobook. Physical books can give you a break from looking at a screen and won’t drain your devices, however ebooks and audiobooks won’t take up any extra space (which could be important if you’re trying to travel light). Think about which medium is best for you. 

Queue up a playlist

Listening to music could give you the freedom to also take in various sights from your window. Consider queuing up a playlist of songs beforehand to fuel your journey. Some streaming services allow you the option to listen to playlists offline by downloading them. This could be useful if you’re travelling somewhere that may not have public wi-fi. Consider buying some noise-cancelling headphones as some coaches can be quite noisy. 

Download some movies

A long coach journey could also be a great time to watch a movie or catch up on a TV show. You can watch these on your phone, however a tablet will likely be better for the experience. Some streaming services won’t allow you to stream their content in other countries regardless of whether you have an internet connection or not, so you may have to download movies separately, however a VPN may also be a way around this. 

Play card games

If you’re traveling with someone else, it could be worth bringing a deck of cards so that you can play some card games. Of course, it might be difficult to play some games without a table, however you may be able to improvise. Digital card games can be a more practical option if you're traveling alone. There are online games that you can play against other players or a computer. There are also single-player online card games that you can play such as spider solitaire. Apps might allow you to play card games offline, which may be more convenient on some journeys. 

Learn a foreign language

Traveling to a country where people speak another language? Your coach ride could be an opportunity to learn some of the local lingo. You could bring along a language learning handbook and teach yourself a few words and phrases. Alternatively, you could download a language learning app - which may come with quizzes and other interactive activities. There may even be the option of language learning videos or podcasts that can teach you a foreign language. Make sure to download these beforehand if you’re not sure whether you’ll have wi-fi. 

Journal your travels

You could also spend your coach ride writing about your travels. In fact, if you’ve got a travel blog, this might be the perfect place to write up your next blog post - provided you’ve already done some traveling before you got on the coach. A laptop may be the best device for doing this. Alternatively, you could simply keep a private travel diary to look back on in years to come or share with those closest with you. In this case, make sure to bring a notepad and a couple pens. 

Pack some snacks

While many long-haul coaches do stop for brief food breaks, it’s still worthwhile packing some snacks in case you get hungry. When choosing snacks, try to choose foods that won’t spoil easily unless you plan to eat them immediately. Make sure to also be courteous of other passengers and don’t bring anything too strong-smelling like strong cheeses or fish. Many coaches like Greyhound buses will also have restrictions against liquor and may require hot drinks to be in a flask or cup with a lid. Do your research beforehand in order to avoid taking banned foods on board. 

Talk to other passengers

It’s possible that other passengers may be willing to engage in conversation. If you’re traveling alone and you get lonely, consider plucking up the courage to talk to people around you. It could be a chance to share stories and travel tips and make a new travel buddy. Not everyone will want to talk to you and it’s important not to persist if passengers seem reluctant to have a conversation, however chances are that someone seated around you will be happy to chat if you’re traveling during the day.

Bring items to help you sleep

A long coach trip could potentially be a chance to catch up on sleep. In fact, if you’re traveling overnight, you’ll most likely want to get some shut-eye. Packing a few sleep aid items could help to make it easier to get some rest. This could include a travel blanket to keep you warm, a travel pillow to support your neck, a sleep mask to block out light and possibly some earplugs to block out noise. Wearing comfortable clothes will also help. Some people even take sleep supplements, but be wary that these could make it hard to wake up in an emergency. Even with all these aids, not everyone can successfully sleep on a coach - an overnight coach is not advised if you struggle to sleep on a coach as you could reach your destination feeling exhausted.