5 Things To Do During a Flight or Long Bus Ride

Long flights and bus rides can be extremely boring if not planed out properly. That’s why I came up with a list of 5 things to do while on a long bus ride or flight. 

As I am writing this, I’m sitting in a double decker bus, 5 hours in to a 18 hour long bus ride. Yesterday, when I was planning for this ride, I thought to my self, “What am I going to on a bus for 18 hours without Wi-Fi?!?!?”. The first thing that came to my mind was sleep – for 18 hours straight. After a while I decided that that wasn’t going to work out. 

Then I got the idea to ask people on twitter what they thought I should do. Here are some suggestions that I got:

@J_Looi write letters I have been meaning to write. It makes them really detailed and thoughtful as you have all the time in the world.

— julie smith (@snowprincette) June 2, 2013

@J_Looi this is a terrible suggestion, but I like to just stare ahead and think. But also take a good, cheap, trashy book.

— Margaux (@Margiggles) June 2, 2013

After being inspired, I decided to write my own list of best things to do while on a long trip: 

1. Listen to music. Unfortunately Apple has not made an iPad with an 18 hour battery life, so I can’t play games on an iPad for the whole time, but I can listen to music without completely killing my battery. Music really entertains me and just does something that I can’t describe to the brain. It’s really great to relax and rock out to some very loud music during long trips.

2. Work. Long flights or bus rides are basically distraction-less. I understand that it can be hard to work if there is no Wi-Fi, but when sitting down for 18 hours straight, you might as well be productive. Right now happens to be a great time for me to sit down and write my blog.

3. Play games. After working and being productive, you can take a break by playing games. I actually wrote a post on my favorite game apps for iPad and iPhone here. It’s unreasonable to play a board game while on a plane, but nowadays with apps, boards and small playing pieces aren’t needed. If you are with someone that you know, you can play games like monopoly on an iPad. Or if you don’t want to spend money on an app, you can download several free games then delete them after your trip. 

4. Read. This one doesn’t really apply to me, because I usually get headaches when reading in moving vehicles, but reading seems to be a good idea while on long trips. Physical books, eBooks, or even magazines will keep you entertained for a pretty long time. 

5. Sleep. The bus ride that I am currently on happens to be through the night, so sleeping is recommended. Sleeping will definitely take up a lot of your time on the vehicle, and will leave you feeling fresher once you disembark. I am the total opposite of those people who can’t sleep on busses. I chronically fall asleep on busses, especially tour busses. I think the rocking motion and white noise puts me to sleep, which is helpful, particularly when on long trips.  

So this was my list of the top 5 things to do while on a long flight or bus ride. What are your favorite things to do while on a long trip? Leave your comment below.