Long Trip Ahead? Here’s How to Avoid Boredom

Everybody loves to travel, but the problem with some travel is that long haul is boring. When you are hopping from airport to airport trying to get to your destination, it becomes a lot of stress and a lot of worry in case you miss a flight or a connection gets delayed and you are missing your other one. Most of us look to stay busy while we can when we travel, whether that’s people watching. Or enjoying a nice breakfast at the overpriced airport restaurant. The problem is, is that travel makes you richer, which means if you want to get from A to B to arrive at C in one piece, travel is something you have to do.The key is making it as entertaining as possible so that you don’t feel overboard or you don’t feel like you are going to be driving yourself crazy with nothing to do while traveling can be stressful. There are several ways that you can make sure that you can avoid boredom.

There is nothing out there that has the same capacity to make us feel good then the immersion in a new culture, which is why we like to travel, to see new places and experience new things. The life that we have in our home country may not be as thrilling or as exciting as we think it is, and it often becomes eye opening to discover that it’s not thrilling at all. It takes traveling to new places to see that, however. But there is always that inevitable downtime where you’ll feel a little bit bored and you need to figure out how you can make yourself feel happy. Passing the time is important And whether you play Solitaire on your phone or you decide to get yourself a library’s worth of books for your Kindle, you need to be able to pass that time in one piece without forgetting your flight. So with that in mind, let’s take a look at how you could avoid boredom on your next long trip.

• Bring a deck of cards. You can’t go wrong with the deck of cards because you’ll always find a solo game to play, or even somebody who knows that you might meet to take up a game with you. Solitaire is a fantastic card game to play because you can play it wherever you are. So if you’re delayed for your flight or you’re simply at the airport far too early, all you need is a table and a chair and to busy yourself with your deck of cards. The best part about a deck of cards is that you’re never going to need charging and you’re never going to run out of any battery.
• Have a power bank handy. If you are in an airport that doesn’t have any PowerPoints for you to charge your phone, which would be unusual, but not too unusual for the smaller airports, then you need to have a power bank. You do not want your smartphone to run out of charge and it needs to stay fully charged for the duration that you are stuck. A power bank can help you with booking your next bus or trade journey, or finding a hotel if your flight gets canceled, and it can also help to keep you connected to your family and your friends in case you need to let them know that you’re going to be late.
• Load your phone or your smart device with audiobooks. If you don’t have the capacity to sit and read a full book while you are traveling, think about what you can do with audiobooks. By loading your playlist with decent audio books, you’ll be able to listen to a book and immerse yourself in a story without having to stare at a screen or a page.not only can this give your eyes a bit of a break but it gives you time to just sit and be peaceful while you eat something or while you are waiting for a flight. You can sit without having to worry about carrying huge numbers of books
• Journal as you travel. If you want to remember every moment of this travel plan that you have in front of you, then bring a journal along and write within it. Along with photographs, journaling is a great way to keep a record of your adventures, and you’re not going to be bored in between. If you’ve just had a fantastic day and it’s been packed with activity, not just traveling, you’ll be able to fill that into your journal and look back on it as a time where you actually enjoyed yourself. There are going to be details from your journey that are long forgotten before you get home, but if you keep a daily diary of everything you’ve done and experienced, those experiences are likely to be remembered.
• Write your own story. If you have a journal in your pocket that you’ve been filling up, and you notice that you have a little bit of a knack for it, then why not turn that travel diary of yours into a book? Even if it’s not something that millions of readers are going to read and shoot you to the top of the best sellers list, it’s still going to be an achievement for you to have written something and published it. Writing your own book and self-publishing is a great way to share your experiences and let the world know that you’ve had these experiences and this is how you handled them.
• Exercise your mind with puzzle books. There are plenty of puzzle books out there, and whether you choose to do crosswords or word searches, it’s completely up to you. Challenging your mind by making your way through several puzzle books while you travel is a great way to keep busy. Sudoku word jumbles and crosswords are going to keep that brain matter engaged and that keeps your wits about you.
• Sleep as you can. If you are stuck at airports or other train stations then try to snooze or nap, but make sure that you set an alarm so you don’t miss the next one. Bring an eye mask and earplugs and catch 40 winks while you travel.
  Get to know new people. If you want to avoid boredom, then you need to make sure that you are talking to people around you. Take the opportunity to get to know the people waiting with you at the airport or on the plane with you. Strike up a conversation and don’t be afraid to do it. Sure, not everybody will be receptive to conversation while they are immersing themselves in their own travel plans, but at least you would have tried. And you never know, you could make a brand new friend along the way.
• Meditate where you can. If you have a chance to take a break and just be on your trip, you’re going to thank yourself for those moments. Practicing mindfulness and affirmations is important when you’re on the go and traveling. It doesn’t matter whether you are traveling for business or pleasure – you should sit and think and rest as you go. You will thank yourself for it later.