Wednesday, November 15, 2017

Tips For Long Train Rides You Didn’t Know

WRITTEN BY WENDY DESSLER, CO-WRITTEN BY MONIKA CSAPO

Photo source: https://pixabay.com/en/station-the-crowd-tourism-baggage-2657911/


Traveling by train can be challenging if you are not prepared. But, if you are new to train travel, let us give you a few tips that will help you relax and be ready for everything.

Luggage

New train riders remind me of new mothers. A new mother feels she has to have everything her child could possibly need in the event that they are kidnapped by aliens and will not be returned for a few months. By the time she packs everything she surely will need, she hardly has room for the baby!


You need a good, waterproof bag on wheels, a backpack, and a money belt. Talk to the experts a www.unibaggage.com to guide you through this. If you have these three essentials, you will not have to check your luggage. You can put it overhead, and you can use your backpack for a travel pillow.


The money belt is for your identification, a little cash, credit cards, passport, visa, and a $200 travelers check in case there is an emergency. In either the suitcase or the backpack you should have a copy (front and back) of your identification, credit cards, passport, visa, and any other paper you would normally keep in your wallet. In the event that your money belt is lost or stolen, it is a lot easier to have them stopped and new ones issued if you have the account numbers and the phone numbers that are on each card.

Remember to pack smart. Take shoes that can be worn to a meeting or shopping. Those high heels may look great on you, but they take up valuable space and how many times are you going to wear them on your trip?


After you have packed. Put on the money belt, backpack, and grab the suitcase and put on the shoes you plan to wear to the airport and walk quickly around the block. This is what it will feel like on your trip. If you can walk around the block, fully loaded, you are ready. If not, you will know it and you need to lighten the load.


  • Tips from Monika (Pack Your Luggage Blog): If you take a night train or travel for longer than couple of hours there are some practicalities which can make your life much easier. You can bring some comfortable clothes with you what you can change into when you start getting tired. A portable charger can be very handy as well. You might travel on a train with no wifi therefore having an mp3-player, some good magazines, books and a notebook can help you to hit the time. Especially a notebook can be useful if you are a person who likes writing lists. When you get bored of watching the landscape you can start to organize your life since you have time and can not escape anywhere anyway.



Photo source: Dan Gold on Unsplash


Manners

Train etiquette is a big deal. If you are sitting in an area where others are speaking in low tones, respect that. Don’t try to be a clown, don’t get too loud, and do not interrupt other people's conversation. If you happen to be traveling on a day where there are empty seats, feel free to spread out. But when you see someone looking for a seat, move your stuff.

Never put your feet on the empty seat across from you and certainly not after removing your shoes. It is very rude. Do not eat loudly, talk with your mouth full, and do not bring tuna or egg salad on the train ride. No one wants to smell your lunch all day.


  • Tips from Monika (Pack Your Luggage Blog): It is always useful to ask how seat reservation works in the country you are traveling to. In some countries you get an automatically assigned seat while in others you have to buy a seat for two-three euros extra. Usually it is not worth risking not having a seat for this little money. Paying for an assigned seat in advance also saves you the trouble of having to change seats all the time as locals with "proper" tickets get on the train. Listening to music or skyping and whatsapping without earplugs is considered extremely rude in most Western countries. Talking to strangers can be fun but try to see the nonverbal signs first if your cotraveler seems to be willing to conversate or wants rather to be left alone.


Restrooms and sleeping cars

The restrooms on a train are tiny. But if you walk through the other cars, you will probably find there is at least one that is larger (perhaps a disabled person's bathroom). Remember, you pay to use restrooms at the train station, but not on the train) so, if you can wait, do so.

Sleeping cars give you a lot more space than a regular seat, However, they can be costly, so you may want to go in half with them making this a small investment for a much-needed rest.

Hack: Just before lights out if you take our pillow and blanket to the observation deck, no one will usually bother to “wake” you.


  • Tips from Monika (Pack Your Luggage Blog): An organized bag can save you a lot of time when traveling in a sleeping car. I always pack chargers, night clothes, and clothes for the next day to the top layer of my bag and my toiletry bag next to them. If you are wearing contact lenses don't forget to bring antibacterial liquid hand soap with you in case there is no possibility to wash your hands in the sleeping car before removing your contacts.



Author Bio
Wendy Dessler

Wendy is a super-connector with Outreachmama who helps businesses find their audience online through outreach, partnerships, and networking. She frequently writes about the latest advancements in digital marketing and focuses her efforts on developing customized blogger outreach plans depending on the industry and competition.

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