Night buses are a nightmare, literally! Sitting in the stifling heat packed closely together with a bunch of strangers or shivering away clinging to your belongings… at no point is sleep even mentioned! 12 hours, 16 hours even 24 hours and longer spent sat on a bus. You can’t just get up and walk around like on a train or nip to the toilet like a plane, on a bus you are stuck in a hellish situation for an uncomfortable amount of hours. But the more you do it the more you get accustomed to it! After 4 months and many a night bus around Eastern Europe here are our tips!
Keep Your Stuff Safe One of the most
Chapters
- Keep Your Stuff Safe
- Bring Provisions And Change
- Prepare For All Temperatures!
- Get Comfortable
- Take Any Opportunity To Get Up And Walk Around...But Let People Know!
- Check With Your Next Accommodation That You Can Check In Early And Book Ahead
- Check Your Documents
- Be Prepared For The City You Arrive In
- Bring Entertainment And Make The Most Of The Time
- Book As Early As You Can!
- Chill Out And Try To Enjoy It!
- Do You Have Any Advice For The Night Bus?
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Keep Your Stuff Safe
One of the most important thing when you are travelling on a night bus is security and therefore peace of mind. Getting some shut eye over your long journey isn’t going to happen if you are paranoid about your stuff.
Firstly our advice would be to keep all your most important and valuable items with you at all times. Your large bag will probably have to go below, so make sure to only have non valuable item in there but also do lock it up too as even losing your clothing will be a big pain.
Because we travel together we have two bags, this makes it easier to keep them safe. Even just clipping them together and then clipping them around one of the poles under the hold makes them less likely to just be swiped off. Most people are opportunists and just take what is easiest.
SafetyWing Travel Insurance
SafetyWing
Travel insurance is one of those annoying things that no one likes to think about, let alone pay for, when you’re planning your next trip. It can also be bloody annoying as a backpacker/long-term traveller to find affordable coverage that meets the itinerary-less lifestyle (*cough* World Nomads *cough*).
So instead of getting subpar travel insurance, now we just always go with SafetyWing. It takes like 5-10 minutes to purchase your policy and essentially functions as a monthly subscription plan with near-global coverage!
When you are inside the bus you can also take steps to keep your valuables safe. Firstly put them in the most secure section of your small bag and try to clip them to something. Example is our passports which are in a waterproof container with a lanyard, that is in a zipped up compartment and is connected always when travelling to an internal clip! Also try not to get your valuables out or mess about with them. Keep things like books in another section of your bag as an example.
We also always keep the section with the valuables in locked up with a combination lock around the zips. Next we make sure the bag is secured to make sure it can’t be stolen. Whoever is next to the window has the bag and a metal cable that we wrap around something solid such as a section of the chair in front or even your belt loop if there is nothing else.
It sounds really paranoid, but night buses are the prime place to get your stuff stolen and feeling relaxing on them for me is mostly based on knowing the stuff I need the most is safe. Passports, money, phone, laptop, cameras and pen drives with all our photos on!!
READ MORE: See Our Guide To Keeping Your Stuff Safe Here
Bring Provisions And Change
Night buses are long, tiring and don’t always give you the chance to get food or drink along the way. Being hungry or thirsty on a long journey just makes it drag even longer. Make sure you bring with you plenty of food and drink to keep yourself fuelled and hydrated.
Try to make sure you bring with you some good quality and healthy food and drink too, this will make you feel so much more refreshed and energised! Although, sometimes you also need some comfort food too to keep your happiness levels high too! Get a balance!
We make sure to bring fruit juice, dried fruit, nuts, cereal bars, sandwiches and water. We also bring chewing gum too to make us feel more refreshed after sleeping! We also bring headache tablets too.
Also make sure to carry change with you in the local currency, if in Europe always have some Euros on you as they are often accepted universally. Often toilets have to be paid for and of course you might want to stock up on your provisions!
Prepare For All Temperatures!
Even on a boiling hot day the air conditioning on the bus can make it like an ice box, and similarly on a freezing day the heating can make you sweat it out for hours. Even on the same journey the temperature can go from one extreme to another.
So make sure you dress for all occasions. We wear zip off trousers, bring hoodies on board, small blankets and flip flops so we can adapt to all conditions the night brings us! We also bring along a fan too because sometimes it can feel claustrophobic with no moving air!
Get Comfortable
Bring along a travel pillow or two, a blanket and a cushion for your back. Bring with you other types of provisions to make our journey more comfortable. This also includes tissues and toilet roll, you never know what the toilet roll situation is going to be when to rock into a tiny bus station at 2am!
Also…bring a torch with you!
Take Any Opportunity To Get Up And Walk Around…But Let People Know!
Sitting down for so long is bad for you and can make your legs swell up and ache. Even if you are comfortable or too tired always make sure you get up and have a walk around and a toilet break when you get the chance. You never know when the next one is coming. 12 hours without moving is a deep vein thrombosis threat, so keep those limbs moving!
BUT… crucially. If there are two of you then take turns so the other person can watch your belongings and make sure the bus doesn’t leave without you. Take your phone with you and some change too. If you are alone tell someone you are next too and take your bag of valuables with you, tell the driver and ask how long you are stopping for. We have been on a few buses that have driven off with people still in the bathroom! That can leave you in a dangerous situation and separated from your things too!
Check With Your Next Accommodation That You Can Check In Early And Book Ahead
Most night buses get into your destination early in the morning. After a tiring and uncomfortable night, even if you prepare, you will just want to hit the sack as soon as you can. Think ahead and contact your hostel or hotel and explain your situation and see if you can check in early or if they have any upgrades to a private room.
Coming off a night bus and having to wait around until the afternoon to check in just extends the misery, no one wants to trek around with heavy bags and even heavier eyelids for hours! It is also a good idea to forgo arriving in a city without a place booked when you have been travelling all night!
Our Favourite Backpacks
Osprey Farpoint/ Fairview
Check Your Documents
Night buses often cross over international borders and sometimes mean a long wait at customs and immigration. Make sure before you set off that all the documents you need are in order and you understand the visa requirements. At 3am with a bus load of people waiting you want to have everything in order and getting left at the border is an even bigger nightmare! Getting stranded in the middle of nowhere in the middle of the night is dangerous and easily avoidable.
READ MORE:See Post About Crossing The Poland-Ukraine Border Here
Be Prepared For The City You Arrive In
Check out which bus station you are arriving in, where abouts in the city it is and how well connected the public transport is from there. You will be tired and almost deliriously so. Knowing which bus to get on, or which metro stop to get off at for your hostel will make it easier. Make sure you have your hostels address too and some directions, written in the local language too. Being so tired can make it hard work and this is the time when you really don’t want to get lost!
Bring Entertainment And Make The Most Of The Time
16 hours is a long time to be sat there doing nothing and there is only so much time you can sleep away. bring a book and some music, try to break up the time into chunks where you do something different for each period of time.
You can read through the guide for your next destination and make some notes on where you want to do, plan out a few days or write your diary/ journal and on a bus where you feel comfortable enough you can even do some blogging if that’s what you do. Even if you can’t get your laptop out I often make notes for posts on my phone.
You should also bring along a portable charger too to keep your phone charged, and if you are lucky your seat might even have a plug and the bus WIFI. If you have a tablet you can even watch some movies too! We also like to play games on our phone and tablets to pass the time. We enjoy the classics like Plants vs Zombies, cut the rope, fruit Ninja this always keeps us entertained during those long nights!
Book As Early As You Can!
Sometimes it’s not always possible depending on your plans but if you can book sooner rather than later you will have more choice when it comes to seat arrangements. Sitting together can make the difference between feeling comfortable and not, and not getting the window seat can ruin your plans for a sleep!
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Chill Out And Try To Enjoy It!
No matter what you do and how good a sleeper you are you will always end up tired and cranky at the end of a night bus, your legs will ache and you will feel fuzzy! A night bus can feel like having a hangover without the great night before it! So try to go with it as much as you can. Take the time to catch up on your diary, plan your time or just rest your poor feet after all that walking around!
Do You Have Any Advice For The Night Bus?
Our Favourite Gear
Osprey Backpack
These Osprey bags open like a suitcase & we’ve used them for 5+ years. They even have a detachable day pack and are super comfortable and tough.
Camera Bag
The Wandrd Prvke 31 with side access is an awesome camera bag for any trip. It’s even got an expandable separate top section and hidden passport pocket.
Sony a7 IV
The Sony a7 IV is our go to travel camera. It’s a lightweight and portable full frame camera that offers amazing quality and a great range of available lenses.
Sony 24-105mm f4
The Sony 24-105mm f4 is the perfect all round travel lens with a mega useful range. It’s also super sharp and light for its type.
Memory Foam Travel Pillow
This memory foam travel pillow is ideal not only whilst on planes or buses but as an extra pillow in hostels & guest houses.
Dry sacks
Dry sacks are great to use as waterproof organisational bags for inside your backpack. We always put our SSD in one!
Dry Bag
A heavier duty Dry Bag is great for boat trips and larger items and can be worn as a stand alone.
Macbook Air
A lightweight but powerful Macbook Air is our go to laptop for all our blogging and photo editing on the road.
iPhone
We also always have our trusty iphones which are great for organising our trip, photography, maps, entertainment and more!
Sony RX100 VII
Our Sony RX100 VII is our go to selfie camera with it’s 1 inch sensor, articulating screen & compact size.
Go Pro 11
A GoPro is a must whilst backpacking. This tough & waterproof action cam can go anywhere with you!
USB Universal Adapter
Grab an all-in-one travel adapter with USB slots so whatever country you’re in you know you can charge your gear.
Portable Battery Pack
Keep your phone, camera and other gear charged on the road with a portable battery pack. Great for night buses.
Trail Shoes
Trail shoes are a great all round travel shoe for comfort whilst on a city break or hiking.
Waterproof Jacket
No matter where you’re travelling to a waterproof jacket is a must! Invest in a good one!
Manfrotto Befree Tripod
The super lightweight and easy to use Manfrotto Befree is our go-to travel tripod for photography
We trust the 2TB Sandisk Extreme SSD to back up all our important documents and photos on the road.
Hard Case for SSD
We keep it safe on the road with our trusty YINKE Hard Case for SanDisk Extreme SSD.
Organise Your Trip Here
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Yo, I’m Nic, one-half of The Roaming Renegades.
I’m an adventure (and halloumi) obsessed traveller with a passion for hiking mountains, exploring cities, watching Arsenal win, moshing out to Rammstein in random European fields and getting hopelessly lost on a motorbike somewhere in Asia!
I’ve explored over 70 countries, lived in Australia and New Zealand, and spent months wandering Southeast Asia and Eastern Europe all while trying to avoid growing up!
Did it work, I dunno, but my back hurts and I still collect Pokemon cards! Who wants in?!
I couldn’t do this. I have a hard time sleeping in a comfy bed. I would do as you say and prepare to read all the way, dress comfortably, and have adequate provisions.
It is a hard way of travelling but if you only do them when needed and give yourself time to recover they serve a purpose. I can never sleep either!!
Oh man, the night buses. I’ve done my fair share of those but I can’t say I like them! I can never sleep on them. Now I try to avoid them when I can!
No, I have a bit of dread when it comes to them now, I can never sleep either!! But sometimes they serve a purpose, I would rather do things slowly and take a few shorter buses and trains!
I’m dreading the idea of a night bus. So far I’ve successfully managed to avoid them. I’ve done night trains a lot though, and actually enjoy those. I’ll always take a night train over a night bus! Those are good tips though, if I ever can’t avoid the bus thing.
Yes, night trains are so much better but usually more expensive!! We had no real alternative in the Balkans but hoping to get on some more trains in the future!!
Great tips, we’ll be hitting a few overnight buses in Cambodia!
Thanks!! Yes, we are heading that way soon and should be getting on a few more.
Great tips – the worst are the ones in SE Asia where you share a bed with a stranger, and mind u the bed is just about enough for one person.
Thanks! Yes, not looking forward to those. We have literally just done a 15hr night train in China, actually was so much better than a bus even in lower class!