According to the South African National Household Travel Survey (NHTS), only 35% of people surveyed commuted via public transport (bus, train, taxi). Over the years, the amount of people using public transport has decreased due to rising costs and problems with reliability. Yet, the select people who use it, whether for business or pleasure, love the stress-free travel and scenic views that buses, taxis, and trains provide.

On the other hand, others find it confined, tedious, or even stressful, especially train rides! Despite saving you money on travel costs, allowing you to see more of the country and avoid the hassle of catching flights. However, as far as public transport goes, train carriages aren’t known for being the most comfortable or spacious, which can lead to several negative emotions.

So, if you’re dreading the countdown to your next long train ride – don’t fret! – because with a little forward-thinking, there are several ways to make your next rail experience good. From catching up on some work and playing games online to befriending a fellow commuter and watching a pre-downloaded film/tv series – there are several ways you can keep yourself entertained. We outline some of the best ways in our article below:

Play Online Games

In today’s digital age, going anywhere without being connected is rare. Fortunately, one of the best things about commuting via train is that most providers have free onboard Wi-Fi, which you can use for business or pleasure. So, why not use it for your entertainment? On the internet, you can find a variety of ways to occupy your time, from streaming online videos to playing games online.

The latter is one of the most popular uses for the Internet, with an estimated one billion online gamers worldwide. From role-playing games and multiplayer online battle arenas to traditional casino games and puzzle games, you can find hundreds of games to entertain yourself on a long train ride.

As well as multiple browser game websites, you can also find various how-to guides and reviews of games/sites which can help you find reputable, secure websites to spend your time on, like Online Casino Review. Using their site, you can find reputable online casinos, read online gambling guides, and much more, consider visiting their site and see how their online casino guides could help you find a safe, reputable place to play online games while on the train today.

Watch A Film/TV Series

We’re sure that we’ve all been in scenarios where we’d rather be at home, curled up on the sofa, and watching one of our favourite movies/tv shows. Fortunately, thanks to technological advances, we don’t have to wait until we get home to engage in this activity; whether you’re sitting in a train carriage or business class on a plane, you can entertain yourself with this simple solution!

However, with the price of mobile data reaching an average of 2.04 U.S. dollars per gigabyte, you can only imagine how much it would cost to watch a movie or TV show. But fortunately, there are ways to get around this without digging into your pockets. One of the easiest ways to enjoy films/tv shows on the go is by downloading them directly from a streaming platform like Netflix onto your device.

Once downloaded, you can enjoy your film/tv show anywhere without sacrificing precious gigabytes of mobile data. On the other hand, if the train provider you’re using has complimentary onboard Wi-Fi, you could consider using it to stream your film/tv show, yet bear in mind that speeds might be much slower since you’ll be using a public connection, not a private one.

Socialise With Friends/Family

Since you’ll likely be stuck in the same carriage for an hour or so before reaching your destination, it’s a perfect time to catch up with friends and family members. While juggling our personal and professional lives, it can be easy to put our social lives on the back burner, meaning we have a whole host of messages and emails that have slipped unnoticed under the radar.

So, why not use your next train ride to review all your missed messages, emails etc.? If you don’t have any, why not message friends or family members you rarely meet? You’ll find that by the time you’ve reached your destination, the time will have just flown by, simply by having a good catch-up with someone close to you.

Plus, going through and clearing your inbox will give you a clearer head for when you arrive at your destination. Not to mention, it’ll make it easier for you to find important emails/messages, and you won’t have to deal with that annoying icon at the top of your messages/email application, and you’ll find that your mood will be improved from doing such a simple task.