20 Fun Questions, Trivia, & Conversation Starters for a Train Trip

Heading out on a train ride and have a lot of time on your hands with family, friends, or strangers in your cabin? Here’s 20 fun questions, trivia, and conversation starters to spark new conversations and create awesome new memories with your travel pals!

These 20 questions come from our new game 501 Questions: A Travel Game. You can get over 500 more fun questions in the book on Kindle or paperback on Amazon here for your upcoming trip!

20 Fun Questions, Trivia, & Conversation Starters for a Train Trip

Would You Rather:

1.     Take a train or a plane to a new destination?

2.     Have a full week train trip in a passenger car full of strangers, or one all to yourself where you can’t communicate with anyone else?

3.     Take a week long train trip stopping every 3 hours for one hour at a time or not stopping at all.

4.     Travel the Trans-Siberian Railway or take a train in India?

5.     Travel on a train only at night or only during the day?

If You Could:

6. Take a train ride anywhere in the world, which train experience would you want to have?

7. Ride a train in any country, which country would you ride through?

8. See any scenery in the world from a train, what would you want to see?

9. Take only one thing to do on a train ride, what would it be?

10. Find yourself sitting next to anyone on a train for a two day trip, who’d you pick to sit next to?

Tell Me About:

11. Your favorite train ride experience.

12. A fear you have of train rides.

13. Your favorite way to spend your time on  a train.

14. The most interesting person you’ve met or interaction you’ve had on a train ride.

15. The most interesting reason you’ve had to take a train ride.

Travel Trivia:

16. What country boasts the most miles of railroad tracks in the world?

Answer: USA with over 141,500 miles of tracks (228,000 km).

17. What country has the fastest train?

Answer: China with the Shanghai Maglev train that can reach 267 mph (431 km/hr).

18. What city built the first underground railway in the world?

Answer:  London, England in 1863 carrying 38,000 passengers the first day.

19. How many days does it take to cross the Trans-Siberian Railway?

Answer: It depends. There are three main routes with the longest route taking seven days to travel from Moscow, Russia and Vladivostok, Russia, covering 6,152 miles (9,258 km). This is said to be the least interesting route. The “most interesting” route is Moscow, Russia to Beijing, China via Mongolia taking six nights to cover 4,735 miles (7,621 km).

20.  What country has the longest train tunnel?

Answer: Switzerland with the Gotthard Tunnel that runs 35.7 miles (57.5 km) under the Swiss Alps linking northern and southern Europe and took almost two decades to complete. It’s known as the longest and deepest tunnel in the world.

Bonus: How long is the Channel Tunnel connecting London and Paris and running under the English Channel?

Answer: 31.35 miles (50.45 km) linking the island of Great Britain and Europe’s mainland.

We hope these questions spark fun new conversations for you on your train ride! Get over 500 more awesome questions with our new game 501 Questions: A Travel Game! Find it on Amazon in Kindle or paperback. Thank you for supporting us!

-Lindsey & Adam Nubern

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Save These for Your Train Ride!

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2. And, download these conversation starters so you can easily pull them up later!

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GET 501 QUESTIONS: A TRAVEL GAME!

Get 501 more awesome conversation starters in our new game 501 Questions: A Travel Game! Have a blast with these on all of your adventures!

"Such great conversation starters!" -Tracy K., TheMoneySmartNomad.com

Have fun with the questions and thank you for supporting us!

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5 Easy Tips to Save More Money Today to Travel More This Year!

Let’s get you saving more money today to travel more this year!

Here are five tiny saving habits we used to build up $62,000 to pay off debt and go travel the world.

For 18 months, we saved half of our income to pay off $16K in debt, save a $15K emergency fund, and build up $31K to travel the world with, all while only making $80K/year. Since 2014, we’ve had world-wide #nuventures campervanning New Zealand and Scandinavia, backpacking Southeast Asia and Europe, and RVing the USA and Canada. Our dream of long-term travel became reality by practicing savings habits like the five we list below. We believe your travel dreams can come true, too!

Which savings habit do you want to try today?

5 Tips to Save Money Today to Travel More This Year!

1. MAKE COFFEE AT HOME.

Savings per year: $960

The day after we got back from our honeymoon, Adam a CPA, sat us down to figure out our budget. We decided to only get $20 a month for each of us to spend personally. With that small budget for myself, I had to curb my $4 daily morning runs to the coffee shop. Pretty quickly, I learned by just transitioning to making a cup of coffee at home every morning saved us $20 a week, $80 a month, and $960 a year! Almost $1,000 savings just with coffee!

Where could you travel with $1,000 this year? This is a small start that can make a huge difference in the long run!

2. PACK YOUR LUNCH.

Savings per year: $2,900

I also needed to change my habit of eating out at lunch with only having $20 a month to spend for myself. I didn’t realize it, but before marrying Adam, I would consistently wake up late and not have enough time to pack my lunch. I’d go to the café next door to my office for lunch and get a salad. Every time I did this, it was between $8 and $12 depending on if I’d get an afternoon coffee with it. Spending $12 a day on lunch, meant I spent $60 a week, and $240 a month! That’s adds up to almost $2,900 a year! What traveling could you do with $2,900 extra this year?

To change my habits, I learned to either pack my lunch the night before or wake up early to have time to make my lunch in the morning. Remember, you don’t have to pack your lunch every day. It’s fun to go out with coworkers sometimes. What if you just made a small change two days a week. You’ll still be saving money. This is an easy way to do it!

3. SHARE MEALS AT RESTAURANTS.

Savings per year: $960

We started this habit to save money and we noticed it kept our waistlines in check, too. Have you ever noticed you always eat way too much when you go out to eat? And you leave feeling stuffed and uncomfortable? We decided to start sharing our meals and we realized we stopped overeating when going out. By sharing, we save about $20 on each bill. We go out at least once a week, so $20 savings a week is $80 a month, and again another $960 a year!

Realistically, this habit can provide challenges. As a couple or if you’re with your friends, you have to agree on the same meal together. If you have a hard time agreeing all the time, you can take turns on who chooses the meal each time you go out. Also, at the beginning we were worried about still being hungry if we shared an entree. To stick to sharing, we always say that if one entree's not enough to fill us up, we can order something else. In the many years of practicing this, there’s only been a few occasions where we’ve ordered a second dish.

4. UNPLUG AND TURN OFF ELECTRONICS YOU’RE NOT USING.

Savings per powerbill: 5- 10%

We took this advice from our utility company and we try to be diligent about this. When we’re not in a room or using something, we turn off and unplug everything from the lights, the television, to chargers for our devices. We even unplug the microwave, hairdryer, coffee maker, curling iron, clothes iron, and washer and dryer when we're not using them. When these items are plugged in but not being used, they still use electricity. Why pay for the electricity when you’re not using it?

5. MAKE A GAME OF SPENDING $0 A DAY.

This trick comes from Round the World Couple. It’s brilliant! One way they saved for their world travels was to make a game out of saving money. They challenged themselves to days where they spent $0. We’ve tried it and it’s a fun challenge! It’ll get your creative juices going with figuring out fun and free things to do like going for a hike or getting creative with the food you already have in your cabinets and even taking it somewhere for a fun picnic!

WHICH ONE DO YOU WANT TO TRY TODAY?

Give one of these five ideas a try today! Each one of these is a tiny change you can make in your daily and weekly routine to save a bit of money to put towards more travels. If saving feels good, keep the habit going to save even more money to travel more!

If you’re looking for accountability to try these habits, please connect with us on email, Instagram, or Facebook. We’re cheering you on!

By practicing these habits, you’re on your way to save more money for more travel this year. You got this!

-Lindsey & Adam Nubern

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Make It Easier to Save!

1. Pin this post to use later here.

2. And, download these tips to post on your fridge so you can be reminded and inspired to save more today to travel more this year!

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Get our Game:

501 Questions: A Travel Game!

Get 501 more awesome conversation starters in our new game 501 Questions: A Travel Game! Have a blast with these on all of your adventures!

"Such great conversation starters!" -Tracy K., TheMoneySmartNomad.com

Have fun with the questions and thank you for supporting us!

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12 Tips to Pack Light & Minimal in a Carry On Bag (for a Weekend or Round the World Trip)

Tired of lugging around too much on each trip? Whether you’re heading out on a weekend trip or packing for your round the world trip, here’s 12 tips we’ve learned and use when packing.

We used all of these tips when packing for our two year round the world trip in a carry on bag. These tips saved our backs and made travel days more enjoyable with less stuff!

12 Tips to Pack a Carry on Bag

for a Weekend or Round the World Trip

1. Choose a Small Piece of Carry on Luggage

First, set yourself up for success in packing less by choosing a small carry on bag whether it’s a rolly bag or backpack. (You can see what we used here and each of our packing lists: Lindsey’s for women & Adam’s for men).

You'll fill whatever bag you choose, so choose a small carry on. We like to only pack and take carry on bags so we save time and money throughout our flight by not having to check a bag and not having to wait at the luggage carrousel. We also choose carry on bags so we're not at risk of losing our luggage! We've heard horror stories...

2. Pack Clothes to Layer for all temperatures

This is a big one especially when you're going somewhere that's hot during the day and cold at night, like Colorado. My layering goes: a light rain jacket, over a fleece or long sleeve, over a short sleeve or tank top. I always pack one light rain jacket (for rainy days, cool nights, restaurants, and for on the plane), a fleece to have some cozy warmth if needed, and a couple t-shirts and tank tops for summer days.

3. Pack Clothing that Can be Mixed & Matched

Pack tops and bottoms that can be re-worn and mixed and matched amongst each other. I tend to pack neutral white, navy, and black tops with jeans, jean shorts, and green shorts. Everything’s neutral and I can mix and match the tops and bottoms together.

4. Try Everything On

This was one of the best pieces of advice I received to help me minimize my packing. Take the time to try all your clothes on before you head out and make sure everything matches so you can rewear and mix and match your clothes. This will help you put aside really unique items you may not need or will wear a lot.

5. Plan for Laundry

If you're traveling over a week, plan to do laundry. This will help you pack less tops and bottoms. You may have a laundry room accessible to you on your trip, or you can do laundry in the sink. You can use soap or water or we really like Tide travel sink packets.

Pack Clothes that can Be Washed in One Load

Who wants to spend time doing a laundry when you’re in an exciting new place? Not us! Make sure you pack clothes that can be washed in one load together. This will save you time and money only doing one load versus several.

Don’t Pack or Buy Red Clothes

We’ve made this mistake by putting red in with our other clothes and everything coming out pink! Adam bought red Thai pants when we were in Thailand and they tinted all of our lighter clothes pink. If red’s your power color, then pack loads of red. If it’s not, we recommend leaving red clothing at home.

6. Roll or MariKondo Fold Your Clothes

Roll your clothes like a taco or fold MariKondo style. I used to only roll my clothes, but now I prefer MariKondo's folding techniques so I see everything I have when I open my bag and I'm not making a big mess pulling out my clothes while I search for a specific item.

If you have nice clothes for a wedding or cruise that you don't want to roll or fold into a tiny square, carefully fold them like an official letter in plastic from the dry cleaners and place them on top of all your other gear. I recently did this on our trip to Jamaica for a friend’s wedding. 

7. Use Plastic Bags as Compartments

If you’re using a backpack, use plastic bags to help compartmentalize your gear and clothing.

When we traveled around the world with backpacks, we tried to be strategic in our storage system. We used gallon size ziploc bags and vacuum storage bags to store all of our clothes and gear. With a backpack, you’re consistently pulling everything out, so it's nice to have compartments to pull out all your shirts at once without sending your underwear flying for everyone to see. And, we learned having fewer storage compartments is easier than a lot of little ones as you unload your backpack to find something. Also having clear, see-through bags is nice so you can see what you’re trying to find.

8. Pack a Reusable Water Bottle

This saves the planet and money! Pack a reusable water bottle to have extra water on your flights and to save money and plastic from continuously buying plastic water bottles.

9. Wear the Bulkiest Items to the Airport

To save even more space in your bag, wear your bulkiest shoes, pants, jacket, and top to the airport so the smaller items are in your bag.

10. Prepare for the Security Line

Prepare for the moment of going through security where you have to undress and unpack your bag just to repack it. Remember to wear socks with your shoes. Also, pack your computer, ipad, snacks, and any liquid toiletries that are easily accessible and you don’t have to move other stuff around.

11. Don’t Pack toiletries (or Only Pack the Essentials)

To save even more space, only pack the essential toiletries you’ll need. Or, don’t pack them at all and get them when you arrive at your destination. We have friends that do this.

12. Carry Your Own Devices

When we set out to travel the world and wanted to pack light for our trip, we thought we could share a computer and ipad. However, now after our experience, we recommend to all couples taking off to travel the world to each carry your own laptop and devices. Adam and I are both more efficient working and searching for hotels on a laptop than on an ipad. We would argue about who would get the laptop first, how long they’d been using it, and we ended up staying at coffee shops longer than you’d want in a cool new place.

We bought a second laptop in Malaysia and it made a world of difference to our efficiency deciding on travel logistics and for our marriage! If you are a couple it’s good to have your own stuff and do things on your own. Here’s 5 Reasons It’s Okay to Take a Break from Your Travel Partner & Explore Solo that we’ve learned from our travels.

We hope these tips make packing easier and lighter so your travel days are more enjoyable instead of spent sweaty and stressed!

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make packing easier!

1. Pin this for later here.

2. And, download this packing list to have for later, too.

Yes! I want the packing list! 

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Want fun conversation starters for your next trip?

Get our new game 501 Questions: A Travel Game!

We realized we were turning to scrolling our phones during the down times of travel, but the richest memories are when we turn to each other and have meaningful conversations! So, here’s 500 fun conversation starters we wrote for you and your travel pals to create new memories together on your trip whether you’re waiting forever in airport security or chilling at the beach! Get it on Kindle or paperback on Amazon here.

“This is gold! It transforms conversations into something with more meaning, more intention!”

-Joy Morehead, @More_Ahead

Have fun with the questions and thank you for supporting us!

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Men's Around-the-World Minimal Packing List

How do you pack to travel the world for several months and lots of different climates?

When I was packing to travel the world with my wife, Lindsey (see her packing list here), I wanted things to be as simple and minimal as possible. I didn’t want to spend extra money on anything I didn’t need, like fancy packing cubes. I found that ziploc gallon bags and storage bags did a great job compartmentalizing my gear.

I wanted to put my money toward espresso in Italy and pad thai in Thailand, so I used gear I already had including our camping gear and my clothes.

So, with those things in mind, my packing list isn't the lightest and it isn't the most technical. It’s the gear and clothes I had that I packed.

I used this packing list for 2 years to travel to over 19 countries with my wife Lindsey.   

Use this is a guide to jump start your packing list.

 This packing list will guide you in packing for:

• Carry-on luggage only

• All weather- hot and cold you may encounter

• Covering you for many months and years

A note about my list: I've included affiliate links to share the gear I used on our trip if you want to get what I used. By purchasing your gear through these links, you're supporting us. Thank you!

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MEN'S MINIMAL PACKING LIST

FOR ROUND-THE-WORLD TRIP

LUGGAGE

1: 40L Backpack

CLOTHING

1: lightweight hooded rain jacket

1: long sleeve

3: t-shirts

1: zip off pants

1: gym shorts

1: swimming trunks

1: pair of boxers

1: Exofficio boxers

2: Under Armour tights

1: pair of Hincapie merino wool socks

1: pair of Wigwam socks

1: bandana

1: Buff

1: skully cap

1: hat

1: belt

1: gloves

SHOES

1: Brooks tennis shoes

1: flip flops

NECESSITIES

1: eyeglasses

1: years worth of contact lenses

5: pairs of ear plugs

OUTDOOR GEAR

1: Camelbak water reservoir

1: Big Agnes inflatable sleeping pad

1: Black Diamond headlamp

1: camping burner

1: lighter

1: bit of duct tape

1: Sawyer water filter

1: camping bowl

1: Sea to Summit spork

Lindsey and I share the load of our outdoor gear. Check her list for more outdoor gear we carry here.

ELECTRONICS

1: cell phone

1: cell phone charger

1: portable charger

1: laptop

1: laptop charger

1: ipad

1: outlet adapter for all countries

EXTRAS

1: sunglasses

1: quick dry towel

2: extra batteries

1: Chico collapsable day pack

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Save this list for later!

1. Pin this post to use later here.

2. And, download this checklist by sharing your name and email below so you can easily pull it up later when you’re ready to pack!

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WANT FUN CONVERSATION STARTERS FOR YOUR NEXT TRIP?

Get our new game 501 Questions: A Travel Game!

We realized we were turning to scrolling our phones during the down times of travel, but the richest memories are when we turn to each other and have meaningful conversations! So, here’s 500 fun conversation starters we wrote for you and your travel pals to create new memories together on your trip whether you’re waiting forever in airport security or chilling at the beach! Get it on Kindle or paperback on Amazon here.

“This is gold! It transforms conversations into something with more meaning, more intention!”

-Joy Morehead, @More_Ahead

Have fun with the questions and thank you for supporting us!

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