🚌 I Took Only Overnight Buses for 30 Days Straight — Here’s What Happened

✈️ The Itchy Idea That Became a Wild Month You know those genius travel ideas you blurt out after a couple cocktails, half-joking — and then actually follow through with? This was one of those. 30 days. 0 hotels. Nothing but overnight buses. From Morocco’s desert highways to Croatia’s coastlines, I skipped flights, trains, and hostels, opting instead for night buses where my bed was a semi-reclining seat and my neighbors ranged from nuns to chain-smoking backpackers. Spoiler: I survived. Barely.

Melissa Ridge

6/23/20252 min read

Disclosure: Hey travel babe — this post contains affiliate links. That means if you click and book through them, I might earn a small commission at no extra cost to you. I only recommend the stuff that keeps my budget trips bougie and my adventures unfiltered.

✈️ The Itchy Idea That Became a Wild Month

You know those genius travel ideas you blurt out after a couple cocktails, half-joking — and then actually follow through with? This was one of those.

30 days. 0 hotels. Nothing but overnight buses.

From Morocco’s desert highways to Croatia’s coastlines, I skipped flights, trains, and hostels, opting instead for night buses where my bed was a semi-reclining seat and my neighbors ranged from nuns to chain-smoking backpackers.

Spoiler: I survived. Barely.





📌 Why I Did It

  • To save a ridiculous amount of money on accommodations

  • To maximize my daylight hours in every city

  • To test my sanity and see if I could actually pull it off

Was it glamorous? No.
Did it make for legendary stories? Babe, yes.

🚍 5 Things No One Tells You About Living on Night Buses

1️⃣ You’ll Perfect the Art of Sleeping in Any Position

Crumpled against a window. Hugging your backpack like a lost lover. Legs propped on a stranger’s armrest (sorry, Serbia). You adapt.

Must-have: A Magic Weighted Blanket for when you finally land somewhere with a bed and need to recover from bus zombie mode.

2️⃣ You’ll See the Most Unfiltered, Off-the-Grid Spots

Bus routes go where no tourist brochure dares. Remote villages at 3AM. Dusty roadside diners. Sketchy border crossings with wild views of nowhere.

Hack it: Stay connected with Airalo eSIMs so you can Google “Is this town safe?” at 2AM.

3️⃣ You’ll Save Stupid Amounts of Cash

No hotels = extra money for street food, boat rides, and last-minute concert tickets you find on TicketNetwork. My daily budget dropped so low, my travel app accused me of cheating.

4️⃣ The People-Watching Is Chef’s Kiss

From snoring Italian grandpas to flirtatious students to shady salesmen peddling knockoff Gucci, overnight buses are moving reality shows.

Pro tip: Book last-minute attractions with WayAway while eavesdropping on wild seatmate convos.






5️⃣ You’ll Gain Mad Solo Travel Confidence

Night buses test your patience, resilience, and bladder control. Once you’ve survived a border delay in a bus terminal with one flickering light and no Wi-Fi, nothing fazes you.

Cover your butt: Get VisitorsCoverage travel insurance for those moments when you definitely didn’t read the fine print.

👜 My Overnight Bus Survival Kit

✔️ Airalo for reliable, cheap data in every country
✔️
Magic Weighted Blanket to recharge when I finally hit a hotel
✔️
Compensair in case a flight ever replaced a bus and got delayed
✔️
Aviasales for those “I need a flight out of here NOW” emergencies
✔️
Hotellook for last-minute hotels when I called a bus-free night

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✨ Final Word: Would I Do It Again?

Maybe… after a chiropractor appointment and three consecutive naps.

But if you ever get the itch to trade hotel sheets for bus seats, do it.
You’ll come back broke, exhausted, and with stories worth retelling for the rest of your life.

Want a Pinterest pin idea bundle for this one too, babe? Say the word and I’ll serve you 25 caption-ready ideas for this bus-fueled saga. 🚍🔥