Learn Hardcore German: Solche Reisen sind gut für unsere Freundschaft, weil wir unterwegs immer zusammenhalten müssen. - Trips like this are good for our friendship because we always have to stick together on the way.

solch- = “such (a), such … like that”
diese = “these”
so (before an adjective) = “so, that, like that” (e.g. so eine Reise = “such a trip / a trip like that”)

Here, solche is:

based on the stem solch-
nominative plural
modifying a feminine plural noun (Reisen)

So:

Singular: so eine Reise / eine solche Reise = “such a trip”
Plural: solche Reisen = “such trips”

Solche sounds a bit more formal or written than so … in some contexts, but both are common.
You could also say:

Solche Reisen sind gut für unsere Freundschaft.
So Reisen sind gut … ❌ (wrong)
So eine Reise ist gut für unsere Freundschaft. ✅ (singular, slightly different meaning)

Why is Reisen capitalized and what is its singular form and gender?

Reisen here is a noun, not the verb.

Singular: die Reise = “the trip / journey”
Plural: die Reisen = “the trips / journeys”
Gender: feminine (die)

All nouns in German are capitalized, so Reise / Reisen must have a capital R.
The verb reisen (“to travel”) is written with a lowercase r:

Wir reisen oft. = “We travel often.” (verb)
Wir machen viele Reisen. = “We take many trips.” (noun)

Why is it sind and not ist?

The verb agrees with the grammatical subject, which is Solche Reisen.

Solche Reisen = plural (“such trips”)
Therefore, you need the 3rd person plural form of sein: sind

Compare:

Solche Reisen sind gut … = “Such trips are good …” ✅
Diese Reise ist gut … = “This trip is good …” ✅
Solche Reisen ist gut … ❌ (subject is plural, verb is singular)

Why is it für unsere Freundschaft and not another case (like dative)?

The preposition für always takes the accusative case in German.

für wen / was? = “for whom / what?” → accusative

So:

unsere Freundschaft here is accusative singular feminine.

You can see this in other examples:

für mich (for me)
für dich (for you)
für den Freund (for the friend, masc. accusative)
für unsere Freundschaft (for our friendship, fem. accusative)

You never use dative after für in standard German.

Why is it unsere Freundschaft and not unser Freundschaft or unserer Freundschaft?

Freundschaft is feminine (die Freundschaft) and here it is in the accusative singular after für.

Possessive unser- must agree in gender, number, and case with the noun:

Feminine accusative singular: unsere

So we get:

für unsere Freundschaft

Other forms for comparison (feminine Freundschaft):

Nominative: unsere Freundschaft ist wichtig.
Accusative: Das ist gut für unsere Freundschaft.
Dative: mit unserer Freundschaft (less common phrase, but grammatically: dative -er)
Genitive: wegen unserer Freundschaft

unser Freundschaft ❌ and unserer Freundschaft ❌ are wrong here because the case is accusative, not nominative or dative/genitive.

Why is there a comma before weil, and why does the verb go to the end in weil wir unterwegs immer zusammenhalten müssen?

Weil is a subordinating conjunction (“because”). In German:

A comma must be placed before a subordinating conjunction that introduces a clause.
In the subordinate clause, the finite verb (the conjugated verb) goes to the end.

So:

Main clause: Solche Reisen sind gut für unsere Freundschaft,
Subordinate clause: weil wir unterwegs immer zusammenhalten müssen.

Within that subordinate clause:

subject: wir
adverbs: unterwegs, immer
verbs at the end: zusammenhalten müssen (see next question for details)

Compare:

Main clause word order: Wir müssen unterwegs immer zusammenhalten.
(finite verb müssen is in 2nd position)
Subordinate clause: …, weil wir unterwegs immer zusammenhalten müssen.
(finite verb müssen goes to the end)

Why do we say zusammenhalten müssen at the end, and not müssen zusammenhalten?

In German subordinate clauses with a modal verb (like müssen) and another verb (here zusammenhalten), the order at the end is:

The infinitive of the main verb: zusammenhalten
Then the finite modal verb: müssen

And the finite verb must be last in the subordinate clause.

So we get:

…, weil wir unterwegs immer zusammenhalten müssen.

In the main clause, the finite verb must be in 2nd position, so the order changes:

Wir müssen unterwegs immer zusammenhalten.

Summary:

Subordinate clause: … zusammenhalten müssen. ✅
Main clause: müssen … zusammenhalten. ✅
…, weil wir unterwegs immer müssen zusammenhalten. ❌ (wrong order)

What does unterwegs mean, and what kind of word is it?

unterwegs is an adverb meaning roughly:

“on the way”
“while traveling”
“on the road”
“out and about”

In this sentence: weil wir unterwegs immer zusammenhalten müssen
= “because we always have to stick together while we are on the road / while we’re traveling.”

unterwegs doesn’t change its form (it’s not declined) and usually stands in the middle field of the sentence, often near other adverbs:

Wir sind unterwegs. = “We are on the way.”
Ich habe ihn unterwegs getroffen. = “I met him on the way.”

What does zusammenhalten mean here, and why is there no uns (no reflexive pronoun)?

zusammenhalten is a separable verb:

halten = hold
zusammen = together
zusammenhalten (as a verb) ≈ “stick together,” “stay united,” “support each other”

With a plural subject like wir, zusammenhalten implies a mutual action, so German does not add a reflexive pronoun:

Wir müssen zusammenhalten. = “We must stick together.”
(not: Wir müssen uns zusammenhalten. ❌)

Compare:

zusammen bleiben = to stay together (more neutral)
zusammenhalten = to stand by each other, support each other, be united (stronger idea of solidarity)

Why is immer (always) placed between unterwegs and zusammenhalten? Could it go somewhere else?

In German, adverbs (like unterwegs, immer) have some flexibility in position, but there are preferences and emphasis differences.

In weil wir unterwegs immer zusammenhalten müssen:

unterwegs = describes the situation (“while on the road”)
immer = frequency (“always”)
zusammenhalten = the action

Placing immer before the verb is very natural:

…, weil wir unterwegs immer zusammenhalten müssen. ✅

Other possible variants (still correct):

…, weil wir immer unterwegs zusammenhalten müssen.
…, weil wir immer zusammen unterwegs halten müssen. (more awkward, and “zusammen” attaches to the verb)

The original version is the most idiomatic and clearly shows:

when: unterwegs
how often: immer
what: zusammenhalten

Could we change the word order to …, weil wir immer unterwegs zusammenhalten müssen? Would that change the meaning?

Yes, you can say:

…, weil wir immer unterwegs zusammenhalten müssen. ✅

The basic meaning stays the same: you always have to stick together while you’re traveling.

Subtle differences:

…, weil wir unterwegs immer zusammenhalten müssen.
→ Slightly more focus that the “always” belongs to “sticking together” in that situation “on the way.”
…, weil wir immer unterwegs zusammenhalten müssen.
→ Slightly more focus that whenever you are “unterwegs,” you have to stick together.

In everyday conversation, both will generally be understood the same way.

What is the difference between weil and denn if I say Solche Reisen sind gut für unsere Freundschaft, weil … vs …, denn …?

Both weil and denn can translate as “because”, but they behave differently in German:

weil = subordinating conjunction
- introduces a subordinate clause
- verb goes to the end
- comma is required
Example:
Solche Reisen sind gut für unsere Freundschaft, weil wir unterwegs immer zusammenhalten müssen.
denn = coordinating conjunction
- joins two main clauses
- word order stays normal (verb in 2nd position)
- comma is also required
Example:
Solche Reisen sind gut für unsere Freundschaft, denn wir müssen unterwegs immer zusammenhalten.

Meaning: almost the same.
Style: denn sounds a bit more written / formal in modern German, and is less common in casual speech than weil.

Could the sentence start with the weil-clause, and how would the word order change?

Yes, you can start with the weil-clause. The subordinate clause itself keeps verb-last order, but the main clause that follows must still have the verb in 2nd position:

Original:
Solche Reisen sind gut für unsere Freundschaft, weil wir unterwegs immer zusammenhalten müssen.
Reordered:
Weil wir unterwegs immer zusammenhalten müssen, sind solche Reisen gut für unsere Freundschaft.

Note in the reordered version:

The whole weil-clause counts as “position 1”.
So in the main clause, sind must come immediately after it (position 2), before solche Reisen.