Picking your travel buddy can be hard sometimes. The possibilities of things going wrong are endless.
Losing luggage, foodΒ poisoning, missing your flight.
ButΒ nothing is worse than having to spend every second withΒ unfavorableΒ travel companions.
Now, I consider myself someone who has travelled a sufficientΒ amount and with a decent assortmentΒ of people.
Complete strangers? Check
Others? Check
Family? Check
Best friends…Frenemies…Friends with Bennies?? Check, Check and absolutely Check!
From my own personal experiences and surveyingΒ those around me,Β I can confirm, Β finding the right travel companions isΒ a universal struggle for EVERYONE.
Here are theΒ topΒ 11 things to consider andΒ questions to askΒ with yourselfΒ before committing to your potential travel buddies:
1. Tolerance
Ordinarily, people do not have a crazy amount of issues with most other people..well, Β unless you are an ass hole. But when it comes to travelling, keeping in mind how much you can tolerate the people around youΒ is vital if you are going to have any chance in hell of a great trip. Do you really get along? Can you spend days on end with them and still enjoy their company? Β OR Β do you usually have to hang out with them in moderation? Do their weird smells or obnoxiousΒ laughs make your hair curl?
Make sure you can genuinely be around these people for long periods of time without wanting to push them off a cliff because well, you most likely will!
Getting arrested for murder is probably not something you wish toΒ include in your travel itinerary.
2. Objective
If you are trying to go on an awesome adventure trip, butΒ your travel buddy wants to do nothing but lay on the beach and count the sand, you will be in for some trouble. Having similar travel objectives and common interests are important so everyone can get what they want out ofΒ the trip. Is your objectiveΒ snowboarding butΒ everyone else will just be in the lodge drinking? Is your intent action withΒ skydiving and zip-lining butΒ everyone else willΒ just be by the pool?Β I am not saying youΒ have to do everything together..pleaseΒ don’t,Β actually. Β But the overall purposeΒ of the trip needs toΒ be in agreement for everyone to be happy.
Otherwise, I’d say screw it! You’re better off travellingΒ alone.
3. Travel Experience When Picking Your Travel Buddy
Something to keep in mind is the amount of travel experience your potential partners have. Β Do they travel often? Have they ever left the country? Can they live for 2 weeks without seeing their dog?
Being able to travel at ease and in comfortΒ is usually a skill developed after travelling frequently.Β Β Plane rides get easier, culture shock decreases, fears of getting kidnapped rationalize ANDΒ you get more adventurous with the things you put in your mouth!
For newbies that all might be a bit much, causing stress between the new and veterans travellers. It is better to confront this, in the beginning, to see if travelling together would really suit.
4.Β Budgets
When travelling, believe it or not, money matters! Shocking, I know.
Travelling with people withΒ extremely higher budgets than others can cause a lot of tension even with the smallest situations. Β Do you want to stay somewhere nice? Eat fine dining? Or is your budget hostels and fast food?
Those withΒ the extra cash willΒ either have to help pay for theΒ others throughout the entire trip in order to do what theyΒ want, or they willΒ have to compriseΒ what they want to do down to what the others can afford.
Nobody wants the quality of their trip reduced by other’s financial restrictions .. and nobody wants to be that broke ass burden holding others back.
Talk Budgets!
5. Open-Mindedness When Picking Your Travel Buddy
How open or how closed the minds are around you will impact everyone’s attitude. MakeΒ sure your partnersΒ are just as open-minded or as closed-minded as you are toΒ help reduce argument and increase all the amazing opportunities out there to enjoy. Β Do they think they are always right? Will they give you attitude when you want to try something new?
Make sure to pack an open-mind inside your carry onΒ to ensureΒ you and your buddies get the mostΒ out of the experience.
And for those who prefer to leave it at home, just make sure you remind everyone else to do the same.
6. MoodsΒ and Maintenance
This one can be a killer when travelling, especially if you find out too late. Travelling with moody people just might be the worst way to directly affect your mood. Misery loves company, but if you can chooseΒ your company before youΒ travel, don’t take anyone miserable!
Β High maintenance individuals are more likely to carryΒ this moody gene when things aren’t up to par to what they want. And when things don’t go their way… Holy Moly,Β let the tantrums begin!
Β It can be a challenge for both high maintenance people and the low maintenance people to travel togetherΒ so consider how much maintenance you require and pair up accordingly.
7. Travel Buddy Obligations
Keeping in mind relationships and obligations people will be forced to leave at home is important. Will they be on the phone calling their partnerΒ every 5 minutes? Do they need permission to do things? Do you want to go out and party all night? Β Possibly bring someone back for some hanky panky?
Consider if it is small nights in you are after or long withΒ noΒ memory nights out you want.Β Depending on what people have waiting for them back home, everyoneΒ will haveΒ different priorities in this department.
Β It isΒ better to beΒ singing from the same song sheet with this one to be able toΒ avoidΒ ORΒ inviteΒ random people to be dancing in your bed sheets. When picking your travel buddy talk late night fun.
8.Β Food Restrictions
One of the best things about travelling is FOOD!Β ButΒ everyone nowadays seems to have some type of food issue. Do you love eating everything and anything? OR are you Gluten lactose intolerant with a side ofΒ vegan?
People are naturally theΒ most grumpyΒ when hungry and trying to decide on a place to eat inΒ its selfΒ is already a challenge- don’t make life harder on yourself! Knowing if you will be able to eat what you wantΒ or what you can without pissing off who you’re travelling with would be.. you know, nice?
Just some food for thought…
9. Β CulturalΒ Tolerance
Understanding how the individuals you areΒ travelling withΒ view cultures will impact the amount ofΒ pleasure everyone can get out of the place. Do they view different as bad? Are they extremely judgmental?
In the world today, Β many manyΒ racial intolerant people exist and travelling with someone who isn’tΒ a fan of otherΒ cultures will hinder the appreciation and zest ofΒ what all the country might haveΒ to offer.
10.Qualifications
Life is always easier when travelling ifΒ everyone has the right qualifications. And no,Β I am not talking about being a “qualified” party animal, though that could be relevant depending on your #2.
Did you want scuba dive? Is there a lot of driving involved? How about pippin out on a boat?
“Whoopsieee sorry Bob, I don’t have a license.. looks like you will need to do allΒ 15 hours of driving today”
Check to see if everyone has what they need to participate in all the fun. These may seem like smalls ideas but can turn in to big problems if not considered beforehand.
You DON’TΒ want to be Bob.
11. Love
When picking your travel buddy, the most important thing to think about is how much love and admiration you actually have towards those people you pick. Ideally, you want to travel with people that you wholeheartedlyΒ want to share these incredibleΒ experiences with. Someone where you can be like “OH MY GOD – look at that tree” and they will be like “OH MY GOD” back…. andΒ you will share that phenomenalΒ moment forever.
But ifΒ you do not know anyone like that, Β that’s okay.
BecauseΒ you see, Β here is the best thing about travelling…
It doesn’t matter who you travel, holiday, or vacation with, you and them now hold that uniqueΒ connection. And if you pick the right travel companions, you have now formed a new meaningful bond and relationship that willΒ last a lifetime.
<3 Hot Mess
Did I miss some of your concerns with travel partners?
Loved this post and found I could definitely relate on a couple of levels! The graphics really helped convey the message too!
Love it!!
Spot on!
I especially like your last point about building lasting, meaningful connections. In fact, I’d say it’s the most important part and the rest are details.
Bon voyage!
Vincent
That is pretty much spot on. Love it.
Thats great, I love it! I usually travel alone, as I’m an asshole! Also I have see the film Trains Planes and Automobiles, in which Steve Martin is paired with John Candy to great comic effect! I live my life out of films it seems, cos I also loved Forces of Nature, where Sandra Bullock travels with Ben Affleck, confronting many of the situations you mention above.
I can’t really think of any disastrous journeys I have been on with wrong’uns – I once took an unwilling friend on a holiday and made him climb a mountain I wanted to go up, he was fine when we got to the top, but I did have to drag him most of the way. That was just the first day, our transport (a motorbike) cut our trip short by breaking down 200 miles from home, that was when the fun started, lessons were not learned, as a yr or 2 later we both moved to London for a few months of sheer madness! OMG< that was a long time ago, I almost forgot. This guy was lazy and useless, but he was MY FRIEND!! And consequently, liable to be inducted into my great schemes!!! π
Sound advice for relationships in general… maybe the theme of life is a journey…
Oscar
What a great article. I’m currently on a trip to Maui and one of the people is having emotionally labile moment. On the verge of joining a long time friend on another island. Just waiting to see how tomorrow goes and I’m out of here.