This should have been about How to Travel with other People, but it is about Traveling with Other People – the Dont’s and the Dont’s
Contents
- 1 This should have been about How to Travel with other People, but it is about Traveling with Other People – the Dont’s and the Dont’s
- 2 More Examples to Scare you or scar you
- 3 Do we not play well with other people?
- 4 Traveling with family
- 5 Traveling with other people’s children
- 6 If you do travel with other people
- 7 How to travel with other people without killing them?
- 8 Am I saying don’t travel with other people?
Traveling with Other People, is fraught with issues.We have 6 friends, 3 couples actually, who recently returned from traveling around Spain together. We have now heard 6 very different versions of this trip and not one of them is good. One was so tight with money that she calculated what each person had to drink each night and declared that as she only drank lemonade she shouldn’t pay as much as the others. One of the group pointed out that in fact, the lemonade cost more than a glass of beer or a glass of wine and yes, she should pay her way and that cost was more.
This started a long period of disquiet we are led to believe. One refused to go out for dinner with the group instead making her husband go back to their accommodation rather than eat at a local taverna where I am told that the meals were about $5. This was noted and not appreciated, particularly by the husband who wanted to stay at the taverna and have a drink or 10. 
More Examples to Scare you or scar you
Another refused to get in the car each morning until she had done a power walk, making the group and hour late to travel to their next destination. This is just don’t get. Surely part of travel is walking around and seeing the sights rather than an exercise regimen. Travel is a natural exercise activity in my opinion. We clock up a huge amount of steps when we travel and that justifies eating a lot, but also allows us to see so much more.
The itinerary that the ‘leader’ had organized involved travel every day in a mini van to a new destination forcing a situation where for most of every day they were ensconced in the same metal contraption. Why none of these seemingly intelligent people had not looked at this before going has me beat.
[clickToTweet tweet=”Traveling is about getting to know a place not seeing every place on the map to say that you have. #travel #NgTradar ” quote=”Traveling is about getting to know a place not seeing every place on the map to say that you have.”]
One complained that one never shut up the whole time and knowing her this would be true. Another had no interest in seeing how locals lived and preferred staying in the accommodation to read a book, or reading the book as they traveled rather than looking out the window at the environment. They had asked us to go. It took us a nanosecond to say no.
Do we not play well with other people?
Well, probably no we don’t. We can travel together without killing one another ..just, possibly because we have that love thing happening and we actually are besties. Accommodating other peoples peculiarities, and nuances would stretch a friendship as it has with our 6 friends. Instead of us having them all over for dinner we now have to have them over separately, if at all, as their friendship at this stage is kaput. I have no doubt that with time, many of these grievances will be forgotten, but at this stage it is total hostility.
We are in a position where we cannot take any sides and just listen in amusement and, some type of superior stance in that we were clever enough or selfish enough not to go traveling with other people on this trip to hell.
Traveling with family
Well this one is in a league of its own. I like my family – most of the time, but not necessarily when we have to travel together. Some are easier than others, when they go off and do their own thing and we do ours, and then just have meet ups. This works. Others who want to do absolutely everything together, probably find that we are unavailable now for said travels. I suppose with family you don’t have to try and sugar coat your frustration as you do with friends. It is sometimes better to play the unavailable card than to tell them what you think. We each have different interests and while it is nice to try to accommodate others interests, it is also nice not to.
Traveling with other people’s children
No.
If you do travel with other people
Some people however cannot go away by themselves or as a couple and need others to be there. This is just how it is for some people and while the above example is not good; for another group of friends it works ok. Note the ok, not good and certainly not great. I asked my friend who makes these ok group trips why she can make it work. Her advice came down to: – compromise – shut your mouth – go for lots and lots of solo walks – drink excessively.
How to travel with other people without killing them?
Do not commit to going away until you know exactly what the itinerary is. My above friends, now hate one another. They were on the road for 5 hours every day travelling to a new place and then having an over night stop before getting back on the mini bus for the next stage. They did this for 4 weeks. In my opinion if you are covering that much territory then they are seeing nothing. Work out before how to organize the finances. I would be appointing someone as treasurer and everyone giving that person the money to allocate to petrol, etc. When the treasurer needs more money, everyone should put in the same amount – beer or lemonade aside. Go your separate ways in the daytime and meet up at night to share these experiences. Even Gordy and I do this.
Sort out any issues before they fester. Be honest and up front and don’t be petty. Don’t bitch about others – allegiances tend to change when you are way, and then change again…again.
Am I saying don’t travel with other people?
Probably yes. Yes, it is nice to have different people to talk to; we call them local people rather than friends from back home. Do you want to jeopardize a long standing friendship if it doesn’t work out? Our friends have. Traveling with Other People is very difficult; don’t think otherwise. Maybe you can shed some light on what you think and how you think it CAN work out. At the moment, we have 6 friends who don’t like one another anymore.
That’s really too bad about those friends, and I hope (realizing that this post is a year old) that it’s all healed over now. In all honesty, the only reason why I put up with my children as travel partners is because they are MY children. Any adult who was that demanding and had such differing travel desires would have been given the boot long ago. I think this is why cruise lines are popular for group travel. People can somewhat do their own thing yet re-connect in the evenings so you still feel like you’re traveling together. This has worked well when I’ve traveled with my own parents. I like museums and culture while my mom likes to shop.
I know that it is different with your own children. It is hard when people are on such different pages and don’t compromise.
I’ve traveled all over the world with my husband and three children from the time they were infants. Now my husband has died and my sons are adults and one has a wife. That has changed the dynamic. We still like to meet up in unknown places, and we take turns being the organizer and take turns deciding where to eat, what to see etc. it’s still fun.
Recently, I tried traveling with a friend of 20 years and did not have a happy result. She had to be in charge, had to make all of the decisions. First she wanted me out of the apartment so she could have some privacy. Took a hike, was just settled next to a lake for some meditation when she texted me to get back so she could go to lunch. Can’t give anymore examples, or my keyboard will catch on fire. It ruined our friendship and ultimately because of that broke up our friend group.
I agree you must be selective about travel partners!
Best way to find out a persons true character is to travel with them. I am sorry it was so awful but some people are self centred. Let her go and find a new friend.
Have you ever seen the movie ‘Two for the Road’ with Albert Finney and Audrey Hepburn? There are some great scenes in it involving travelling with another couple and their child. Albert Finney finally announces -‘We travel alone or not at all’.
I will need to watch this Lyn, just to reinforce my thoughts.
So true! How often you get caught with somebody else who just don’t get it. There is a saying: “To go along you must get along”. A little bit less of selfishness, a little bit more interest in other people, to be more understanding and cooperative- that sometimes all what is needed. I enjoyed your post immensely; so many things on travelling together are never said and can ruin your vacation. Thanks.
I agree, it is never easy. I tend to avoid traveling with other people to save the friendship.
What an interesting post, and bummer for your friends! My husband and I are compatible travel partners in that we too are besties and can handle endlessly long stretches of time together. I don’t think I could travel as well with anyone else I know! Oddly enough we have met lots of people on our travels, strangers turned friends, who we’ve spent days or even weeks traveling with, however there are very few good friends of ours I can imagine doing the same with.
We also can meet people when we travel and enjoy their company a lot. Seems to be that hidden rule, don’t travel with friends and family unless you are the exception to the norm.
I recently went on a trip with a group of my boyfriend’s coworkers. What a horrible idea. They hadn’t planned anything so when we got there, the tours they wanted were booked. The first place we ate at was a Chile’s. And they were pretty much drunk the entire week. It took all of my energy not to leave and do my own thing. It was a good reminder of why I only travel solo or with a significant other.
That is awful. Lesson learned I think, you poor things
And this is why I don’t travel with other people!! I mean, taking a weekend vacation to the beach with my two best friends is one thing but I can’t think of anyone I’d travel extensively with. My best friend and I get along well enough that I could probably go somewhere with her because we’re open and honest enough about needing time to do our own thing but even then I’m not sure I’d risk it!
Keep your friends and your travels separate is my advice.
I just recently finished a trip with my family and it was a challenge to say the least. I’ve decided against going on a major trip with a group. It’s hard enough with just my husband and myself…. UGH
I hear you. It is something that has to be carefully considered. It seems to be the exception to the rule if it actually works.
LOVE this post!! It is so true! Macrae and I are good to travel together, like you said probably because of the love thing and being best friends. We’ve also had LOTS of practice doing it and working out the quirks. Others? Not so much! Had to laugh at the “No.” for travelling with other people’s children. Just ‘No.’
We did have one amazing vacation with his family to Cuba but I believe it worked out because every couple or family unit was happy to do their own thing and come together for meals, or not, or go exploring, or not, and meet up whenever. As long as we saw each other at some point in the day, everyone was happy. It was also all-inclusive so money wasn’t an issue. Not to say there weren’t issues.
My trip with 2 friends when I was single was not at all a pleasant experience and ended any future thoughts of planning trips with others where I would be expected to spend my time devoted to the group. I woke up the first morning in a Las Vegas hotel room, both friends MIA, thinking I shouldn’t have agreed on the trip and I still had a week left! At the end of the trip I was emotionally exhausted, had to spend hours convincing my friends to get to the airport and then had to worry about whether the airline would even let them board the plane!
Stick with Macrae. You and I are luckier than many other people. I keep getting asked for girls weekends away. I keep saying no. I just don’t think it could work and I don’t travel without Gordon. Even then we do fight but it still does work out well for us. It is probably than ‘love thing’.
Traveling can really test relationships! I made an article before compiling the various experiences of travelers wherein some trips have either “make” or “break” the relationship. Anyway, it’s a really tricky thing — but somehow very helpful for determining your life/travel partner. For friends, there really are just some people that we can never get along with when in a foreign land.
I road tested Gordon on a trip overseas before I would allow him to marry me 🙂
“Hell is other people” – I can’t remember who said this but it often proves true, especially during travel. I’m happy to let my friends keep being my friends and travel without them.
Jean Paul Satre said Hell is other people. I agree, keep friends and family separate when traveling though I did have a good experience on a ski weekend recently.
This article made me laugh. Our families joined us for 3 weeks here in Europe this summer. It was amazing to have them with us and I loved spending time with them, but traveling with family is HARD! It was my mom and step-dad as well as my mother-in-law. That is just way too many parents. A few more days and my husband may have had a nervous breakdown. The good thing was my husband and I got to escape several times for dinner, drinks or walks while the parents stayed with the kids.
OMG – you deserve a medal. I think this would be the hardest situation. At least you can get a good story out of it.
Traveling with people really means adjusting to each other. Sometimes, you click well with this person back home but while traveling, you end up wanting to “kill each other’. It is important that each of you respect travel styles and give each other breathing space. I’m lucky I found a travel partner who at least complements my travel style.
So true, traveling with other people can be difficult. While you might be the best of friends at home, on the road is a different matter. I got lucky with Gordon, though trust me, we still fight.
I agree, it is very difficult to find a good travel companion/ I have been on over 30 trips with my best friend, but he is the only one I would travel with regularly. And even with him, I wouldn’t go everywhere with. I find that there are types of friends/travel companions for every trip. If I want to splurge, he is my best bet. If I want a beachy relaxing getaway, a girlfriend of mine is good. If I want crazy adventure there is a friend who likes to venture into the unknown. For crazy destinations (of which I do a lot – Djibouti, Sudan, Pakistan, North Korea…) my best friend wins. I often reflect on what makes a good travel companion and a tight friendship may not be the only requirement. A good friend may not be someone you can spend 24h with and go through the tense situations travel often brings. You need someone who is well-traveled, respectful (nothing worse than a rude companion!) and, above all, patient! Tolerance and a positive attitude are key. The worse friends are those who, I love to bits, but complain all the time, are dependent, can’t make their minds up, take forever to get ready and are lazy. When I go on trips with friends I know are not the best travelers, I take the trip as “loss” – ie I chill, kick back and enjoy the company rather than the sights. I am very easy going and have a motto not to ever get angry when on holidays so it takes a lot to piss me off. Lastly, if a trip is really important and I want to do it in a certain way, I travel alone
Wow, we are so similar. Get ready quickly, know what you want and don’t want. Be totally respectful to everyone you meet, regardless and don’t bitch about money. Gordon and I do travel well together but we do have our issues, but I wouldn’t want to travel with anyone else. In saying that, we went away on a 3 day ski trip with friends last week, and because we gave one another space, it was fantastic.
Great post, thanks for linking with The Weekly Postcard! We always travel with our friends and it’s incredibly frustrating at times, especially when you have to wait for others, but the end of the day, we still like each other, even if we have to split up and do our own things, without killing each other 🙂
LOL, you are a braver person than I am. I am happy that you still like one another.
I’ve been thinking about this a lot because we just finished year two of travelling with another family and one of the grandparents from their family. Last year was 4 days, this year was 10! but it was awesome.
I think that if you can find people who you can travel well with, it can be such a joy. For us it was 3 kids total and 5 adults. The key for us was doing our own thing some times, not feeling bad about waiting or not waiting on the others and having our own cars and own hotel rooms (some times).
I am pleased so it worked so well for you, though I suspect that you are very lucky.
I have travelled with friends a couple of times, and fortunately have come back friends.
The trick be honest about what you do and don’t want to do and remember you are not glued to the hip. It is great to go off on your own and explore and then come back to dinner or a drink together at the end of the day and tell each other what you discovered.
I agree, as long as people don’t think that they have to do everything together it just might be able to work. It is not easy though.
I’ve had some great group travel experiences with a walking tour company that takes a group of 30 at a time. I traveled with them to Turkey and to Spain, and both times were relaxing and enjoyable. A great group leader knows how to set expectations and keep everyone in line. That said, I paid the single supplement as a roommate could have turned the whole experience the other way around.
I am pleased that it worked out so well. Obviously the group leader was skilled in people management.
LOL! Always a challenge to travel with anyone outside your significant other. If you find friends you can travel with you’re seemingly among the minority.
I think so Sue. We will travel with people one day…maybe
Oh dear. The only time we’ve traveled with friends or family has been on a cruise which I think is perhaps the perfect set up for joint travel. During the day we would all do our own thing and we would then enjoy dinner together and discuss the day’s activities. No one has to cook—or do other household chores. Money is not an issue because cruises tend to be all inclusive except for alcohol—again, each can buy their own. When I traveled alone with my then 20 year old son on a 5 day trip in Spain, we would separate in museums so each could go at their own pace. We had dinner together and I was fine if he went out after I was content to stay in for the night. Money wasn’t an issue. Moms always pay. My husband of 32 years and I traveled together before we decided to get married. I suspect that the fact that we traveled well together was one of the reasons he won my heart.
I will jump straight to your final point. I think that a great way to gauge your compatibility is to travel together 1st. Gordona and I did before we decided to get married. We get along very well when we travel – most of the time. Of course we have our spats but then that is normal.
I can think of only a handful of people I’d travel with and there would definitely need to be some rules to be discussed before booking.
Me too. Again, because it is a sensitive discussion, bring my post out and use it as a starter to make sure everything is sorted out, even the fact that their will be serendipitous moments, and that all should be on board to accept variations to routines,
You’re right that travel can test friendships by taking people way out of their comfort zones and presenting unfamiliar as well as stressful situations. On the other hand, your ideas of being upfront in the beginning, especially about finances and planning the itinerary, are key to making this type of travel work. We’ve been lucky enough to travel with several different couples for SHORT periods of times and have found that by factoring in downtime as well as separate activities we’ve actually had a terrific time.
I think that as uncomfortable as those initial conversations may be, they have to be had. Maybe take my post along as a conversation starter. Everyone will say, we would never be like that; they will but just maybe they will remember and think, we don’t want to be like Paula’s awful friends 🙂
Mark Twain had it right. I think it might work better if your group was part of a tour group, where there are more rules and even more people to consider.
I am sorry, but I think that would have been even worse. I hope I would be wrong 🙂
I pretty much stick with solo travel, hence my blog name, but I have enjoyed a couple of trips with others. Short trips – less than a week. On the other hand, I have traveled with a friend that I thought I knew very well and the trip ended the friendship – c’est la vie!
It is so hard to call isn’t it. You think you know some one well, but when you travel it does bring out a different side. Sometimes not so good.
We are right now traveling with my husband’s daughter and her husband and theitr two children. I decided simply to go along with everything they had planned. I have been doing all the planning for our trips and this simply gave me the vacation I needed from that. Thanks for additional the tips here!
It is sometimes easier to just go with the flow rather than making yourself unhappy. Tough, but sometimes worth it.
Travelling together can be a strain on the best friendship, so always consider wisely and be prepared for the worst. I wonder how these three couples got together and how much they talked about their ideal travel experience before taking the next step – the booking…
It is funny but we all taught together for years. They knew one another very well. Travel however, does bring out a different side of people, even those you think that you know best.
We’re off to travel with friends next week for 8 days – but we’re very compatible and numerous trips have in the past have been a great success. The trip described sounds awful. Wonder if they read your blog – and if they’ll see themselves in it??
When I read it to Gordon he groaned. It is patently obvious who it is about. Bet if they read it they can gang up on me instead and then become friends with one another ..again.
We have travelled with friends but are very careful about who those friends are. It takes a lot of open communication and the right personalities. I loved the drink excessively tip! 🙂
Sue, I think that the only way anyone would have got through that experience, would have been to take anything to deaden the pain 🙂
Hi Paula,
In a fantastic coincidence, I traveled to Spain last year with 5 other people — 3 couples. I understand the challenges! Thankfully though, we are all still friends. “Everyone travels differently” was my mantra every day of that trip, in my attempt to understand the issues. I think the others felt the same and worked hard to be flexible.
Parts of the trip were compromised beyond my liking, but other times added greatly to our enjoyment. Would I do it again? Yes with one of the couples, No with the other!
Thanks for a provocative post!
Josie
You had me worried there Josie when I thought you might be one of my friends. I think I don’t want to have to work hard with others, though it will happen eventually. I hope I can compromise and let some things go.
Ha! Your description was humorous and had me laughing, but I’m sure for the participants it is no laughing matter. Travel with big extended family groups is an idea that sounds good, but is fraught with hazards, too. Issues have a way of magnifying in closed quarters or when people are out of their element. I tend to think if you’re not going to be comfortable (or be ready to kill someone) on a bus with a tour group for days on end, you probably don’t want to replicate that experience with people you actually want to stay friends with.
I agree Betsy. If you wish to remain friends, don’t travel with them. It is not worth it, in case it doesn’t work out. If any of my family are reading this, we are not going on holidays with you. We like you too much (most of the time) to ruin things.
Oh my, that’s quite a story. I’ve travelled quite a bit with another couple and we have developed a rhythm to do our own things and enjoy eating together at the end of the day. I can’t imagine that your group of 6 didn’t break off and do different things that interested each of them. I think it depends on the group-be it family, couples or girlfriends. I’ve had good and bad experiences with both.
Thanks Alison. I think it takes a lot of effort and understanding to travel with others. Maybe I am too impatient now.
Oh dear, oh dear! Sounds like you made a wise decision!! Do these ‘friends’ know that you have this blog, Paula? Are you still friends with them all yourselves? It strikes me as desparately naiive to think they would all get on and I can’t help but think there must have been ‘issues’ before they even left… I mean, who moans about one drink being more expensive than another when you’re with friends??!
Paul, I think that if any of them read it, they will know instantly that I travel shamed them and you know what, they should be ashamed.
Never understood why people try this without at least testing the water first. Just assuming that everything will be fine is really silly – and there’s no easy escape. Perhaps posts like yours will go some way to helping people from screwing this up in the future 🙂
I totally agree. It only takes a weekend to find out if it will or won’t work. This changed friendships forever.
Can’t believe they spent all that time every day driving for 4 weeks – completely nuts! Do your friends read your blog though? Have they read this? And are they still your friends if they have?
No my friends don’t read it (bastards) but it so obvious who I wrote about. I guess that if they did, then they all might become friends again through commonly disliking me.
I think travel with friends can be tricky – we all have different aspirations for a trip, our mantra is that we work hard to play hard and so just get on with things whatever the cost, it would be tricky to travel for more than a couple of days with others not like this. Sporting activities also make it hard as we all compete. We had a lovely few days of honeymoon in South Africa with 4 other friends and this worked really well – but we were all 6 very chilled and with some lovely wine to relax with, even more so!
I agree, people work hard and need to be able to enjoy this time. I am so pleased that it worked out for you. I think this might be one of those rarities.
oh no oh no oh no!!! yup, I totally see this happening, and nope I’d never do it! Thanks for sharing it with us for our amusement though 😉
LOL, this has been such a popular post and the consensus it – don’t 🙂
What a great post Paula, so much truth in your words. We have travelled successfully with a couple several times, but we know them very well and have been friends for a number of years. We have very similar tastes and don’t live in each other’s pockets whilst away. We make our wishlist and the things in common we do together and the others we do separate. Ends up we often spend our day apart and get together for the evening or vise versa. The key is we know each other really well and don’t have a problem doing separate things.
Thanks Lyn, it is good to know that it ‘can’ work.
Hi Paula, thanks for sharing this, very interesting post! Totally agree that traveling with other people can be challenging! Such a pity that your friends dont have great memories of Spain. I guess, they should come back on their own and give my country another opportunity 🙂
Hopefully, you can have all over for dinner soon. Cheers!
Thanks Ani, I think that Spain needs to be revisited by each of them. I’m a great believer in time being a healer and soon maybe they will see the funny side or read what I have written and realise they we selfish and silly, then they can all gang up and hate me 🙂
Haha…4 weeks in a car with people with different ideas of what travel should be? A recipe for disaster! There are only a couple of people in this world that I know I could travel with….and after learning the hard way about this (thankfully, it was only a couple of days, not 4 weeks!) I’ve learned that my travel style doesn’t go along with everyone else’s, and that’s fine by me! 🙂 Wow. Glad you weren’t involved with this directly!
Us too Lauren, someone would have been badly hurt ..by me
Agree! I find it very difficult to travel with other people, even if they are very good friends. I need lots of time on my own to “absorbe” everything I see and to have some quiet me-time!
Me too, it is hard enough traveling as a couple and ensured we each get that “me” time without worrying about others as well.
I would have either been committed or committed suicide by day 3 (probably day 2)! What were they thinking? The last time I traveled any length of time with anyone was in 2007. Believe it or not, we are still friends. However, the only way I would ever travel with her again is if we went to a resort and beached it…NO Sightseeing. I prefer to meet up with friends when I’m traveling for a day or a few, but never an entire trip.
Yep Nancie, that about domes up our feelings. They are still disgruntled to say the least.
I did this once. Never again. We asked the people we were traveling with to plan their own entertainment, since we have VASTLY different ideas of what is fun to do while in a foreign country. When it came time to split on our separate plans, we were accused of abandoning our traveling companions, who insisted they had nothing to do on their own. THIS WAS THE PLAN!! We asked them if they wanted to come with us, but they declined, saying our plan was boring, but still got mad when we left. 🙁
I hear you. This is why we choose not to go with people, particulalry if we like them
Really enjoyed reading this post! Once more I have a proof that travelling with people is not something you can enjoy unless you know your travel mates very very well and have discussed everything in the smallest detail before travelling. However even long term friendship can go kaput while travelling togehter. It did happen to me once and since then I only dread thinking about it. In that case it was a very complicated story, finding out about my travel partern addiction and psychic issues I was not aware of. A real nightmare! Thanks for sharing this story! 🙂
It is amazing how many people have horror stories and not one response to date that you should travel with others.
Paula, This may be your best post yet…so true…on all accounts. Jim and I have a couple that we travel with, in fact, to 26 countries, but that is an unusual situation. We are very lucky!
I had just said that I hadn’t received one positive comment about traveling with others. I am pleased that yours does work out. I do think that you are in the minority. Paula
You wrote what I’ve thought so many times! I have friends that I love, but they are the worst traveling partners simply because we don’t have similar styles. However, I have other friends I love to travel with and we always end up with lots of stories. One strategy that has worked with me is to take a short (1 or 2 night) trip with someone first and notice their patterns before committing to a longer trip. I also make sure they know I’ll need time by myself. That way, I can explore and see things at my own pace, but get to meet them for dinner and drinks later.
Totally agree, you need to road test and potential traveling partner 1st. Then, as you have done make your parameters known very clearly in advance. Thanks for the great comment.
What fantastic advice.
I agree 100%. Travel is about experiencing the culture and the locals. Little spats can ruin friendships.
So when are we going on a holiday together?
Just joking!
WRT family. Me and the missus are going on a cruise with ten direct relatives and six friends. I’ll let you know how it pans out.
LOL, Dan. Make sure to set the parameters with everyone 1st with giving one another space. Experiencing culture is paramount to anything. Us going on holidays together? Ain’t gonna happen. Like you too much to have to kill you.
Sadly, travelling with friends or family truly can be tricky, and can bring out the worst in everyone! A good rule of thumb for splitting the bill is to have the drinks on a separate/individual tab altogether. Glad you posted this sage advice =)
Thanks, it is an unfortunate reality that traveling with other people does not always work – make that rarely 🙂
Oh, dear, that sounds like a messy situation! Over the years we’ve had various friends and couples try to get us to travel with them. It’s yet to happen, primarily because we already know that their travel style is different than ours. Our idea of traveling does not involve getting trashed in a foreign country! We don’t want to waste our precious PTO being hungover and too sick to see anything. We can do that in the states. 😛 That being said, we will be visiting a new city this spring with German friends of ours, but as they travel extensively, their budget and travel style are similar to ours, and they’re kindred spirits in general, I have no qualms or trepidations about this future weekend trip with them.
So so true, there is plenty of time at home to do other things. Having a weekend getaway to test the waters is always a good idea. Pls share with us what happens. Good luck 🙂
Travel can really test any relationship. People need to understand their own pace, interests, budget and discuss it with others in their group before they leave on their trip. Often people don’t even think about these things until they are at their destination, and then it’s a bit too late. At that point I believe the best thing to do is compromise and spend some time apart enjoying the destination your own way.
Agreed, i have no idea why none of them figured out that they would always be in one another’s pockets the whole time.