Couples Travel Tips

Ask anyone who regularly travels solo why they do, and inevitably one of the things that comes up is that they don’t have to consult with anyone else on their plans – they simply do what they like, when they like. But for those who travel with a significant other, traveling as a couple can give you the opportunity to grow both individually and together – assuming, that is, that you’re willing to compromise.

Traveling with a loved one can be the ultimate test of a relationship, and in some cases it can tell you whether your future adventures will be solo ones while your sweetheart stays home. Traveling as a couple takes work, just as any aspect of being in a relationship takes work, but that doesn’t have to detract from your ability to enjoy your vacation.

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Here are some tips for traveling as a couple.

• Compromise – This is so key to taking a successful trip with another person (significant other or not) it should be some kind of traveling Golden Rule. Your trip is no longer solely yours when you’re on that trip with someone else, and if that means your fourth-most-important thing on your to-do list has to be skipped in favor of the other person’s third-most-important thing, you need to be okay with that. The best course of action is to do the travel planning together and compromise then, rather than being forced to compromise midway through the trip in a far-flung train station.
• Patience – You might be a patient person already, but you might need an extra helping when you’re on a trip with someone else. Maybe it’s not until you’re on your trip that you discover your partner’s idea of good road-trip music is The Doobie Brothers. Maybe you use the excuse of traveling to forgo bathing for a week at a time. There’s a chance you’ll find out things about the person you’re traveling with that you wouldn’t have known until you set off on an adventure together – and if that happens, you’ll need to call upon that extra dose of patience to avoid a major altercation over something minor.
• Agree to Disagree – Traveling with another person doesn’t mean you have to think exactly alike at all times – frankly, it would probably be pretty boring if you did. You won’t agree on every single thing on your vacation, because you don’t at home. But trying to force an agreement while you’re on a trip can be a disaster. You’ve got a limited amount of time to enjoy a holiday, don’t waste it by arguing when one of you wants to go to a museum and the other wants to go shopping. Remember the top tip – compromise – and find a way to make both parties happy. Which leads me to…
• Know When to Say When – You want to visit the museum and your travel companion wants to go shopping, eh? As we said, wasting time arguing which thing to do is silly. If you can’t pick one over the other, don’t try – just split up for an hour or two. Just because you’re on a trip with another person doesn’t mean you need to spend every waking hour together. Divide and conquer! If you have a few different interests, you can both do precisely what you want to do and then meet up again for lunch or dinner to share stories.

photo by TottoBG