So I’ve travelled with family, friends and on my own. I find on my own a great way to travel. I can chose what I do, when I do it and I don’t need to consult however I miss the conversations, sneaky observations and spontaneous laughter that occurs with friends.
I have learnt that not all friends make good travel companions. You go from seeing someone a couple of times a week or a month to living with them 24/7. My mother always said ‘you don’t know what is happening behind close doors in a relationship’ and the same can be said for a travel friendship. When you’re with some one all day and all night (if you share a room) then all your foibles and theirs are exposed. This was evident on my first trip to Bali, four girls set out with excited expectation but within days the excitement had faded whilst we tried to keep one girl happy!
So what makes good travel companions? There is no real formula but similar expectations, core values and a sense of humour help. As in life everyone takes on a natural role, leader, planner, decision maker, questioner, moderator and follower come to mind and we move between these roles. The problems will arise if everyone is trying to lead and know one is doing any planning. We’ve all seen this on reality TV shows like ‘survivor’ or ‘amazing race’.
It is like a marriage, good communication is vital as is compromise. But we are human, we get tired, snappy, sad, confused and confrontational. My best travel companion J and I always try to build down time into our trips, that is, days when we chill by the pool, spend time in the room reading alone or just having a massage. We understand that we don’t have to do everything together, especially when we are doing a big trip like 3 months in Europe.
Travel and Life Observations 