Traveling to a new place, whether far away or somewhere local, can be one of the most enriching experiences. Doing it with friends makes it all the more memorable. You will spend time with the people you care for, learn about a new culture, and eat unfamiliar, delicious food!
It all sounds like a perfect get-away and, when you plan everything in advance, it can be just that—perfect. But to make a trip perfect, you need to also think about the things that make a trip not-so-perfect.
“Birds of a feather flock together,” as the saying goes. People tend to spend time together with those who have similar interests. Sometimes the adage also rings true for things beyond common interests, such as lifestyles or personality types. Before traveling with others, it’s important to think about what activities or food you will all enjoy. But it’s just as important to think about things that you personally will not enjoy.
What is your travel style? Do you prefer going to music festivals or hanging out in coffee shops? Do you have a phobia of heights? Do you have a food allergy to an ingredient used in a lot of the local cuisine? These are just some basic questions to start off with, but you get the idea. Think about certain activities that you might not be comfortable with and the activities that you must do. Just because you might enjoy going on an extreme hike through the woods does not mean that your friend with hay fever will feel the same way (or vice-versa).
Knowing your travel style is not the final step. Once you know your hard limits or must-dos for traveling, you must then share them with your friends and/or family. If you don’t feel comfortable sharing this information, then you’re already destined to not have a successful trip. You have to be honest and comfortable with the people you’ll be with for the next several days. If you don’t have the courage to share details on how to make you feel most comfortable, I suggest for you to re-think this whole thing out.
Traveling with others can make or break friendships. You need to be one-hundred percent up-front with others on what you expect for this trip or what your boundaries are. If you're not, things are going to be difficult for you and others on this trip. But if you’re cautious and plan with according to everyone's preferences and needs, you will spend less time arguing about where to eat dinner and more time creating everlasting memories. And trust me, those memories will be everlasting.
Unless you have an allergy or some kind of health issue (think social anxiety), try to be open to new experiences. The whole point of traveling is to leave the familiar. You’re already going to be traveling with people close to you so try and step out of your comfort zone!
But also never feel pressured to do something you’re not ready for. Maybe one of your friends loves zip lines and you’re not too keen on heights. Offer to watch everyone’s stuff and people watch while everyone else dangles hundreds of feet in the air! There’s always a way to compromise and still have your perfect traveling experience.