After coming back from one month of travelling in the United States, there’s one question that people kept asking us: ‘How do you not kill each other being together 24/7 for one month?’ Apparently there are a lot of horror stories when it comes to friends travelling. Here are our 5 best tips on surviving travelling with a friend.
Communication
The importance of communication can never be overrated. Whether it’s between couples, friends of family, poor communication can cause so many arguments. Especially when travelling with someone, it’s important to keep on talking and never fill in what someone might think or feel. Just ask. Talk. Communicate.
It’s all about planning
Before you set out on your big adventure, have a plan. You know the saying: a good plan is half the work and this is especially true when you’re travelling with someone other than yourself. With a plan (even a rough one), both people are fully aware of what’s happening, when it will be happening and what they can expect. This however doesn’t mean you can’t do anything else than what’s planned, because sometimes it’s the most unexpected things that are the most fun. At least that’s something we’ve found to be true!
Give and Take
It’s not a perfect world, so when you’re travelling with someone else you can’t just do the things you want to do. The person you’re travelling with might have interests you don’t share, but it’s important for both to find a balance here. And you know what? Sometimes doing something you might not have done by yourself can actually be really fun and eye opening. However, it’s recommended to travel with someone that has similar interests as you. I guess that’s one of the reasons why the FashionContainer team works so well together when travelling. We’re both passionate about truly getting to know a city. Which means lots of random walking, discovering hidden alley ways, eating local food and so on.
Give each other space
Let’s be honest, it’s not easy to be around someone 24/7. At some stage, especially when you’re tired, you can get annoyed with each other. Always remember that you both are only human and when you start to feel annoyed, simply take a step back. Let it go, leave the other alone for a while, take a shower, disconnect, and you’ll be just fine again.
Make Rules
This might not be applicable to all travellers, but for us running a business, being friends and travelling all at the same time, setting some rules is a must. E.g. No emails are to be read before 10am, no meetings are to be scheduled before 11am and it’s not allowed to talk about work after 11pm. You could also apply rules on other things of course, e.g. when it concerns your safety. You could for example agree on always going home at the same time after a night out.
Nobody’s perfect
This might be the most important of all, but remember that nobody’s perfect. Forgive easy, laugh about it and move on.
What is your best advice to stay happy when travelling with a friend? Any horror stories?
