Tips To Travel With Friends And Not Cause Drama

I’ve done quite a bit of traveling with friends over the years. From close friends, to new ones too. It’s always a bit scary to head into a trip when you don’t know the entire group or haven’t traveled as a whole together. From my blogging girlfriends and our #BloggersDoTravel trips we’ve done, we’ve mastered the group dynamic. Then there was my first time traveling with Ali to Provence which I was a bit anxious for but turns out, she’s a fantastic travel partner!

You learn a lot about yourself when you travel. Your pet peeves, your habits, your schedule and preferences. I’m the type of traveler who likes to get out and get going right when I get up. I don’t like to stay out late and know my body needs 8 hours of sleep. Part of traveling with a group is knowing yourself first and what you need to be happy and a fun piece of the travel dynamic.

This took time for me to learn and I noticed on my last trip to Charleston that not only did my friends tolerate my need to go home early, but didn’t give me shit for it finally. I don’t do well the next day if I get zero sleep, or even poor quality 8 hours. I just know myself and know how I’ll feel the next day. That extra drink after dinner at the new bar down the street just isn’t worth it to me. I’d rather be all in the next day and feel my best so that I’m not a bitch to everyone. But here’s the thing, that took time for my friends to learn. And I really should’ve just told them up front years ago instead of letting it happen slowly.

How To Travel With Friends & Get Along

Plan The Trip Together To Get On The Same Page

Planning together allows you to talk out some of the things you want to do. Whether you let them know you really want to see something specific, or that this one restaurant is high on your list, knowing what’s ideal for you to see and do is key. If you’re more go with the flow, that’s fine too! But don’t claim to be “go with the flow” then all of a sudden have a totally different itinerary when you land. Definitely be respectful of the things people are really eager to do and try to figure out what’s SUPER important and make them a priority for everyone.

Share Your Expectations, Needs And Weirdness!

You won’t know your friends as much as you will once you’re 24 hours into the worlds longest travel day, smelling like crap and desperately needing sleep. Yes, I’ve been there, and we survived. But it’s good to try to share the things that may be different than them when they travel ahead of time. Do you need to get a workout in every morning? Do you have to eat breakfast or need your coffee first thing? Or do you prefer to take trains over planes? These are all things that you can chat about while planning to make sure they know you have “weird” habits or things you like to do on vacation. There’s nothing wrong with it, but it’s best to share so your friends know what to expect.

Try To Let Shit Go

Sometimes trips may not go the way you planned. And as much as that sucks, it’s really YOUR perception and reaction that makes the trip what it is. If someone sucks, they suck. Try your best to continue to have a good time and not dwell on things that aren’t going well. A lot of it is probably out of your control so just let it go and move on. Sometimes it may mean a quick conversation while on the trip to get things out and sorted so you can move on. If so, do it. But, a lot of the time, this is just all perception and learning to compromise and tolerate things out of your control.

If You Need Alone Time, TAKE IT

So fun fact about me when I travel, I shut down on day 4. Maybe 5. I need to be alone, I need to not talk. My introverted personality requires me to just recharge and that requires me to do it solo. There’s nothing wrong about this, but I used to think it was me having a bad time, or me starting to get annoyed by my friends. It finally took a few longer trips to realize I just needed to be alone to recharge. Whether it was sitting at the pool solo for a few hours, going for a walk and sitting at a cafe doing a bit of work, or even just taking a nap. For me, I have to be alone every few days and just recharge. It lets me be a better travel buddy and makes my experience traveling that much better.

Be A Good Compromiser

Traveling as a group isn’t ALL about you. Remember that you’re there with someone else who’s looking to have a great experience and create new memories. There are probably times they think you’re being difficult, and vice versa. So give your friends some grace and try to just go with the flow and compromise when you can. The entire trip can’t be all about you. If it was, it would be a solo trip. Half the fun of traveling with people is pushing you outside your comfort zone. So that weird activity Sheryl wants to do while on vacation may turn out to be the best experience you have the whole time.

Download The Splitwise App To Make Picking Up The Tab A Breeze

I first tried the Splitwise app when we went to Coachella a few years ago. Ever since then, I SWEAR by it when I’m on a group trip. It makes splitting up the check at the end of the night, sharing hotels and Ubers a total breeze. There’s no “how much do I owe you” or “who ordered this” when you’re out. At the end of the meal, you can just grab the check and no one even has to discuss it.

The way it works is you start a group “tab” and you can split things accordingly. Let’s give Charleston as an example. So if you have all 4 friends on it and you split something 4 ways, you can split it equally like the hotel or the Uber’s to and from the airport. But if let’s say Shelby and I went out for drinks and I picked up the tab, I can just split it equally (or any $ or % amount you want) with JUST her. You can upload receipts, take photos, add notes and then at the end of the trip it shows who owes who what. You just pay out via Venmo or PayPal to settle up whatever balance you have with each person at the end. Done and done! It has made traveling with groups a TOTAL game changer in my opinion.