←→Travel with Partners: Pros and Cons

Posted Thursday, March 1st, 2007 · Permalink

Before setting off on your next adventure there is one question that you will undoubtedly ask yourself: go solo or with others? Both options have their considerations. Let us look at the latter option and discuss some of the pros and cons that I believe are important for you to consider or, at least, be prepared for.

As with every popular decision (traveling with someone is a popular choice), the pros outweigh the cons for most people. That does not mean it’s always easy to find someone to travel with. But in case you need reasons for going with someone, here are a few.

• There is someone to talk to. If you’re traveling to a far-away destination where no-one speaks your language, being able to talk to someone about your experiences will help keep you sane. Even a week alone on the road can be lonely if you can’t share your new experiences.
• It’s cheaper. For some this is more of an issue than for others, but in most parts of the world, traveling solo can be considerably more expensive than traveling with a partner. This is especially so with sharing rooms.
• It’s safer. Generally, traveling with a companion will make you less of a likely target for some of the traveling dangers. There is really little to add to this, but do note the related concern point below.
• It helps your confidence. Traveling is often a boundary-setting experience because you’ doing so many new things that you never thought you could do. Having someone to do these things with will help your confidence and make such times memorable and more enjoyable.

As with all things good there are some bad. These are the things that you might have to consider before you decide to travel with a partner, whether it be a family member, friend, or girl/boyfriend.

• Frustration. When you’re with someone 24/7 for a few weeks, there will undoubtedly be things that will start to annoy you about the other person. If small frustrations develop into large conflicts it could sour-up even the best trip.
• Safety. Although I did note that it is safer to travel with someone, you should be confident that this person is someone you trust. There have been plenty of cases of people that meet strangers on the road and begin traveling together only to find out that the person had malicious intentions. My suggestion for this is to never share rooms with people that you don’t know.
• Flexibility. Traveling with people will cost you certain flexibility. This adds up as the group gets larger. You’ll want to go east, someone else will want to go west. You’ll want to eat here, someone else will want to eat there. You get the idea. This is a major consideration, especially for those more adventurous and daring.

I love traveling with a partner. It makes the trip a lot more fun, but as you can see, there are certainly some things to consider before you make that decision.

Also, if you’re traveling with a boy/girlfriend, check out Rolf Pott’s article on the matter.

Filed under Travel Tips.