Choose Your Travel Partners Carefully
On all of my previous trips I've either traveled alone, or with my cousin Erin (who really, is more like a sister, and my best friend, all rolled into one). On these previous trips I've had a fantastic time, seen amazing sites of both artistic and historic merit, and thoroughly enjoyed immersing myself in the local cultures. Whether I was alone or with Erin, I almost always encountered the "Ugly American Tourist" at one point, and while embarrassed for them, I was always thankful that I was not one of them, and that I was not WITH them.
That changed on one of my last trips.
There was a sizable group of us going, six total. The group included two of my friends from out of state who met up with us in Venice, a good friend from here in town, and two coworkers.
The whole concept of this trip started when the coworkers had told me that if I ever saw a good deal on a trip to Italy, to let them know. Once I found the trip, I booked it for the three of us, and as time progressed, my other travel partners jumped on board.
Considering that my two coworkers had never traveled internationally before, and had never spoken a single word of Italian, one of the first things I did in an attempt to help them to prepare for the trip was to purchase an Italian for Travelers CD and burn copies for each of them. I gave them the discs, and the next day they returned to work and essentially said "We don't need these, we're going to be with you".
This was my first sign that they were not going to be the best travel partners ever.
From there, the two of them continued to be dismissive of every suggestion and piece of advice that I tried to give them. While I didn't think that the three of us would return home the best of buddies, I didn't foresee that I was about to go to Venice and Florence, with the stereotypical "Ugly American Tourists". They complained that the weather was too cold, the food wasn't what they expected (they later admitted that what they were expecting was something like Macaroni Grill or Olive Garden), and they honestly complained that not enough people spoke english. Seriously. I truly wish that I were making all of that up.
All of my other travel partners were a joy to be with the entire time. I would travel with any of them again. The two coworkers, I can not say the same about.
When you're going to be traveling with someone, or with a group, that you've never traveled with before, take a number of factors into consideration.
1 - How open minded they are.
If they are the type who are set in their ways, and have to have a routine and you are not that type, theres some initial basis for friction. If some of you are open for spontaneity and others are not, there will most likely be some disagreements on what to do and when to do it.
2 - How flexible they are.
This is really just a repeat of the tip above, but I can not stress its importance enough. If you're okay when theres a three hour flight delay, but your travel partners are not, everyone is going to get annoyed. They'll be annoyed by the flight delay and you'll be annoyed by their outward annoyance.
3 - Expectations.
If you're going to Italy for the first time with an open mind and n expectations of what things are going to be like, but they're expecting to be dining at Macaroni Grill every meal, they're going to be disappointed that things aren't what they expected them to be and you'll be frustrated by their complaining.
4 - Language.
If your travel partners aren't willing to learn any of the language of the country that you're going to be visiting, thats a big red flag to how flexible they're going to be. So, if you and some friends have been discussing a trip to Brazil, buy a Portuguese language cd and give them a copy. If they're not willing to listen to it and at least learn some basic phrases, that means that they're going to be counting on you to help them with everything from ordering dinner to buying their bus or train tickets. If you're okay with having everyone be dependent upon you, this may work for you. However, that statement does not apply to me. I value independence in travelers and view having to assist people with everything as a burden that prevents me from fully experiencing my trip, and it can create yet another level of annoyance and frustration that is unnecessary if everyone on the trip is willing to take accountability of themselves and their own preparations.
5 - Level of pace.
When people are training for marathons, they're grouped into similar time categories. People who run the 7 minute mile are not grouped together with those who run a 12 minute mile for a reason - some would get shoved and others could get trampled. Use this same philosophy when traveling. I, personally, am very Type B. I like to casually stroll, enjoy the local atmosphere, and take the time to soak in the nuances of my surroundings. Some of my travel partners to Italy were very Type A and wanted to go, go, go, from one attraction to the next. While this pace worked for them because they feel that they were able to see more sites in the limited time we had, it didn't work for me. For me, it disrupted the relaxed nature of my visit, I felt that by rushing through from one site to the next, I would be missing out on the little things that you see when you take the time to slow down. They were complaining that I was too slow while I was enjoying the beauty of the sunset over a canal. It's two different perspectives, neither of which are "wrong", that just create the potential for more conflict.
What about yo? Do you have any travel partner horror stories? Any suggestions on how to select a travel partner?
