You’ve picked out your rig, decided on an epic destination, and carefully planned the best route to get there. But who do you travel with? Sometimes you don’t have a choice of traveling companions – a family vacation is typically with your family after all. But for trips with friends or acquaintances, the right travel partner can make all the difference. A great travel buddy can turn a mediocre trip into an amazing one, while a poorly matched travel companion can make you both unhappy. So how to choose the right person to take on road trip adventure? We’ve pulled together a list of important things to keep in mind when choosing a travel partner.
Matching Personality Traits
One of the major things to consider when picking a travel partner is how the other person likes to travel. Are they always up for adventure and ready to explore the next thing? Or are they hoping for a trip where you park your rig next to a lake for the next 4 days and just relax? Finding a travel buddy with the same level of adventure can make things much easier. If you want to hike every trail and they just want to sit and read all day (or vice versa), you may find yourselves butting heads and frustrated that the other person doesn’t want to do what you do.
If you do have different opinions on exploring, setting expectations can make this much easier. On the other hand, if you’re looking for someone to push you outside your comfort zone and urge you to explore, look for that in a travel partner.
Early Riser or Night Owl
Do you love getting up and hitting the road at 7 am to drive to the next place? Or are you here to take it easy and not leave the RV park until the last possible moment before checkout? Choosing a travel partner that has a similar schedule and intent will make things much smoother. You don’t want someone to be frustrated that the other person is never ready to leave on time. Similarly, if someone wants to be up all night while the other person wants to get to bed early, that can cause issues, especially in smaller RVs where there’s not a ton of room or privacy. Talk about sleep schedules and morning travel plans with your partner beforehand so everyone knows what to expect.
Planner or Spontaneous?
Are you looking to plan every detail of the trip beforehand, or do you want to hit the road and see where the wind takes you? And what does your travel partner want to do? If you’re a big planner and they prefer to make last minute decisions, make sure you’re ok with not having their help preparing for the trip (or vice versa). If you’re both big planners, be sure to communicate beforehand on who’s planning what. And if neither of you want to plan, just make sure that someone is in charge of bringing the necessities so you don’t arrive to your campsite and find out you’re missing half your supplies.
Travel Style
Finding someone who has a similar travel style – especially on drive days – can make things much smoother. Are you someone who likes to stop at all the interesting points along the way, or are you an eye on the prize, blast through until you get there and then relax type of traveler? Do you like leaving at a set time or do you prefer to leave whenever you feel like it?
Being on the same page as your travel partner can stop a lot of frustration and arguments. Make sure you’re agreed on how punctual you need to be when getting ready for travel days, and how often you want to stop on the road. This also goes for other travelers you might be caravanning with. Nothing causes more frustration than being ready to hit the road but the people you’re caravanning with aren’t even packed. Getting on the same page beforehand with both travelers in your party and with a larger travel group make things much smoother.
Do You Enjoy Spending Time With Them?
This might sound obvious but traveling with another person means you’re going to be spending a lot of time with them. And being stuck in a small space together can easily turn little issues in big ones. You’ll be spending a lot of time in close quarters, so be sure you actually want to spend a lot of time with the person you’re traveling with.
There are a few other things that can make choosing a travel partner easier. Chat with any potential travel buddies to be clear on where you’re going and what you want to see. Make sure everyone knows of any can’t miss destinations/sites on your trip, and let everyone get a say in planning the trip. You don’t want to end up with resentment or hard feelings because all one person wanted to do was explore cute towns instead everyone went hiking all day.
Set expectations before the trip and consider everyone’s goals when planning destinations. Clear communication can make sure a trip ends up being a great adventure that everyone remembers for a lifetime! Want more ideas? We’ve got a whole blog post on tips for taking a road trip with friends.
Found your travel buddy and are ready to rent a rig? Head over to RVshare.com to find your perfect RV rental.
