by cody18

Created on: March 26, 2007   Last Updated: August 28, 2009

When traveling with a companion it is important to find one that is compatible. There is nothing worse then finding out on day two (or even day one) of your vacation that you can not stand the person you are now stuck with in some strange place with for a week.

It is impossible to pick a "perfect" traveling partner. You are always going to have differences of opinions whether it be over which tourist trap to hit or what restaurant to dine at. But pick someone that is willing to compromise and that you will be willing to compromise for. Different interests are not always a sign of incompatibility. One of my best friends and traveling companions has quite a different idea of what is fun. But I know that she will come with me to some of the things I want to do that she does not, so therefore I am willing to do stuff she likes that I do not think sounds interesting. And sometimes I have been really surprised. I would have never picked several of the activities she did, but those were the ones I enjoyed the most, more than the stuff I picked.

You and your traveling partner should be in agreement about the pace of the vacation. If you are someone that always has to be on the go and wants to see everything you possibly can, it is probably better that you do not pair up with someone that just wants to lay at the pool all day. Unless you do not care whether you do everything alone or you plan on having a miserable time fighting over what you are going to do. Vacation means different things to different people so make sure that your traveling companion agrees with you about how much of the trip is going to be spent doing activities and how much is going to be spent relaxing.

Additionally, it is important to pick a traveling companion that is willing to spend as little or as much as you desire to. If you are someone that can only stay in five star hotels do not pair up with someone that wants to spend the trip in motels for $39 a night. You are not a good match. Pick someone that is comfortable spending as much as you and that can afford to do so.

Finally and probably most importantly, when picking a traveling partner pick someone that you have fun with, someone that you can laugh with and have good conversation with. Even if you have someone there with you to do everything with on your vacation and have all the same interests it will be lonely if you do not really enjoy spending time with that person.

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