Top tips for travel with friends

Trips taken with friends are some of the most memorable. You'll never forget the incredible experiences shared with someone you're comfortable with and know well, all the laughter, and even the mishaps. And there will almost certainly be at least a few mishaps — that's all part of the adventure!

Travel with friends isn't always picture-perfect, however, especially the first few times. Different schedules, habits, budgets, and preferences all pose unique challenges that can quickly turn a fun trip into one you'd rather forget all about. Fortunately, a bit of thoughtfulness and planning can help you avoid many of the common frustrations associated with friends travel — and keep your friendship intact, too.

From the moment you decide you're taking a friend's travel trip, there are ways to ensure it runs smoothly.

Plan your trip ahead

Whether your trip involves two people or a large group, the key to successful travel with friends is that everyone is on the same page. Even if a couple of people are willing to completely go with the flow and don’t want to be responsible for any of the planning, it’s a good idea to have a planning meeting.

During the meeting, encourage everyone to give feedback on their must-do activities. Is there a specific hiking trail one of your travelling buddies wants to do? Maybe one friend is all about the food. Knowing everyone’s interests and priorities from the outset will make itinerary planning much easier and ensures that everyone has a say.

Along the same lines, establishing everyone’s individual budgets and coming up with one main budgeting strategy for travelling friends is also crucial. How will things like hotel rooms, gas, and meals be split up? You can come up with workable solutions even if everyone has drastically different budgets, but this is a very, very important aspect from the beginning.

There may be people in your group who prefer to eat dinner out every night, while others want to hit the grocery store and cook. This is an easy compromise, but don’t wait to be surprised or “wing it.” Planning ahead is also an important step because certain aspects of a trip simply cannot be changed or refunded or must be paid in advance, such as flights and specific excursions. Make sure all your travelling buddies are well aware of that so there isn't any tension or uncomfortable conversations.

Set boundaries

Remember that planning meeting you had before your trip? Hopefully everyone discussed trip wants, goals, and deal-breakers. Setting some clear boundaries can go one step further in ensuring everyone has a great time. Some things may seem obvious but are worth stating openly anyway: everyone needs to make a serious effort to be on time for group outings and everyone pitches in equally for spontaneous meals or unexpected curveballs, like damage to the rental car. It may also be a good idea to ask everyone to mention one of their pet peeves, so everyone in the group can be mindful of specifics they may not have known about otherwise.

Communication is key

Open communication is key in every relationship, but especially when friends travel. You're planning everything for multiple people, spending a great deal of time together in close quarters, and experiencing lots of new things in a new place — stressful under even the best conditions. Thankfully, a little honest communication goes a long way and can thwart many issues.

Make sure everyone in your group knows what's going on at every stage, starting from the early planning phase. It's a good idea to implement an "all-or-nothing" policy in which the entire group makes decisions together, eliminating disagreements, passive aggression, and hurt feelings. Along those same lines, make the trip itinerary available to all your travelling buddies. Websites and apps like TripIt and Travefy make this a breeze and go a step further, allowing group members to add notes or ideas and communicate any changes to everyone at once.

Take a break from each other

There is absolutely such a thing as too much togetherness — perhaps especially when it comes to traveling with friends. Even if your travel buddy is your childhood best friend or you're on a friend road trip with your longtime college roommates, it's important to build some alone time into your itinerary.

Think of this as a perfect opportunity to do things that interest each of you individually, but not necessarily everyone. For example, if you're a night owl and others in the group are early risers, everyone else may want to wake up early for a sunrise hike while you sleep in. Another day, you might want to stay up late enjoying an adult beverage or two. You could also designate a specific day when everyone does their own thing, then meets up for dinner. Think of how fun it will be for everyone to swap stories of their day!

Don't be too easy going or too uptight during your vacation

Another key to successful travel with friends is to go with the flow without being too easy going. It's important to keep in mind that this is a getaway for everyone — yourself included. If you're a natural leader (we're looking at you, Type A personalities), make sure to give your travelling buddies opportunities to have their voices heard also. On the flip side, it's important to speak up if you're not getting what you want out of the trip. Circling back to communication being key, a quick conversation can make a world of difference when traveling with friends!

Be present, together

Keep in mind that one of the biggest reasons you decided to travel with friends is because you enjoy their company (and hopefully, vice-versa!). Take this time to actually spend quality time together, laughing, sharing new experiences, and getting to know each other even better. Be mindful of not spending all your downtime scrolling your social media feed and instead, go for a walk together, play a board game, or sit outside and share a bottle of wine. You could also consider adding "no phones at mealtimes" to your personal deal-breaker list. Consider it a bit of a friendly challenge to your travelling buddies!

Ready to hit the road with your pals? Coast Hotels has 35 properties across western Canada and the United States, making it a great choice for your friendly adventures.  Bon voyage!