Travelling with your partner – 5 lessons learnt

I’ve been travelling with Simon (the moustached husband) for over a decade now. We’ve been all over, from Venice and Iceland to Bali and San Francisco and plenty in between. There are a few things we’ve learnt along the way, that have helped us both survive and really enjoy these trips. 

Nothing tests a relationship like putting some serious stress on it, along with lack of sleep and cramped travel conditions…well, apart from parenthood…..we’re not there yet. Back to the travelling. What are the lessons learnt?

Do it yourself

If you really want to go somewhere or experience something and you’re expecting your partner to magically know and book it…well don’t. Plan it yourself, organise it, go, bringing your partner if they want to do it too!  You don’t always have to travel in a pair, I know plenty of folks that go off on solo trips or off with their friends. The point is, if you’re off somewhere for your birthday and there’s a particular thing you want to do – speak up and organise that shiz – don’t assume your partner has some magic up their sleeve and will know to plan it. You’ll just end up grumpy and annoyed that you missed out and you’ll likely blame your partner. If you organise it, you’ll get to do it – just make sure you actually speak to your partner before booking, just in case they’ve something else planned too.

Stay hydrated and EAT!

Make sure you both eat. I don’t care if someone says they don’t get hangry – they’re lying. I’ve yet to come across a person that isn’t pissy when they’ve gone without food for a long time. They might be putting on a brave face and trying to stay civilised, that does not mean they’re not starving and likely to get grumpy. So bring snacks and water in case…maybe a towel too – that’s a whole other story.

Budget Better

Budget for extra. This is something we’ve been caught out by in the past. Bring on a super tight budget meant we missed the opportunity to eat out and trying local foods or missed out on a particular experience. Budget for extra if you can – if it’s both of you, it’s going to cost more than you expect. Add extra buffer funds.

Take a break

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This is not a Rachel/Ross type of break (yes, that is a ridiculous friends‘ reference. I don’t care).  Take some time apart. If you’re travelling for more than a weekend break, you might want to make sure you have some time to yourself. When we were in Bali I went to regular yoga classes – this gave us both some time to ourselves. You don’t need to be together 24 hours, it might get a bit overwhelming and possibly cause issues. It’s entirely normal.

Compromise

OK, I mentioned making sure to organise your must see things yourself. Something else worth remembering – compromise. This is a relationship staple, however, lack of sleep, food or just being in new and sometimes stressful situations can lead us to be an almighty pain in the rear.  You don’t have to be right, nor do you have to get your way.  Do consider each other when making plans. 

These photos are from our recent trip to San Francisco – Alcatraz in fact.  Expect plenty of San Francisco posts coming up, once I finish working my way through the mountain of photos I took – I may have gotten carried away!

**Simon’s clothes (linked above) are PR samples.  Doesn’t he look fab, I promise he smiles, he was aiming for that modelly look….sort of**