There are small but important differences between traveling in a group of friends and traveling in a group of friends when two of the travelers are romantically involved. Couples traveling with groups have to be careful not to create a weird group dynamic and sour the trip for everyone. Here are some handy guidelines to make sure the vacation is enjoyable and comfortable for everyone involved.
Know your peers
This goes for both the couple and the solo friends coming along. As the couple, make sure you gel well in a broader social setting with the people you plan to travel with. This should be a given, but give it some thought. Don’t bring the dude along who your friends kind of hate. In that case, it’s better to keep church and state separate.
As the other travelers, make sure this is a couple you feel comfortable being around. If they’re not the kind of couple that you would go to dinner with as a third wheel, then chances are, you would feel pretty awkward having them around on a week-long vacation.
Keep your bickering to a minimum
Being in a relationship means that you don’t have any qualms about getting into a shouting match over the stupidest little thing before you kiss and make up later. But friendships don’t work the same way; we tend to be a little more reserved with our tantrums around people who don’t regularly see us naked. Couples traveling in groups have to adjust to a more civil dynamic to accommodate everyone else. No one wants to stand around awkwardly in a museum while the two of you go at it, so either learn to defuse your temper or argue in private.
Keep your PDA to a minimum
Couples that are obnoxiously all over each other in public are already kind of embarrassing, but it’s doubly true when you’re trying to have a casual time with friends. If you’re the kind of couple that can’t take their hands off each other, take a trip to Greece and spend the whole time fucking in some villa. Don’t subject other people to your amorous displays. Be adults.
Consider getting your own room
In the same vein, couples traveling in groups should consider booking a separate hotel or Airbnb. It’s always kind of fun and crazy to share a big house with everyone, but if you feel like you might be keeping your friends up at all hours while you fuck in the room next door, then plan ahead and book yourself some privacy. Otherwise, you should be mindful of your friends who maybe don’t want to know what you sound like when you orgasm.
Be considerate of others’ opinions
A weird thing happens with couples on a trip, where their joint opinions meld into a seemingly more important opinion than everyone else’s. But you’re not the parents of the group; you are two individual people in that group who happen to be involved. So you shouldn’t bulldoze everyone else’s opinions and wishes just because you’re a mini-team. Let everyone have their say and choose democratically what to do on your vacation.
Pay for things according to everyone’s agreed-upon method
Getting the check at dinner can be a confusing and awkward experience. When you’re traveling, you get eat out an average of three times a day, and this can be doubly annoying if you’re traveling with a couple. Where a group might split the check five ways, as a couple, you might feel inspired to apply your usual payment habits which fuck up the bill for everyone else. Then you have to split it four ways with one share being a larger percentage, and who wants to do that math? We’re on vacation. So agree on how people will split their share of the bill and avoid being the odd couple out by forcing another method on everyone.
Be present in the group
If you’re going on a group vacation, you should be part of the group. It’s normal to have the occasional aside with your partner. You can even schedule some alone time, but don’t overdo it. If you want to spend the entire time in your own romantic world together, travel as a couple without other people.
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