The person you share your adventures with can either make or break a trip, leaving you with fantastic memories or a friendship in tatters. This makes finding the perfect travel companion important and it may not be one of the first people that come to mind. Follow these tips and you’ll avoid spending your well-earned time away with the wrong person.
Shared expectations
No matter how well you get on in everyday life, spending a lot of time travelling with another person can lead to all sorts of issues. One of the most vital things to look for in a holiday companion is somebody who wants to get the same thing out of a trip. There is no point going on a beach break with a culture vulture who can’t sit still or an adrenaline-filled sports break with a beach bum. Match the holiday to the interests and you’ll be off to a good start.
Independence
Choosing to travel with someone does not mean you are signing up to spend 24/7 with them and not having some time apart can be disastrous. Choose a companion who has a certain amount of confidence and will be happy to go off and do their own thing occasionally, as well as spending time with you. If your friend has never been to the type of country you are travelling to before, there is a chance they could feel insecure and needy, so address this beforehand if you are the more experienced party.
Similar values
It is amazing how travelling can bring a side out of people that you have never seen before – good and bad. If you share similar values to begin with, this shouldn’t be too much of a shock once you are away. This goes for attitudes to new places and cultures, the pace at which they like to do things and their priorities. Some people require an hour to do their hair each morning, which is only a problem if they are travelling with another person who gets ready in 15 minutes and is itching to leave the hotel.
The same budget
One of the most divisive issues when travelling as it is in life is money and if one companion has significantly more than the other, this can lead to issues. Having totally different budgets will mean being able to do things in opposing ways and can be very inharmonious. More money does not necessarily mean better, but if someone can’t afford to do activities or stay in certain places, this can lead to resentment not just for them, but also the person with a bigger budget. Awkward!
Communication
People who keep everything in can be the worst travel companions, as it is easy for the other friend to believe everything is fine until they suddenly explode. Easy communication between the two of you is important, especially if a quick decision needs to be made on the road. There is not always the time for the niceties of holding back when travelling, so it is good if you can both be comfortable about saying what you really feel to each other.
Don’t jump in at the deep end
Finding a good travel companion can be a slow process and it is best not to book a three-month long multi-centre holiday with them for your first adventure together. Try a weekend away with other people first and see how you get on, then perhaps a week just the two of you. If there are any alarm bells during these trips, consider how the situation might play out over a longer time and in a destination much further away from home.
Nadine is one of the directors of eShores. She left school at 16 and went straight in to a travel agency. Over the 30+ years she has worked in various sectors of the industry and has also worked as an overseas representative in both summer and ski resorts. She has also travelled to many countries from Europe to the Far East and USA.
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4.93 Average 2485 Reviews
AlisonFletcher
Brilliant trip organised by Dave, included Helsinki, Tallin, Vilnius and Riga. (4 different countries) Everything ran smoothly. Dave organised hotels, flights, taxis, ferry and coach. Have used this company a few times and can't recommend highly enough they are fab 😀
Posted 2 days ago
Sandra
As always, Chris was extremely helpful and knowledgeable. He gave me good advice on my travel plans and booked the holiday on my behalf. I've used eshores a number of times, and will continue to do so.
Posted 5 days ago
Harrison
We haven’t been on our trip yet but based purely on the experience of booking the trip we are pleased with the result. It started with a bit of a hiccup as we spoke to a member of staff who never came back to us but when we reached back out again we were placed in the hands of Andy who has helped us book a 2 week trip to India including the golden triangle and then a few days on the beach. Andy was very patient with us with our changes to our tailor made holiday, even when we asked him to explore different areas only to revert back to the original plan. He also recommended moving the holiday back one week which created a saving of over £700 which meant we could upgrade the room for our beach stay in Goa. Andy was also available on weekends if we wanted to speak and regularly picked up the phone as opposed to keeping it to purely email dialogue. Hopefully the holiday will be amazing but based on the booking experience I would recommend eShores if you’re looking to book a tailor made holiday
Posted 5 days ago
Wendy
I spoke to Lynette who was extremely helpful in understanding the trip that myself and my sister in law wanted from Thailand. Myself and my sister in law are both 72years young and we are really looking forward to our trip.
Posted 6 days ago
Dawn
Excellent service from Matt at eShores. So very helpful and nothing was too much trouble. I booked Mya holiday after all his hard work finding me the perfect holiday that I wanted. Superb service and not pushy all all.
Posted 1 week ago
Amrik
We have booked two big holidays this year for a group of 8 and a group of 10, Rachel has coordinated our holidays with the utmost excellence, during the consultation we changed countires hotels and even flights but it did not phase Rachel one bit. Exceeds customer expectations by helping advising and supporting throughout the holiday. We are off to Thailand and Dubai in August and then followed by India and Thailand in November, I have rang emailed Rachel many times during the booking and I got very prompt responses even on her days off. Rachel is a credit to EShores and EShores is setting standards regarding customer focus.
Posted 1 week ago
IainWilliam
I can’t praise Lynette at EShores enough. She has organised my trips perfectly to the point that I wouldn’t use anyone else. She listens to what I want or to the problem I have and comes up with a solution. Nothing is too much trouble. Try them out yourselves and I bet you become a repeater too!
Posted 1 week ago
Kevin
At short notice, I needed a quote to travel through the USA (July the 20th) I emailed eShores with an idea of what I wanted to do, within a short period of time I had a response from Matthew, After several amendments to my holiday which wasn't any trouble to Matthew, Holiday all booked, now looking forward to travelling through the USA Have to say, the service I had through eShores was fantastic, well done Matthew for working through the changes,
Posted 1 week ago
Marcus
Dealt with Adam who was great, I went back and forth many times, nothing was a problem for him. We got there in the end and Adam arranged a 3 place holiday to Malaysia and Singapore. We go on 5th August, will if update review when we return. EShores so far brilliant hats of to Adam.
Posted 1 week ago
Jill
We as a family used eShores last year to go to USA, and they were brilliant, my husband and 1 are going to Italy with them this September and we have just booked again to go back to USA with them next May, very efficient and Matt is lovely to deal with
Posted 1 week ago
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