You really don’t know someone until you travel with them. It’s true. I’m sure you’ve been there, vinas. You go away with your new BFF and realize she’s the most annoying, high-maintenance, stingy person you never really knew! Okay, that’s little harsh, but I’ve been on some rough road trips. This is why I’m here: to offer a few considerations before taking the trip of your life with someone who could ruin the entire trip and your life. (It was a really rough road trip, kay?)
PICK THE RIGHT TYPE OF TRIP
I say this because I realize not everyone is down to drive down the wonderful West coast for 20 hours straight—who knew? Honestly, I love a low-key, inexpensive trek to anywhere surrounded by trees, but that’s just me. If your vina is more of a spa-caytion gal and you’re all about those hike-caytions, you’ll want to figure that out before you go somewhere! It’s not that you can’t necessarily take the trip, but just sit down and compromise, so you can both enjoy the journey and the destination.
SPLIT THE COSTS BEFORE YOU SPLIT
This is important because straight up, people are weird about money. I have friends with whom I never have to worry about money. I’ll be like, “I got you,” and the next time, they’ll be like, “I got you.” But not everyone is like that. Some people are a lot more, how shall I say…frugal! And that’s not a bad thing. Honestly, that’s probably why they’re not drowning in credit card debt, and I am (Oops, let’s not open that box!). Just keep in mind that it’s more productive to learn each other’s financial personalities before embarking on a trip together.
SPEND SOME TIME APART
Honestly, I love me time! I mean, I love vina time too, but sometimes, taking a walk or reading a book in a new place is really nice to do alone. Obviously, this depends on how long your trip is, but remember, spending time apart is good for any friendship. When
you’re all up in each other’s space, whether it be sleeping or sharing the bathroom, it’s totally reasonable and healthy to want some alone time, so do it!
COMMUNICATE
If you’re the type of person who easily shrugs off things that bother you, you are probably very tolerant. This is a good, admirable quality about you, but when you’re on a trip with your vina, it’ll go out the window. Trust me. So since you’re going to be spending all your time with this person, it’s really important to be honest and communicate! Don’t hold back or bottle up emotions because you will explode at the worst possible time, say, like, when your tire blows out, and you have to wait 45 minutes in 85-degree weather for AAA to show up.
I want to stress how important these things are when traveling with your vina. Yes, yes, I’m biased because I’ve been on one or two roadtrips from hell, but I’ve survived to tell the tale so you don’t make the same mistakes! Everything that went wrong on my trips was totally preventable had I just communicated and planned more. So, vinas, travel the world. Just make sure you know each other as much as you like each other!
Where will you and your vina head for the summer? Tell us in the comments!
(Featured image via @aspynovard)
VINAZINE 