Written by Sophie Gorton, she is a travel enthusiast who has recently moved to London.
As fun as taking a trip with other people can be, there can be no doubt that it can also be worrying and stressful. From the planning stages to getting everyone together when you’re away, holidays are a tricky thing to balance and manage. There are always times when somebody doesn’t get what they want for the benefit of others, and that got us thinking: how can we best book to make everyone happy?
Plan as Early as Possible
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When you’re going alone or as a couple, winging it can be a lot of fun on holidays. When you have multiple friends with you, to make them happy, you’re probably going to have a much stricter method plan. This means getting to know the area as well as possible before you jump on in. Websites like TripAdvisor.com are great in this regard, as they factor in word of mouth more than sheer advertising budget.
Of course, this only constitutes part of the work. On planning one activity, it can also be a good idea to plan a backup. This is especially the case if your first choice is weather-dependent. Just remember that a common backup for bad weather is probably going to be the go-to for many others as well, so it might be worth making your backup plan a little off the beaten track.
Plan for Needs, not Just Wants
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Planning a trip can be an exciting time, as we note down all the different things we want to do and see while trying to fill in as much spare time as we can. What we tend to forget in this rush is just how exhausting travel can be, especially when you’re planning for an entire group.
To keep everyone happy, we’ve seen a lot of success in splitting up the guiding duties now-and-then to give those running the operation time to recharge. For example have one person adopt the hosting duties, while the other unwinds.
This can also give the now-free guide a time to enjoy a local activity that the other has little or no interest in (which is perfectly okay).
Of course, there are still other forms of home-entertainment available, such as packing a board game or two, bringing the old trusty pack of cards or, similarly, if you want to take that classic go-to holiday activity to the next level, checking out online casinos like the table games at Aspers.com. The latter choice can also be helpful in that it might anchor anyone slightly overwhelmed or homesick back to the relaxing and nostalgic games of blackjack or poker, or more traditional video games like Doom or Mario.
Avoiding addressing a person’s physical or mental needs on vacation, in favour of a well-meaning but overwhelming schedule, can occur without us realising it, so be sure to take note.
A Learning Experience
Whether you’re planning your first big holiday or going on an annual group retreat, there are always going to be lessons which we need to learn, and lessons which we tend to forget. Make note of what works on your holidays and what doesn’t, and try to consider what steps might be taken in future outings to reduce these issues.
It might take a few years, but planning a trip is very much an improvable skill. The better you get, the more you and your travel companions will get out of it. Good luck.