Having Your Partner as Your Travel Buddy

According to the New York Times and Insider, New Orleans is the top travel destination for 2018. Coincidentally, my boyfriend and I already booked our trip to NOLA before this was announced because this year Mardi Gras and Valentine’s Day are just a day apart. This means you get to have your (king) cake and eat it too. We will, of course, take part in various Mardi Gras celebrations, but also enjoy the romantic setting of this festive city.

Enjoy a special trip with someone special. (Photo: Shutterstock)

Not to ask everyone to jump on the bandwagon, but book a trip with your partner today! It doesn’t have to be New Orleans specifically, but anywhere in the U.S. or abroad. If you don’t already know, planning a trip with your significant other can be challenge, and a learning curve, but it is very much worth it.

For starters, you will learn quickly who the planner is and who the fun one is. I look for fun attractions and activities, and my boyfriend maps it all out. Whatever your role is, you need to complement each other because you can’t have too many cooks in the kitchen. The rule of thumb for a couples vacation is divide and conquer.

Once you have designated your roles, make sure to communicate. By dividing the work, there is less of a chance you will overlap, but you never know. Make sure to regroup before making anything official. This includes buying tickets, passes, etc. You want to make sure everything is locked and loaded before you put money on the table.

If neither of you are planners, you can risk winging it and travel without a plan, but I wouldn’t suggest it. It is nice to have somewhat of a schedule to maximize your trip, and of course you can designate days to “explore,” which is broad. If you are completely winging it, good luck!

Once you are on your trip with your partner, make sure you do the following things for a great vacation takeaway:

Take too many snaps

While you or your partner may hate pictures, you will regret not taking any. Live in the moment, but too many pictures can’t hurt. Just don’t let selfies consume you. Stick to cool photos that capture a moment, not just your up-close face.

Always be hungry

Remember you are not on a diet during vacation. If you are going somewhere new, try that city’s specialty cuisine. Be open to new flavors and embrace the new culture. If you order basic chicken tenders, you will regret it, so order outside the box and bon appetite.

Try something new

Besides food, you should be open to new experiences while on traveling with your partner. Are you afraid of ghosts and you are in a ghost town? Don’t be scared and try this new experience together. I am not a fan of allegators, but New Orleans is known for having plenty of them so my boyfriend and I are signing up for a swamp tour just because why not. Plus, Tiffany Haddish highly recommended it.

Planning together may be tough, but the adventure will be worth it. (Photos: GQ)

While on vacation as a couple, you will experience ups and downs from the planning process to being on the road. But, you will ultimately learn how you work together and how open (or not so open) you are as a couple when faced with new adventures. Ultimately, just make sure to have fun, relax and enjoy your time together. If all goes well, you will see that the travel bug is contagious, and the two of you be off planning more trips before you are even back from the first one.