Either you’ve experienced it firsthand, or you’ve heard horror stories about vacations gone bad like that group of friends that went to Miami together and come back hating each other! When you’re planning your trip you may do extensive research on the destination, restaurants, tours and excursions, and even check the weather to ensure that your vacation is as close to perfect as possible. But how much research did you do on your travel companions? 

Most people travel with friends or family and more recently travel groups have become more prevalent due to social media expanding the range and reach of travel enthusiasts to connect with people they previously would never encounter. When traveling with friends and family you might not consider compatibility because these could be people you’ve known your whole life so why wouldn’t a trip together be great? But many people have learned the hard way that hanging out with somebody for a couple hours at a party or restaurant or family functions is drastically different from traveling with these same loved ones.

Traveling is a unique opportunity to see how people operate under stress, how they deal with being on a schedule, how open they are to compromise, and what people deem important or insignificant. Just like compatibility is important when choosing a spouse or life partner, knowing your compatibility with who you travel with can save you a lot of stress, money, avoid a bad vacation experience and sometimes even avoid losing a friend.

When it comes to travel compatibility you have to know what type of traveler you are. The following questions will help you to determine both yours and your travel companion’s style and how compatible and cohesive you are.

1. Are you a first class, budget is not an issue type traveler or are you balling on a budget? This will come into play when choosing first class or economy seats, a 3-star and a 5-star hotel, and if you’re going to want to do expensive excursions and look for Michelin star restaurants. These are two very different types of travelers and should probably never travel together.
2. Are you a frequent traveler, have you ever traveled internationally, do you speak other languages, and do you have a passport are all questions that will help determine how comfortable a person is with traveling. 
3. Are you the itinerary planner with every minute of the day scheduled or are you a go with the flow, wing it type traveler. Are you willing to compromise by having one planned main activity a day and go with the flow for everything else?
4. Are you a beach bum who never has to leave the resort, and your main goal is to relax and be pampered or are you more interested in immersing yourself into the culture, interacting with locals, and exploring the destination? Are you the thrill seeker or adventurer type or are you a history buff who loves museums and culture tours. Do you plan to party every night and bar hop?
5. Do you think that you should always stick together or are you comfortable spending time apart if you have different objectives for the day?
6. How do you handle conflict? Do you need your space to decompress, or do you discuss immediately and come to some type of resolution?
7. Are you an early riser or sleep till noon type, do you snore, do you like the air at full blast, do you turn the tv off before you sleep? These questions will help determine your ideal roommate or if you need a separate room.

The questions above are by no means a one size fits all questionnaire that will mitigate every potential problem while traveling but will definitely give you a good idea of who your are planning to travel with. No vacation will be 100% problem free but at least you’ll know what you’re getting yourself into!