How to make sure your group chat makes it out of the trip
I keep seeing TikToks about the trip making it out of the group chat, but the group chat not making it out of the trip, referencing the phenomenon of friend groups fighting on a trip. Luckily, I have had the exact opposite happen to me on my past spring break trips, so here are 4 tips to help make sure your friend group remains intact after your next trip.
- communicate
-
This is probably the most obvious tip, but it might be the most important. If something is bugging you, tell your friends so it can be addressed. If there is something you’re not comfortable doing, tell your friends. If you’re really looking forward to doing something, tell them. It is so much easier to amend a situation and keep everyone happy if you communicate.
- Make sure you all have the same hopes for the trip
-
Do you want to spend your trip relaxing on the beach? Going on exciting excursions? Or maybe you want to party with your friends. And while every trip has room for every kind of activity, make sure your group is on the same page, even before planning the trip. If some people are looking for a purely relaxing trip and others are looking for an adventurous, spontaneous trip, discuss that to make sure that you can plan an itinerary that will keep everyone satisfied.
- Be willing to compromise
-
If your group all wants to do different things, you might need to either split up or compromise. If you’re the friend who wants to go out on a different excursion every day but the rest of your group wants to spend more time relaxing, you might need to compromise and stay in for a day, and vice versa. And while you shouldn’t have to only do what everyone else wants to do, you have to be willing to compromise.
- have a couple of things planned
-
Whether it be a dinner reservation, an excursion, or a planned beach day, have a couple of things planned that you can build a schedule around. While it is nice to go with the flow and do spontaneous things, it can also be nice to have a few things to look forward to, that way your trip can have a little bit of structure and you don’t have to argue or rush to book something once your trip has already started.
To me, a vacation is supposed to be a time to relax, experience new things, and spend time with people I care about. While I love to travel, I know trips, especially busy spring break trips can be stressful not only to organize but to experience. And when you’re on your spring break trip, the last thing you want to do is fight with your friends, so, try implementing some of these tips on your spring break trip this year or on your next trip with friends.