5 Ways to Convince Your Unadventurous Partner to Travel
Traveling alone can be fun, but when you really love someone, you want to have plenty of shared experiences. The tallest building in New York, the largest elephant in Thailand, or the strongest surf at Bondi Beach just won’t be the same without your partner.
However, if your partner doesn’t share your thirst for adventure, you may need to work a little magic to set up a couples trip that you’ll both cherish.
1. Assume the Responsibility of Preparation
A lot of people are hesitant to travel because a lot goes in to planning the trip. You need to budget your spending money, buy your tickets and accommodations, plan to take time off work, and make arrangements for all of the responsibilities you have back home. You have to put in a lot of work to take a vacation, and that may seem daunting to your partner. Offer to do it all. If you’re willing to take a headache out of the planning phase, your partner might feel more compelled to go.
2. Allow Them to Choose the Destination
Your partner may not want to go to the Galapagos islands with you, but Tuscany could be an entirely different story. If you tempt your partner with the destination of their dreams, it will become harder to say no. Perhaps the experience of traveling to a place they’ve always wanted to go will open the door to new horizons. It could incite an innate desire for travel they never knew they had. Even if you’ve already been to the place they want to go, you’ll have the opportunity to visit twice and do the things you didn’t have time to do on your first go around.
3. Simplify the Baggage Situation
Some people just don’t like living out of suitcases. They like their routines. They want their stuff to be where it is every day, and the idea of having to haul everything around feels complicated. Stick to the essentials. Teach your partner how to pack light, and wait until you get to your destination to buy toiletries if that helps. You can even go as far as to use companies for your excess baggage so you don’t need to personally tote all your travel purchases back home.
4. Offer a Huge Compromise
Are you having the big debate on whether or not to get a puppy? Does your partner really want you to attend weekly karate classes together, but it’s just not getting you excited? Does your partner love cooking, but really hate doing the dishes? Offer to take up another responsibility or let them win in another arena. It’s all about the art of compromise. You’re both getting something that will make your life a little better.
5. Remind Them Of How Great it Was Last Time
If you’ve travelled together before, revisit some of the memories. Pull up the pictures and the videos of the good times. Don’t reflect on when the hotel was accidentally overbooked, or how you both got stomachaches from some street meat that was past its prime. This is the best strategy to keep the travels going if your partner is always hesitant to go on another trip. As long as you spread them out far enough for your partner to live a full home life in between adventures, you’ll have good luck reminding them of why it’s good to explore once in a while.
Relationships are always giving and taking. Make sure you’re giving as much as you’re taking, especially when you’re asking your partner to do something as involved as travel. Listen to your partner’s concerns and consider solutions, rather than merely attempting to be persuasive about your passions. Your ability to understand can help you find yourselves lounging on the shores of a distant land.
About the author
Michelle is an eco-conscious globetrotter, an absolute fan of photography and an animal lover. Currently, she is also a part of the team behind Datastical, an online knowledge database. Feel free to follow her on @MichelleArios.
