Over the last 18 months I have probably spent more time on a cruise ship than I have on land and if there is one thing I have come to really appreciate in that time, it’s the importance of a good travel companion.
I really do believe that things are always better experienced with other people. On my last cruise as I have mentioned I travelled alone but met up with friends on the ship. One of the ports we visited was Venice, it was truly magical and I was glad to have people with me to share it with. Although on my own it would have still been a great experience I know it wouldn’t have been the same. You feed off one another’s energy and excitement in places like Venice and I was very happy to be sharing it with two good friends.
My next cruise really is the trip of a lifetime, not just for me but for my friend too. It’s a cruise my friend and I promised each other we would do together, we just hadn’t quite thought would be doing it so soon. We expected maybe in 3 or 4 years time but the opportunity called and we took it, in fact we grabbed it with both hands!
We are very similar people when it comes to what we get out of travel. We tend to agree on more or less everything when it comes to where to go and what to do. In this sense she is the perfect travel buddy as we very rarely clash on any kind of activity, experience or even food for that matter.
I’m not quite sure for me experiencing the Caribbean would be quite the same without her. I would still look forward to it obviously but thinking now of the things we are going to do, the places we are going to go……it makes me question whether or not I would even do all of them if I was travelling alone and I know if I did they wouldn’t be the same.
I suppose this is why cruising is such a great way to see the world though because if you do travel alone you will ALWAYS come across someone else on board who is too cruising solo and chances are you will find yourself a great shore buddy who could well turn into a permanent travel buddy.
I have two friends with whom I travel with the most. One lives quite local to me and I see her on a regular basis the other, she lives in Kent so I really don’t get to see her much unless we are embarking on our travels somewhere, although we talk just about every day.
With these two people I have had many experiences, we have boiled to death on the platform at Bond Street Underground station, sipped cocktails in 30 degree heat in Monte Carlo, froze to death in hurricane force winds going through the Bay of Biscay and been soaked to the skin from a torrential downpour in Greece.
I think it’s fair to say we really don’t care where we go, or what we do so long as we get to go and enjoy the experience together because, either way come rain or shine we know we are guaranteed a good time.
Author: Danielle
Great article. I totally agree a great travel companion is critical. Scott Lara