9 travel tips for couples

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If you have your sights set on a romantic getaway, here’s what you should know before you go. These travel tips for couples will help you plan a trip that helps foster connection and (hopefully!) minimizes conflict. If you discover new things about your partner and your destination, that’s a good thing!  

9 travel tips for couples

Here are some helpful ways you can prepare for fun on your exciting adventure with your love, as well as helping you navigate any issues that might arise.

1. Plan the trip you’ll take together—together

You’ve probably seen the meme or funny TikTok video where one partner is the planner and the other shows up and says “Where are we going?” While that might work, consider planning the trip together or at least have a solid conversation where both people have input. This helps avoid any bad surprises where one person plans something the other one doesn’t want to do, which can happen with newer couples who aren’t accustomed to traveling together. Even if you think you know your mate like the back of your hand, get them on board with planning.

2. Make sure you talk numbers

Even if you’re uncomfortable talking about money, don’t avoid discussing your vacation budget. Make sure you both know what the limit is for spending, and where areas are a bit more flexible to splurge. The flights and the resort fees are often fully paid at the onset of travel, but don’t forget to set a budget for meals, shopping, spa treatments, and other extras. Have a conversation about how the bills are going to get paid after the trip.

If you’re normally a “pay the balance in full every month” couple, talk about whether you’ll take a couple of extra months to pay off your vacation debt ahead of time and not while trying to enjoy a sunset in Mexico. I always try to pad in a little extra for unplanned spending, which seems always to happen!

3. Leave your work at work

I know, I know. This is easier said than done, especially if you’re an entrepreneur or have a high-level position, but the best vacations are unplugged vacations, so plan ahead to budget some extra time to clear your desk before you leave. And, if you can’t completely disengage from work, make sure those expectations are clearly laid out before your trip and plan work time around things your significant other can do for fun without you. “I have to take a work call at 3 pm on Wednesday” sounds so much better when you add “while you’re at the spa” to the end of the sentence. 

4. Consider turning off social media

You’ll connect more fully to your environment and your partner if you’re not focused on scrolling or posting every detail of your adventure on social media, in real time. You can share photos when you get back. 

Not everyone can – or wants to – completely disengage from social media, so this is another thing to be on the same page about before you leave.  Also, there can be safety concerns associated with too much online sharing while you’re away from home, so no matter what, be aware of your surroundings. Nothing says “We’re not home” like a picture of you and your sweetheart on a faraway beach. 

5. Make sure to schedule relaxation time

Don’t book your holiday completely full of activities and itineraries. Yes, you should get out and see the amazing sites available to you, but you also don’t want to burn yourself out either. Whether it’s a whole vacation day with zero plans or a morning where you don’t set the alarm, unstructured time is good. And, if you’re genuinely a go-go-go sunup to sunrise kind of vacationer, make sure your partner is, too. 

I tend to get grouchy if our schedule is too packed. I hate the idea of needing a vacation after a vacation, so when I’m on a trip with my husband, I try to prioritize rest and downtime. 

6. Get a little ‘me’ time

Even if you are all about togetherness, scheduling time for yourself on a couple’s trip, especially if it’s a longer one, might be something to consider, especially if you have interests and hobbies that don’t always align. Every couple looks at this differently but if you’re not usually together 24/7, the constant closeness of a vacation may be a little too much couple time. My husband and I are together almost constantly during our regular week and enjoy the same sports and hobbies, so other than a trip to the spa or getting lost in a new book while tucked in a hammock, I’m happy to share all my time with him when we travel. But if he loves deep sea fishing and you hate fish and boats, there’s nothing wrong with letting him experience that, finding something to do on your own for a few hours, and comparing adventures later. 

7. Don’t expect perfection

While it’s impossible not to have that vision of what the perfect vacation will look like, you’re traveling with a real person and sometimes, things go wrong. Lost luggage, bad directions, and hotels that don’t look like the picture online all happen. And, squabbles and disagreements happen even on the dreamiest of trips. Roll with things that don’t go so great and adjust your plans. It’s fun to be in that “just us two” bubble for a little while and sometimes, the change of scenery helps you approach conflict and problem solving differently. 

My husband and I had a trip to China – about as far away from home as it is possible to be – and just about everything that could go wrong on a trip did. We’d been married for about four years at the time and while we didn’t handle everything perfectly, the experience reinforced that we could solve problems together, which gave me confidence in our marriage. 

8. Pick some spontaneous and weird things to do

Being spontaneous or selecintg an activity that’s a little on the quirky side or a departure from what you usually do together can be fun. If spontaneity isn’t your usual style, try it in smaller doses versus planning an entire trip around “go with the flow.”  Be open to not always knowing what will happen next. Who knows, that spur of the moment side trip to see the world’s largest ketchup bottle might turn into the best story that comes from your couple’s trip. 

9. Build dreams and goals together

There are always moments of introspection when you find yourself traveling to a new place. It could be a coastline, a mountainside, or a wide-open countryside that inspires you. A vacation is a great place to talk about dreams and goals, unless you’re a very new couple, then maybe keep it light.