Traveling as a couple is the absolute best way to explore the world. I truly believe you should make it a point to experience the joy that can only come from traveling with the one you love.
Nearly 19 years have passed since my husband and I took our very first trip together. We fell in love with travel, and each other, on a Caribbean Cruise way back in March 2006. We were barely adults; just look at those baby faces!
Throughout the course of our relationship we’ve had innumerable adventures and experiences, all over the world. None of which would be the same if we hadn’t been together doing all those things.
There is a special sort of joy that comes from traveling and experiencing life with the one you love.
Our shared passion has enabled us to build a long-lasting, happy relationship, always looking back fondly on our shared experiences, and looking forward to our next great adventure together.
Whether we’re taking deep south road trips together, going on Caribbean cruises, or planning entire trips to Iceland, there’s always a good reason to travel.
Here are my favorite benefits of traveling as a couple.
Traveling As A Couple Gives You A Common Goal
Whether it’s figuring out where you want to go next, or saving enough money in order to get there, the fact remains that traveling as a couple gives you a common goal to work toward.
My husband and I have a whole list of places that we want to see, things we want to do, and experiences we would like to share. We’re constantly working towards our goal of seeing those places, doing those things, and having those experiences together.
We each have our strengths when it comes to traveling, whether it be the researching, the planning, or the implementing stages, and we work together to accomplish our dreams.
When you travel as a couple, the common goal that it gives you strengthens your relationship in so many ways. Being able to work together is a skill that many couples lack, but traveling together hones this skill and enables you to become an even better team.
Traveling As A Couple Provides Balance
Traveling as a couple provides balance in your life in more ways than one. First of all, there’s the ever-so-challenging work/life balance. Everyone knows how easy it is to get caught up in making a living to the point that you forget to make a life.
Between bills, kids, the house, pets, the car, material things, etc., it’s all too often we get swept up in the day-to-day.
Vacationing together provides that much needed respite, the reminder that life isn’t just about working and accumulating stuff, but finding a balance between working and living, and being able to enjoy that life with the one you love.
Another way that traveling as a couple provides balance is interpersonally. My husband and I balance each other out extremely well.
One of us is extroverted and can sometimes need reeling in. The other is introverted and can sometimes need a little push socially. When one of us is about to fall off the deep end, the other one is there to bring us back to reality.
This balance translates throughout our vacations as we make plans for activities and experiences that we both will enjoy. We navigate throughout our various travels together using our combined strengths to balance out our combined weaknesses.
Traveling As A Couple Deepens Your Relationship
You really, and I do mean really, get to know each other when you travel together.
You find out quirks you didn’t know existed, fears, dreams, habits, and so much more while you are on vacation with someone. There’s something about being in a foreign land that really brings out the inner workings of your mind and heart.
We have been together for nearly two decades and still get to see new sides of ourselves and each other when we’re away.
On vacation you’re always having new experiences, and finding yourself in new situations. You get to see how your partner reacts when things don’t go as planned, and get to see the wonder on their face when they’re seeing something for the first time.
There’s no hiding from each other when you’re with someone 24/7, and it truly deepens the love and respect you have for each other.
Traveling As A Couple Lets You Focus On Each Other
Remember when you first started dating, and it seemed like every moment was devoted to each other?
Vacations together bring that focus back!
When you are home, there’s so much routine that it can be utterly exhausting, both mentally and physically. Your focus is always on work, the kids, bills, schedules, routines.
All too often our partners get our “leftovers” – the leftover energy after we’ve given our all to everything else in life that we have to deal with.
Traveling as a couple removes all the distractions and obstacles that take over our lives and allows you to truly focus on each other again. Especially for parents, time alone with just the two of you is vitally important to the health of your relationship.
We hear all the time how couples who have been married forever wind up divorced after their kids are grown, because they don’t know how to be together anymore as a couple. Their whole relationship became so focused on raising the kids that they forgot to make time to still be a couple, and no longer have the bond that they started with.
And how sad that is!
Traveling together as a couple reinforces the bond you have by allowing you to focus on each other, period. It keeps your relationship moving forward together cohesively, and gives you much needed time together to renew and reassure your love for each other throughout the years.
Traveling As A Couple Increases Your Patience And Tolerance
Traveling together also very much teaches you tolerance.
Way back when we were in St. Lucia on our honeymoon, my husband and I both got hit with some sort of stomach bug on day 1! On our honeymoon, of all things!
The first 3 days of our trip were basically just us taking turns in the bathroom and sleeping, over and over again. What a way to start a life together!
We really got to see each other at our most vulnerable, how each other reacts when sick, and when things don’t go exactly as planned.
There is nothing like traveling to really teach you patience and grace.
There was this one particular time, when we were heading down to Disney World, and I realized I had forgotten our Disney tickets at home. At this point we were already on the plane, about to take off.
Fortunately for me, it turned out that because I had already uploaded our tickets into the Disney app, it was just a matter of getting new tickets reissued once we got there, but that almost-disaster provided a great opportunity for patience and understanding.
Simply put, traveling as a couple helps you learn to let go, and let things happen as they may.
That go-with-the-flow attitude is a difficult quality for some to cultivate, but traveling together really helps you learn that every experience is an opportunity for growth, and growing with the one you love is joyful beyond measure.
Traveling As A Couple Breaks You Out Of Your Comfort Zone
Zip lining through jungles? Visiting drive-in volcanoes? Swimming with dolphins and hammerhead sharks?! Who’d have thought?!
When you travel as a couple you push each other so much further out of your comfort zone than you ever thought possible.
Remember that balance we talked about earlier? We have done things together that we would never had even considered before, like hiking a glacier in the South Coast of Iceland, and taking a helicopter into the Grand Canyon.
But the reality is, neither of us would have done half the things we’ve experienced, if it wasn’t for the fact that we were doing it together.
Traveling together gives you the strength and courage to break out of your comfort zone for the benefit of the one you love.
It can be something as simple as trying a new food, or something as brave as crossing an ocean when you’re afraid of flying. The selflessness that comes with traveling as a couple is something you’ll frankly never experience if you travel alone.
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Traveling As A Couple Strengthens Your Bond
What could be better than going on vacation with your best friend? Every time my husband and I go on a couple’s trip, we do just that. And every single time, it strengthens our bond more and more.
Traveling as a couple allows you to slow down and be present in the moment. You get to spend quality time with the person you love, experiencing joy and excitement together, over and over.
You get to be silly, spontaneous, and adventurous, and get to enjoy all those qualities in your partner as well. Going on vacation together gives you so many opportunities for sharing experiences and overcoming obstacles.
It’s the best way to strengthen and develop your bond, and one of my personal favorite benefits of traveling as a couple.
Traveling As A Couple Improves Your Sex Life
Yes, you read that right. Traveling as a couple absolutely improves your sex life.
We can personally attest to this phenomenon (getting caught and praying we don’t get arrested is an adventure in of itself, but that’s a story for another time!) but studies have actually proven this as well.
The US Travel Association conducted a survey and the results were conclusive. 77% of respondents who travel together say they have a good sex life, compared to only 63% of couples who don’t travel together. And nearly a quarter (23%) of the couples who don’t travel together, say they “do not have enough time for intimacy and sex.”
The truth is, new environments spark new perspectives of yourself and your partner. You’re free from the worries and distractions of everyday life, and have the ability to let go and enjoy the moment.
Spontaneity and adventure are powerful aphrodisiacs, and when you couple that with the romantic atmosphere of vacation life you have the perfect storm of lust and love.
Traveling As A Couple Lets You Experience New Things Together
When you’re together for a long time it can be hard to find new things to do together. But I know firsthand that new experiences keep fun and excitement alive in your relationship.
That feeling of brand newness is exhilarating.
Traveling as a couple ensures there is always a new experience to share. And what better way to experience something new than with the person you love?
Whether it’s trying a new food, visiting a new world wonder, exploring a new country, or experiencing a new culture, anything new with your partner and best friend is a wonderful adventure waiting to happen.
My husband and I have been able to see the most beautiful things imaginable in this world together, because we’re always looking for something new to do or see. From visiting the gorgeous Pitons in St. Lucia, to iconic landmarks like the Welcome To Las Vegas Sign, there’s a never-ending list of new experiences to be shared.
Traveling As A Couple Improves Communication
Traveling as a couple greatly improves your communication. It increases your communicating skills, and it also improves upon your quality of conversation.
When you plan a trip together, there is an enormous amount of communicating that has to take place.
You discuss destinations, you figure out budget. Together you compromise on activities, and who gets the window seat. You figure out length of stay, where to stay, what to do when you get there. Do you want a romantic resort where you can focus on each other, or a hotel with a lively night life?
You have to be clear on your intentions for the trip – whether it’s a leisurely, relaxing trip, or an action-packed adventure-filled whirlwind. The lines of communication stay wide open when you travel together, because that’s the only way vacations (and relationships themselves) can be successful.
Traveling as a couple also gives you an endless amount of topics for conversations. We’ve all seen those couples before, either both of them have their eyes glued to their screens, or they’re awkwardly looking around the room, desperately grasping for something to talk about. But when you travel together there is always something to discuss, so much more than just the kids and your jobs.
My husband and I are constantly laughing about past trip experiences and inside jokes, talking about our favorite moments, or planning for our next great adventure.
We never run out of things to talk about because we are always sharing amazing moments together in our travels all around the world. And we’re always dreaming about our future together and what wondrous experiences await us.
Between our amazing Las Vegas helicopter tours, incredible experiences in Iceland, and even impromptu road trips up to Niagara Falls, there’s always a fun memory to laugh and reminisce about.
Traveling As A Couple Keeps The Romance Alive
Romance tends to be one of those things that can disappear in a relationship when you’ve been together for a long time. And how sad is that, because romance is one of the biggest things that keeps your relationship alive!
Vacations are a perfect time for bringing that romance back into your life. When you travel as a couple, it’s easy to make plans for a romantic private candlelit dinner on the beach, or to simply slow down and enjoy a beautiful sunset together. You can even find time for romance in party cities like Las Vegas!
Traveling as a couple enables that one-on-one appreciation of each other that often gets overlooked back at home. You have all the time in the world to focus on doing those special little things for each other that all too often get pushed to the side when you’re home and focusing on daily life.
One of my favorite types of vacations are all-inclusive resorts. Couples resorts are perfectly geared towards love and romance.
Between the fluffy beds, champagne on ice, hot tubs for two, and couples massages, there’s no shortage of romance inspiring items and activities for a happy couple.
Traveling As A Couple Creates Lasting Memories
Whenever we get back from a trip, I always make a photobook of our adventures. One of my favorite things to do is to snuggle on the couch and flip through those books, reliving our journey together.
We have created so many unbelievable memories together, which we both treasure dearly, and traveling together just gives us that many more unforgettable moments.
When you travel as a couple you get to make the most beautiful memories with your best friend, and then you get to reminisce about those times over and over again.
My husband and I got engaged on one trip together (at Disney World, having dinner inside Cinderella’s Castle, such a perfect fairy tale!), and we still talk about it all the time, 15 years later!
Memories are our most precious possessions, and making memories while traveling the world with the one you love are the most special of all.
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