Have you ever been on a trip with a group of people that aren’t your immediate family? Did you go with your extended family, a group of friends, or maybe co-workers on an incentive trip? I have been on several trips with small groups, and they have been some of my favorite trips. My small group trips have consisted of my family and one or two other families camping together for long weekends, multigenerational cruises, and a cruise with my family, parents, and a friends’ family. We have made some of our best memories on these trips that we shared with the people in our lives that we love. So let’s talk about the best parts of group travel, maybe a couple of not so great parts that might come with group travel.
Advantages of Group Travel
Neutral location: Group travel can be done in a neutral location. If you are wanting to plan a family reunion, but the tasks of making room for everyone at your house, cleaning your house, preparing all the food, and planning activities may seem daunting to you; it does to me. Planning a group trip can eliminate many or all of these tasks depending on what kind of travel you choose. Mine and Heather’s family go on an annual camping trip over a long holiday weekend, and on occasion other families join us if they are able. On our camping trips, we don’t have to clean the house or figure out where everyone will sleep; however, we still have to plan and prepare meals and activities. If you would rather take the 100% stress free route, you could choose an all inclusive resort or a cruise for your group trip where meals and activities are covered by the destination’s staff.
Activities for everyone: We know that not everyone on a group trip will want to do all the same things for the duration of the trip and that is easily accommodated. If your group is going to Disney, and you have a wide variety of ages and interests, why not make smaller groups to go in many different directions? Select a “group leader” for each group, set a meeting time and place for lunch, and go have fun. If your group goes on a cruise, there are so many things to do every minute even if it is just lying by the pool. All inclusive resorts have activities throughout the day as well (not as abundant as a cruise) and have many different areas of the resort that can be enjoyed: pools, beaches, casinos, spas, as well as different restaurants and bars. Let your group explore on their own, and you can meet up again at dinner and talk about your day, what you discovered, and what you loved the most.
Time to be Together and Time to be Apart: You’re on a group trip, so of course you want to spend some of that time together, but you may also want to take a break from your friends and family and have some time to yourself. Do it! Enjoy a break, take a nap, get a massage, take a walk on the beach or through the woods with your spouse, work out, or read a book. Do what makes you happy and helps you destress and relax; that is what vacation is all about after all. Plan times when there will be group activities, such as dinner, an excursion, or a volleyball tournament. You planned a group trip, so you can spend time together and make memories with your loved ones, so don’t forget to do some of that, too. Mix it up and enjoy sibling time, spouse time, cousin time, parent time, friend time, or alone time.
Sharing memories: Memories are my favorite thing about traveling and the more people I can share those memories with, the better. I love being able to talk about trips I’ve taken and get excited about planning trips. During your group trip, you are making memories that you have with your immediate family, as well as your friends and extended family. Imagine being able to say, “remember that time in Mexico” to your best friend, grandparent, and cousin, instead of saying, “one time in Mexico”. Share the joy; share the memories.
Group Discounts and Perks: When traveling in a group, most hotels, resorts, and cruises have discounted rates depending on the size of your group or how many rooms you book. Some also have additional perks such as a gift in your room upon arrival or a cocktail party or special dinner just for your group. Discounts and extra perks are always a bonus to traveling.
Getting Out of Your Comfort Zone: Traveling with a group means that you have many different people with many different interests. Someone in your group may suggest an activity or excursion or even food that you would not try if you were traveling with just your immediate family. Having someone try something new for the first time makes it less intimidating, and you have someone to stand next to you or to hold your hand as you experience it together. Heather is much more adventurous with trying new foods than I am, but if we are somewhere together with the opportunity to try something new, I know that I will take my chances and do it because I don’t like to back down from a challenge.
Disadvantages to Group Travel
Drama: We all have them – that one person who makes a scene, drinks too much, picks a fight, and attracts drama in one way or another. It happens and there is very little we can do about it. We can not invite said person and risk hurting their feelings, we can try to reduce the triggers for this person, or we can let it happen and know that it reflects on us in no way. That’s right, I’m vouching for you. I will not blame you for the actions of others, and I give you permission to not blame yourself. Like I said we all have that person in our circle.
Everyone May Not be Able to Join: Keep in mind when planning a group trip that there may be some people who are unable to join for whatever reason, such as they can’t get time off of work, they can’t afford it, or they won’t get on an airplane. When planning your group trip, you want to keep these things in mind and maybe plan around them as much as you can, but it is unlikely that you will be able to accommodate everyone that you would like to be on the trip. There can be more group trips and each trip can be different, and maybe someone can’t go on the first annual trip, but they can go on the second annual trip. Don’t put too much stress on yourself to accommodate everyone all the time. Remember, vacation is for unwinding and enjoying your time away from everyday life and making memories that will last a lifetime.
It’s Not All About You: Yes, there can be times on your group trip that you may get some alone time or get to do something with just your immediate family, but don’t forget the reason you planned a group trip. There will be times when you will want everyone on the trip to be together and everyone may have to compromise for these times. It may be a group dinner or a group excursion and it will have to be decided how we can make most of the group happy and go with that. Maybe you don’t like seafood but the majority of the group voted for seafood for dinner, is there chicken on the menu? Maybe you want to do a really adventurous excursion, but not everyone is physically able to participate, can you do that excursion with a smaller group at a different time? Remember that your group trip is mostly about the group and making memories together.
Accommodation and Dining Options: Depending on your group size, most places will be able to accommodate your group, whether it is a campground, hotel, resort, or cruise line, but this is likely to require some planning well in advance. The trickier part will be accommodating everyone for meal times. Again, depending on the size of your group you may all be able to eat dinner at the same time, but maybe at different tables or maybe the resort or restaurant has a private dining room that can accommodate your group, and the camp ground may have a pavilion area that can accommodate your group. Creativity is your friend in situations like these. If you have a big group on a cruise and the goal is to eat dinner in the main dining room every night together (my favorite thing to do), but have multiple tables, then maybe each night the seating arrangements change so that everyone gets a chance to sit with a different group each night. If there is no pavilion area at your campground, find a nice large piece of land and have a group picnic. Use your imagination and have those giant group dinners.
Group trips take some planning but don’t worry – contact Feeling Beachy Travel, and we can help with the ins and outs of the trip while you focus on packing.
~ Krista
