5 Types of Friends You Actually WANT to Travel With

Like most things, travel is best enjoyed with friends. Sure, alone time is great every once in a while, but there’s nothing quite like seeing the world with your closest friends.

Of course, it’s not always as easy as it seems. Long vacations have a tendency to reveal a lot more about our friends than we’re comfortable with. You could end up with several sleepless nights because of a friend who snores like a dying gorilla.

Hopping from one spot to another becomes a pain in the arse when you’re with someone who would lose to a snail in a footrace. And there are few things worse than missing your plane or bus because one of your companions takes 2 hours to blow dry her hair.

This sounds absolutely horrible, but sometimes it’s best to choose the friends you travel with. When you’re in an unfamiliar place, you’re going to want to be with people who do more than take selfies all day.

THESE are the types of people you want to travel with:

Ideal Travel Friend #1: The Obsessive Compulsive Planner

They’ll make lists for everything AND enjoy doing it!

For movie nights and spontaneous inumans, the O.C. planner friend isn’t much fun. However, when it comes to itinerary planning, booking of flights, preparing necessary maps, and making sure everyone is on time for everything, he/she is invaluable. Sure, you might feel like slapping the person when you get his 5AM wake up call, but you’ll be thankful when you’re NOT part of the group of late passengers who get all the nasty looks for delaying the flight.

Ideal Travel Friend #2: The Photographer

Yes, they take a lot of selfies. Yes, they’ll ask you to help carry their gear around. Stopping for an extra 15 minutes at must-see spots will be a pain, and you’ll probably get tired of posing for the camera because “I’m trying to get the exposure right!”

He’ll do ANYTHING to get a good picture

At the end of the day (or trip) though, you’ll be thanking them when all your friends ooh and ahh at all the Coron sunset pictures you’re tagged in.

Besides, would you really rather be in front of the lens or behind it? (BONUS: be extra nice to them and they might be willing to Photoshop a few pounds off your bilbil before posting your pictures online)

Ideal Travel Friend #3: The Foodie

How your foodie travel buddy sees the world

For a lot of people (looloo reviewers, especially) trying out different cuisines is one of, if not the top priority when checking out new places. Expect your foodie friend to have a list of all the must-try restaurants at your chosen destination, and the expected budget for each place even. For example, would you really want to miss out on Kinabuch’s crocodile sisig when traveling to Palawan? Beetle Larvae at Balaw-Balaw in Angono, anyone?

Ideal Travel Friend #4: The Light Packer

The Light Packer will never have check-in luggage, will never bring his or her own toiletries, and will even do laundry in the hotel bathroom sink to reduce the number of clothes he/she will have to take for the trip. The benefits of having a light packer with you might not be explicitly clear at first, but it’ll really pay off in the long run.

Don’t be that person.

They’re not slowed down by unnecessary weight when you’re walking around town, saving you and your friends the hassle of stopping every 5 minutes to wait for the laggers. Having all that extra luggage space means that if you’re nice to them, you could probably “rent” out some of that space for the extra kilo of Zubuchon lechon you bought as pasalubong.

Ideal Travel Friend #5: The YOLO Friend

Almost dying. Funner with a friend. Photo Credit: Rules of the Trifecta

Whether it’s cliff-diving at Ariel’s Point, or sandboarding in Paoay, a bit of adventure is always welcome when traveling. When you feel like letting your hair down (or taking a 50-foot leap into the sea), you’ll be glad to have that YOLO friend around to give you that extra push (whether literally or figuratively). There may be times when he/she will get a bit overeager when it comes to trying stuff out, but would you really want to pass up on the chance to BECOME A MERMAID FOR A DAY??

Look back at your last trip’s photos and spot which travel buddy type you and your friends fall under! Did we miss anyone? How about some ideas for our list of friends you’d HATE to travel with?