Carlitta

Do you find that when travling with your spouse or significant other that it brings you two closer together? or do you get tired of each other faster?
Just curious. It brings me and DH closer.. We love the quality (uninterrupted) time together when we travel. Fires up the romance again. Where is the most romantic place you've traveled?

Marie

Dear Carlitta, hubby and I have been married almost 38 years. Kids are grown and we are retired. Admittedly our daily routine becomes somewhat dull on occasion. Travelling together is a real change of pace, the experience of seeing something new and experiencing different scenery and lifestyle definitely brings us closer. The more romantic place we've been? hmmmmm......almost anywhere in New England I would have to say. Thanks for asking - a nice question.

Ess

Fortunately, my significant other is fun to travel with. At home, he's the more "practical" one, but when we're away he's game for just about anything, and he never whines. Travelling together doesn't make us closer necessarily, but the change of scenery and routine definitely lets a breath of fresh air into the relationship, keeps it dynamic.

Lilly

Yes traveling together makes us appreciative of the time we have together.. No interuptions. Just quality time alone. You do need that every once in awhile.

MS

I find that my long-time boyfriend and I are closer on vacations however we also quibble a lot because we have to negotiate things daily..what do, where to eat, which way the map says to go..so on one hand it's great, on the other it can be stressful!

Anyone else experience this too or are we just weird?

MS

Emily

We did well on a short trip and i'm hoping that things go as well next year during our three month long road-trip. So I'll let you know in June 2001, wish us luck!

susan

I'm with you, MS. My husband and I always have some lovely romantic times when we travel, but we also drive each other nuts! We're used to spreading out in our house and a hotel room can be rather confining. I hate TV on vacation, he likes it on all the time; I'm a light sleeper, and he likes to wander and read during the night. We don't do too well with maps either, and we get mad at each other when one of us gets us lost. We sometimes go our separate ways for one activity or another, and that helps. We also don't stay angry very long, and the making up is always nice.

maggi

My husband and I have been married 30 years. I love traveling with him because we have experiences and memories that are ours alone. We never travel with anyone, although many people have asked to join us, so we can focus on each other.

Lew

Great question! I have a 13 year old daughter at home, so my wife and I don't get away together often. When we do, I can't say that it brings us closer together - I think rather that it helps us to to appreciate more what is always there. I always enjoy travelling with her, and I must say that she is always willing to try whatever hare-brained ideas I come up with.

Most romantic trip together had to be our honeymoon. Took several days to travel down the Blue Ridge Parkway in October. Gorgeous scenery, fantastic weather, and super times together! Can't ask for more than that, hey?

Nancy

We've been married for 38 yrs., are now rtired and have travel about 8 mos.a year together in our 5th wheel trailer. Sometime we get on each other's nerves, but mostly we have fun together. We do have separate interests and will spend the day apart and meet for dinner. Our most romantic trip was this spring when w spent 3 months travelling around Europe, stopping when we found something interesting and going somewhere new when the weather or area wasn't to our likin g. We had romantic dinners in Paris (actually almost everywhere), wonderful strolls in Venice & Tuscany, saw exotic sights in Morocco, met interesting people everywhere and would do it again in a minute. There is life after retirement - just grab it!

Celeste

Good question. Yes we enjoy each others company when its just me and my spouse traveling alone. Seems more romantic. You can do the things you like without worrying about what others may want to do. Our favorite/romantic destination is Hawaii.. Gorgeous place. Peaceful atmosphere.

angel

Spouse and I are both loners, and together are a very "alone" couple. Traveling together has been terrific! Getting him away from the office does wonders for him, and sightseeing thrills me.

Our only problems are that he's the driver and I'm the navigator -- and sometimes the maps are incorrect or disproportional. We both try to maintain low tones when there's direction confusion.

newlywed

I have two words for travelling with my (now) husband: HOTEL SEX!!!

(now you know why i didn't post my real name, tho' i am a regular!)

most romantic place for us? Newport RI.
perfect combination of a beach, a fun town with good food, historic sightseeing and outdoor activities.

Ess

Good point, Newlywed, I had forgotten that one. God, I AM getting old!

Tissy

Yes we love to travel "alone" together.. We have the best time...
Love driving/flying anywhere...

Janet

I must say, as much as I love my husband (and I think he loves me - hee hee), we DO NOT make good travelling companions at all. And I'm glad to read that other couples have the same dilemma - hubby and I drive each other completely nuts! By car, he wants to drive as far as possible in "x" amount of time, doesn't need as many potty breaks as I do, gets stressed when I don't give him enough fair warning about directions and so on. Once at our destination, he doesn't like to take the time to stop and smell the roses, so to speak, like I do. He's deathly afraid of flying and can work himself into a borderline panic attack - not too good of a person to be around pre-flight. He's a late sleeper, I'm an early riser. I could go on, but you get the point! ;-) We're just not travel compatable at all. Most romantic place we've traveled is to the Monterey/Big Sur area.

Jim

My gf and I have a great time traveling together, but I have to throw in with those who mentioned driving difficulties. I can't stand cars or driving in the first place, and she is an accomplished roadtripper. There have been a few moments of crabbiness while driving, but we always have fun when we get to the end of the road. (Gimme an airplane or a train any day!)

S

When in an unfamiliar area, we make sure my husband is driving and I am reading the map. I'll never forget the time on I-285 around Atlanta: I was driving; He was reading the map; We were in the left lane; He said "Take THIS exit!" as we were already there! If there had been ANY traffic in the area, we wouldn't have made it. Immediately afterwards we stopped & swapped drivers.

Thyra

Great question, I will have to check out the USA message boards more often. My husband and I are really on the go during our regular lives... up at 6 to the office, sometimes he doesn't get home until 11pm at night, we are also involved in arts, and hobbies that take up another chunk of time. Vacations are our single best time to really fire up our romance. We get along smashingly, when we are at home or when we travel. My spouse is the best, he's the navigator, I am the driver, I am the planner, he is the "remember to have fun" guy. Our most romantic location so far has been Paris, France...we honeymooned there and try to get back once a year, with New Orleans and Venice Italy coming in up near the top as well.

lisa

Travelling definitely brings us closer together, but we also have our "moments." Like many of the other couples mentioned here, we are opposites in some ways. I'm the planner and LOVE planning trips that are even a year or more away; he's impulsive and resists making travel plans too far in advance. He takes forever to get ready in the morning, no matter where we are, and can't live without his LONG shower followed by lingering over coffee; I can get up and put on a baseball hat and hit the road in five minutes. He has to photograph and videotape everything we see along the way; I get tired of waiting. But in spite of all that, we travel pretty well together, and by the end of a two-week trip, we both feel a little separation anxiety when it's time to go to work and go our separate ways in real life again. Interestingly, I've noticed that if there is any bickering or tension on the trip, it is almost always at the VERY beginning, within the first day or two -- which leads me to believe that it has more to do with the stress in our everyday lives than it does with travelling together. By the end of the trip we are usually so relaxed that we don't argue about a thing. I really love travelling with him.

The most romantic place we've ever been together is Ladera Resort on the island of St. Lucia -- something about those open-air hotel rooms that lack the 4th wall makes you feel like you're part of the great outdoors