Pros and Cons of Traveling with a Small Group
Written by Drew September 29, 2015
At this point, I’m completely settled into my dorm in Paderno del Grappa, Italy, I’ve met some amazing people, and I’m having a phenomenal time. However, I still have not unpacked my suitcase yet. Please don’t tell my mom.
In my short time at the program, I completed several orientation programs as well as taking two trips to cities in Italy. One trip was to a neighboring city, Bassano del Grappa, and another was to the home of Romeo and Juliet (Verona).
One aspect I’ve noticed thus far: Damn, this country is beautiful.
Another aspect that I’ve experienced is the struggle to find a functional group to travel with. It’s a difficult thing to deal with since everyone wants to group together to go to the same place at the time.
I find the best thing to do is to find a small group of 3-5 people to travel with on your journeys. In this post, I will elaborate on the pros and cons of traveling with small groups.
Pros:
#1. Find people that you like to travel with.
The best part of traveling with a small group is that it is much easier to find people with a similar travel as you have. If you can find a small group of people with the same type of travel style as you, you’re going to have a much better experience.
When I say travel style, I mean something like: Does that person like to plan? Does that person like to go out at night? Does that person want to sit down at a restaurant every time eating? These are some things to consider when you are trying to find a group to travel with.
If you are able to find a small group that travels like you want to, your travel weekends will be that much better.
#2. Small groups are so much easier to travel with.
The simple fact is that managing a small group of people as opposed to a large group makes your trips that much easier.
There are so many headaches that can arise when traveling with big groups. For instance, when you want to go to eat, it is much easier to find a restaurant for a small group than a group of ten+ people.
By traveling with a small group, you can avoid these types of headaches.
#3. Small groups won’t be spotted as obnoxious Americans.
When traveling in big groups of Americans, it’s obvious that you are tourists. And, quite honestly, those large groups are loud and obnoxious.
By traveling in small groups, you can avoid this hassle of being loud and obnoxious while traveling within your destination.
Cons:
#1. Leaving people out.
I struggled to find multiple cons to traveling with small groups; however, leaving people out was the main aspect that crossed my mind.
It’s difficult to plan with a small group because you feel like you want to include everyone into your travel plans. And, when you plan in small groups, you may feel like you are leaving people out.
Yes, it’s tough. I get it. However, just realize that traveling in small groups will make your and their travel experience that much better.
To wrap this post up, I find the best group to travel with to be 3-5 people. Although one big con, there are numerous pros you can gain by doing traveling in small groups. I highly recommend traveling with a small group for your study abroad trips.
Blogger: Drew, The University of Iowa
