Noticed how so many people relate to the story of the failed group trip with friends? The reasons vary. Sometimes people drop out, other times people fight and sometimes the WhatsApp group gets quiet and the plan dies only for it to be revived a few months later and die -again.
Also noticed how no matter what, somehow the hope remains that one day the group trip will happen? That inspired me to write this mandatory blog post with tips for how to plan a group trip with friends that actually happens.
Share this in your friendship WhatsApp groups and make sure that this time, the group trip happens.
How to plan a group trip that actually Happens:
agree on the T&Cs of the group trip at the start
To prevent the whole group trip plan from falling apart it’s best to agree on the terms & conditions before doing anything else. If you are booking the group trip through a travel agency, those T&Cs in your contract are not enough when you want to plan a group trip with friends.
Expect that someone will drop out of the group trip – life happens and sometimes people simply change their minds. Expect that someone might delay a payment. Consider everything that could go wrong while planning your group trip and agree on what the outcome will be in each scenario.
So what should you include in your terms & conditions? Here are some questions that your terms & conditions should answer:
- By when does everyone have to commit to be included in the group trip?
- How do you prove your commitment? Written word? Deposit?
- If you are putting the trip together democratically, if there is a 50/50 tie in a vote, what happens?
- If someone drops out, do they get their money back?
- Does the reason for someone dropping out change any outcome?
Build on this list for your group trip. Be as specific as possible and think of all possible scenarios.
It’s not dramatic to go as far as typing the terms & conditions out and making everyone sign on them. This is friendship saving advice! And if compiling this causes an argument, I am positive it is better than any argument that would arise without it in the end. This also could make each person think a little harder before dropping out of the group trip.
Focus on Getting The Admin Right
Admin can be the glitch that gets in the way of group trips actually happening. To plan a group trip with friends, you have to put in effort and do some research. Will you need to apply for VISAs? Is a vaccination a requirement for your destination? If any of the key requirements is missed your whole trip could flop.
You have to get the admin right. You can consider assigning one or two people the role of taking the lead on admin. That person would make sure that everyone is aware of the admin requirements for the trip but each person still needs to be responsible for actually getting it done. To find out what admin you need done for your group trip, read blog posts, call your airline, contact your Airbnb host.
Assuming everyone knows something that may be obvious to you is not a good way to go. Rather state the obvious when you plan a group trip with friends.
Then there is the mandatory passport check – is everyone’s passport valid? Does everyone know what makes a passport valid? Does everyone have a passport??
Related posts: Back to Basics: Passports
Set strict deadlines
The more structure you have the more likely your group trip will actually happen. An important part of creating structure is setting strict deadlines for travel planning milestones. Set a deadline for choosing your vacation destination, a deadline for confirming travel dates, a deadline for confirming who is going on the trip etc.
When you suggest having deadlines it might happen that everyone agrees but is not really helpful in terms of suggesting actual dates. This can be frustrating because it really does not help if everyone says they don’t mind which dates are chosen. If that’s what happens, step up and be the one to suggest the dates and allow people to object and make alternative suggestions.
Once the deadlines have been set, they now need to be followed. Place alerts in your calendar so that you don’t forget them and encourage all group trip members to do the same. You could even set reminders a few days before the deadline is reached.
If you end up being the only one reminding group members about deadlines, don’t be frustrated by this. Simply, proudly own this important responsibility. Because everyone agreed on the deadlines together, the people enforcing the deadlines won’t come across as ruthless dictators.
Brainstrom with shared online lists
If you are trying to choose your accommodation democratically, this can be tricky. Here’s how it usually goes. Each person does their own individual browse through platforms like booking.com or Airbnb and then reports back to the WhatsApp group with links to their top picks.
There are people who send a million links and others who send none. Then there’s the vote and the one who sent no links has the loudest opinion. LOL
While that method can lead to a decision, EVENTUALLY, there is a way to make this smoother using Airbnb lists. If you want everyone to chip in on the accommodation options for group travel, I find it works well to use Airbnb shared lists. Everyone can view, add and remove accommodation listings from your group’s online list. This is a huge time saver and works much better than everyone sending individual links to a WhatsApp group.
You can find an explanation on how to use Airbnb lists in my post about using Airbnb efficiently. It’s super easy and everyone that wants to plan a group trip with friends should consider it.
Allow flexibility in your group trip itinerary
Because you might have different interests and likes I find it works well to allow for flexibility in your day-to-day vacation itinerary. If you decide to do as much planning ahead of the trip by starting to look into the activities you will do and the attractions you will visit, then this advice is for you.
Brainstorming on things you will do is a really fun part of the travel planning process. This is also the part when you discover that not everyone is enthusiastic about hiking to the waterfall you came across on Instagram. Others may be looking more forward to walking through the markets or simply relaxing at a spa. This is not the time to start judging each other’s preferences.
Remember that this group trip belongs to each person equally. Additionally, you don’t want someone dropping out because they don’t feel the itinerary suits them.
So how do you fit everyone’s must-do activities into one group trip? Instead of arguing about it and trying to convince everyone that your waterfall hike is a good idea, allow enough free time in your itinerary for everyone to split up and do what they want to.
This is what I do on every Gophari Travel group trip, there is always time for everyone to adventure off in smaller groups, pairs or even alone to do other things they want to do.
Keep the group trip planning fun
Some simple advice that goes a long way: remain kind and keep the group travel planning process fun. During quiet moments in the travel planning process, share beautiful images of your travel destination with your travel squad. Share a pic of the hat or outfit you just purchased for your trip. Countdown the months/weeks/days to the group trip. Drop a message reminding everyone how amazing your group trip is going to be. Get excited together!
Positivity and enthusiasm is so encouraging in the travel planning process. It makes the admin feel less heavy and it keeps the ultimate goal in the forefront. This also helps ease any nervousness and doubt amongst people who may be traveling for the first time.
Those are my tips for how to plan a group trip that happens. If you prefer to solo travel, learn from other solo travellers who have shared their best solo travel advice. Happy planning!
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Brilliant advice Far. It actually gives me hope. I hope everyone reads this.
Thank you Yolisa! I hope everyone reads it too
defos trying this because group trips are hard. lol. Thank you.
I have never tried group trips cause i have the stigma on it never happening but i think this will set good grounds for any group trip in the future
I am a retail worker and love living a fun and adventurous life, love seeing new places and ppl. My question is I work 7 a week through the year and get 2 week’s leave a year and my off days are 3 days a month, is it possible to be on one of the trips and is there a cheap way of have the same outing?
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