Getting Along in RV Travels -Part 1- Tips from Bernice

No two people look alike, think alike, or travel alike-at least most of the time. It’s a wonder that we get along at all! Yet when traveling in an RV, we must try to maintain smooth relationships with all of our fellow travelers because we’re “stuck” together for the duration of the trip. The tips in this article will hopefully help you to avoid turning little annoyances into big problems.

• When hosting another couple in the same RV on a trip, limit the amount of luggage each person brings because of the storage space available. It also helps if the trip is new to everyone so that all are interested in stopping to see the sights and experiencing the adventure for the first time. Courtesy of Bonnie Talbert, New Windsor, MD

• Being together day and night in a small space demands patience, a determination to understand and accept each other, and sometimes real effort to be funny and compatible. Be ready to keep learning about each other, no matter how long you’ve known each other.

• Freedom is basic to camping-freedom to relax, or to shop, or to cook, or to read, or to eat in your own vehicle, or to stay inside when others sit at a group campfire, or to sleep late, or to sightsee. Camping is vacation. Try not to infringe on the freedom of others in your group.

• When you have mechanical or other problems, keep the other people in your group informed as much as possible. When everyone knows what’s going on, they can understand and support the person with the problem.

• When traveling with friends, just as when traveling with your spouse or children, be willing to give and take, be willing to accommodate and accept, be generous and gracious and courteous. Concentrate on the good points of your traveling companions.

• If you are following a leader, refrain from telling the leader what to do. Instead, offer encouragement and support.

• A simple thank-you builds good relations. For example, thank your friends for waiting for you if you have been delayed at a rest area or looking for booklets at a welcome center.

That’s what I have for today. I’ll be back with more…

Bernice Beard