Cruise ships crowd the port of Puerto Vallarta, Mexico
One of the first things you learn the hard way as a solo traveler is that your choice of a roommate does make a difference.
At first, the attitude is “I’ll go with anyone who will go with me!” Well, you’d better take a step back, because that statement may come back to bite you.
The selection of the person who will share that teeny tiny cabin on a seven-plus-day cruise could make or break a vacation you’ve saved all year to enjoy. Minor irritations can quickly flare into major confrontations for the neat freak and/or territorial roommate versus the untidy or what-is-yours-is-mine companion. And there’s no place to hide.
A snoring roommate may be the end of a good night’s sleep for the entire trip, especially if you live alone and are not used to someone else in the room. And, yes, women do snore—on occasion. It’s a well-guarded secret.
You’ve spent a lot of time investigating your destination, flights, hotels and cruise accommodations. Spend a little time getting to know your proposed roommate. Here are a few tips.
1) Pick someone you’ve traveled with before (best case)
2) Select someone you know well and get along with well (no guarantee, but second best case)
3) Talk to your proposed roommate about her lifestyle to get an idea of how compatible you two are
4) Know your tolerance level (if you are easy going, you may be able to get along with the X-factor regardless)
5) Ask others who have traveled with your proposed roommate about how it went (listen closely to the choice of words)
If your roommate is also to be your companion, be sure to discover whether you have interests in common. You may need to determine early in the trip how you want to split your sightseeing time to satisfy two sets of travel goals. Be open to new interests, and share your enthusiasm for your own.
Should you and your roommate prove to have adverse interests, don’t worry. Cruise ships have so much to offer these days, and shore excursions are guided. It’s nearly impossible to avoid meeting new and interesting people in the dining rooms, spas, decks, and classes onboard ship. You are not alone unless you choose to be alone.
No. 4, knowing your own tolerance levels, is essential. Sometimes it’s just worth paying the single’s supplement.
After 30 years as a writer and editor in the newspaper and magazine publishing industry, I have retired to travel. This blog is a journal of my adventures.