The struggles of dating while traveling are REAL! I firmly believe that no matter what phase of the relationship you are in, it never gets easier. Ever. Traveling/being together 24/7 brings out the sides of you that you try to hide. It also presents you with real problem-solving situations and also some VERY awkward situations. Like how thin the bathroom door is when you really have to go….

But, what doesn’t kill you, or your partner, only makes you stronger! And let me testify to you that traveling with my partner in crime only made us stronger and more committed.

A few years ago, I moved West Yellowstone, Montana after living on Oahu for four and a half months.

To read more about Oahu, click HERE!

It. Was. Amazing. I moved there, broke up with my Hawaii boyfriend and then, unknowingly, met my husband.

We were friends first, doing the usual game nights, nerd nights, and Nintendo 64 nights and over the course of 5 months, we fell in “like” with each other and started dating. BUT before that happened, we had planned a big ol’ friend trip to Belize. During the planning process, we started dating and after only one month of dating, we took a month long trip to Belize that would test and try our flowering relationship.

Our first big challenge as a new couple was getting through the horrors of the airport…

Specifically the Atlanta airport. It was our first true challenge of dating while traveling. I can honestly say we almost didn’t make it as a couple! Patrick turns into a demon in airports. Needless to say, it was shocking. In his defense, though, our stay in the Atlanta airport was rough. We had a long layover from 11 pm – 7 am, and they would not let us in the terminal to wait. Patrick just couldn’t cope with that, and I just couldn’t cope with him not coping. It was a definite test for both of us.

We spent time at a nearby waffle house and then tried our best to sleep in the airport entrance during the endless announcements…. it didn’t work.

Once we got on the plane and arrived in Belize, things cooled down. Traveling through Belize is super easy…We rented a car for our first week and then took the local buses everywhere after that.

Our next fight was only a week-ish into the trip while staying on Caye Caulker…

The first night we spent there, I genuinely wanted a night to myself. I was tired of hanging out with “the boys” and hearing guy talk (which was particularly offensive to my ears). So they all went out to dinner, and I stayed at the cabana to write in my journal and Facetime my dog, who I missed very much.

Around 10 pm, I started to wonder where they were but didn’t worry. At midnight, I went to bed and around 4 am I was woken up by the smell and noise of “the boys”. Needless to say, I was a little mad. After an hour of trying to sleep through the smell and snores, I got up and walked to the end of a dock to read, write, and watch the sunrise over the ocean. It was one of my favorite moments of this trip.

Patrick and I were able to go eat fry jacks and talk it out before going on our personal sailing and snorkeling trip. He even brought me a little flower. Another perk of dating while traveling? The fact that you’re traveling.

Our next big fight of this trip was full of ugly crying and a blow out.

I don’t consider myself a modern day feminist. But I do demand to be respected and for that respect to extend to my gender and general humanity. That being said, the next fight was not with Patrick, but with his friend.

We took a bus to Dangriga, Belize. On the bus was a nursing mother. As you may not know, nursing publicly outside of the USA is a very normal thing. As it should be…Apparently this fellow couldn’t maturely deal with seeing a nursing mother and over dinner, when asked how the bus ride was for him, he said “bla bla bla but at least I got to see a boob!”

Needless to say, I flipped out (not my proudest moment) and stormed out of the restaurant with Patrick close behind.

That night we hashed out a lot of things regarding how I expect me and my gender to be treated/talked about in our presence. Long story short, we had a big group confrontation, words were said, tears were shed (not by me), and me and Patrick continued on stronger than ever!

Yet another perk of traveling while dating… the opportunity to learn about each other!

To read more about our explorations of Belize, click HERE!

In short, dating while traveling can be HARD!

It really is. You get acquainted in ways you never really wanted to, like having to fart and poop in very close quarters… You see ugly sides of each other, like the airport rage or rants of social topics. Maybe you’ll discover a deep dark secret (or expose one of your own) that you wanted to keep buried for the rest of your life. Or you might have to strip down to jump into a glacial river!

Really, it could be anything, but what I learned is that you can get through a lot with genuine, open, and honest communication. I’m not implying that this always works. Sometimes, relationships simply aren’t meant to be, and that’s fine. But dating while traveling will definitely help you figure that out real quick! It did for me!

What are some of your dating while traveling stories?

PLEASE SHARE THEM WITH ME! I would love to hear them!