Looking for Love? 5 Reasons Why You Should Go On a Group Trip Instead of Downloading a Dating App 

In the era of Tinder, Bumble, Hinge and what not, I'd like to tell you about how I've seen multiple people find love on group trips. As a trip leader, I of course want people to get along and bond. But as a crazed Bollywood fan and a cheesy romantic at heart, I'm overjoyed when strangers end up falling in love while travelling. What can I say, I'm just a girl standing in front of a group of strangers asking them to find their soulmate!

Okay, okay, it isn't necessary but you know it does happen. There's no denying that. So, here's 5 reasons why a group trip might be a better bet for you to pursue matters of the heart than an algorithm driven app because you get to:

1) Witness the many moods of your prospective partner

A group trip comes with detailed logistical planning but Mother Nature can switch up all plans if she wishes to. If you find yourself stuck in a landslide, struggling during a trek, combating altitude sickness or more, that's when you get to see how someone handles such a situation. Do they get grumpy or cranky? Do they extend a hand for help? Do they stay motivated and push others along as well? You'll see a side to your crush that no fancy candle lit dinner can even begin to show you.

2) See the real them instead of the reel version of them

Dating can be exciting but it also involves playing a lot of dress up. Whether it's the pictures you post or the outfit for a first date, I'm guessing that that won't be you on most days of the week. And, what is love but accepting your partner even when they doze off with their mouth openly drooling? Haha yep. People may come eagerly ready with outfits for their trip but long road journeys, freezing temperatures, late night chilling sessions at 4am, all give you the chance to show someone how you really are. Hey, if they adore you in your old PJs, they're a keeper!

3) Interact without the horrors of ghosting

Dating apps come with a set of unsaid rules. There's playing "the chase", there's ghosting and there's even sending of some ghastly pictures... gosh! Now my theory is that either you can get to know a person or you can toe the line of all these rules. On a trip though, you may strike a conversation with a person, it may go great and you may take it forward. Even if it does not, you can simply chill with them as a group without the stress of playing by all the norms. It's always better to pass a friendly smile over the bonfire instead of leaving someone on read, isn't it?

4) Converse beyond word count bound bios

Ever felt like a word count adds too much pressure for you to sound intriguing, witty and original, all at the same time? How about you grab a cup of tea at a dhaba, ask someone about their life and get to learn more about them? Moreover, one's idea of travelling also tells you a lot about their outlook towards life. If they're a backpacker maybe they're easygoing, if they're a luxury traveller maybe they like things a certain way, if they interact with locals politely, they could be humble; somethings are picked up on only in person. And unlike spaced out interactions, you get to see what someone is like on a day to day basis for nearly a week.

5) Observe what joy truly means to them

I know someone out there while reading this may be thinking that a trip is a vacation and not someone's regular life, so, you don't know if they're like that at all times. Maybe. Yet one can't even put up a pretence for that long. Besides human beings reactions to nature are unrestrained and unfiltered. Tearing up on witnessing their first snowfall, gushing on spotting a shooting star, hooting when they reach the top of a mountain, laughing without constraints during a water fight; these aren't reactions that you can measure or control. Travel with someone and you'll learn what joy means to them. And, who knows maybe they could bring joy to you too! 

I've seen a game of truth or dare lead to an actual relationship, I've seen giving a hand during a hike lead to holding hands later in life, I've seen conversations under starry skies lead to confessions of all kinds of emotions. None of the above is to say that dating apps don't work, because they do for many and that's great. The above is just to tell you that if you wish to get to know someone while also getting to know yourself a little better, you can. Travel opens up a side of people that often they don't even know about themselves. And, who knows, you could either fall in love with a stranger or you could even fall for yourself a little more.

Have you ever found love on the road? Share your story with us here and inspire all the romantic travellers out there!