Travelling buddies from hell

Going for a vacation is one of the best ways to get away from the hustle and bustle of life.

But travelling with the wrong travel buddies can sometimes turn the perfect vacation into a living nightmare.

We asked some youths about the worst companions they have encountered while travelling abroad. Scroll down for their horror stories!

1. Refusing to spend a single cent in Europe

“She was such a cheapskate. We stayed in Paris and she insisted that we walk all the way to the Eiffel tower because the bus ride was four euros. I kid you not, it took five hours!

“The best part was when we finally reached the Eiffel Tower, she refused to pay 11 euros to go up to the top, so we could only took photos from the bottom of the Eiffel Tower. And then we walked five hours back.

“Needless to say, I never went overseas with her ever again.” – Annabelle Tan, 23, undergraduate

2. Spending S$3,000 on a trip to Hong Kong

“From the moment we touched down, my travel buddy demanded that we should stay in the Mandarin Oriental Hotel instead of our arranged accommodations. It ended up costing more than $1,000 for five nights.

“Not only that, she also insisted on dining in five-star restaurants and using the hotel spa among other extravagances throughout the trip.

“I actually finished spending all the money I brought with me, and I had to call my parents to transfer me S$1,200 to pay for the hotel. It was such a mess.” – Vanessa Teo, 20, polytechnic student

3. She whined non stop for four days

“We knew that our friend had never been away from home without her parents, but we thought that at 19, she could handle a short four-day trip to Bangkok. What’s more, it was with us – a group of old friends she had known for more than five years.

“She whined about the weather and the walking distances. She basically whined non-stop for four days straight. She also refused to try any food that she felt was foreign, and only ate at McDonald’s.

“To top it off, she spent every night holed up in the room Skyping her parents. I wouldn’t say the trip was completely ruined, but it was really quite a downer.” – Lee Jun Hao, 19, NSman

4. Do not expect people to be different on trips

“I went to Korea last year with an army buddy. I would not say he was deliberately being difficult, but he really annoyed me. Being in a new city, I wanted to make the most of my time exploring and trying new things.

“However, my friend woke up at 10 or 11AM almost every day, which ate into our travelling time. Not only that, he kept taking smoke breaks everywhere we went and I had to wait for him while he puffed away.

“I blame myself more for this marred experience. I knew how he was, but I had unrealistic expectations that he will change just because we were on a trip.” – Melvin Chia, 28, financial advisor