If a friend suddenly refused: a review of services to find companions

1. Overview of the most popular services
2. 1. “We're going to get sick”
3. 2 Poputchik.ru
4. 3 Just a fellow traveler
5. four. Fixmeet
6. five. Team2Travel
7. Eventually

We tell where and how to find new friends on the Internet for traveling. We consider popular Russian services and social networks. We give recommendations on how to have time to find a companion, even if a couple of weeks are left before the holidays.

Spoiler. The article is not about that.

Hi, I'm Yana, the new PR manager at Cupibilet.

The first time I went on vacation, when I was 24 - too late, given the fact that I started full time at 21. And why not? Because there was no one with it: the holidays with friends did not coincide, then friends chose trips to their parents in Barnaul, it turned out that holidays in Europe were unaffordable luxury for the current life stage. I didn’t want to go alone: ​​first, I would have to pay extra for a single occupancy, and secondly, this is somehow quite depressing (I don’t speak desperately - just sadly).

By that time, I had been working without rest for two years and would have continued to work if it had not been a fluke: in the dining room of the business center I met a girl from the next office. She, like me, wanted to fly somewhere, but there was nobody to be with - and that was bingo! - we have found each other. With Lena, we coincided in interests and temperaments, bought a tour to Cyprus and spent there two incredible weeks full of adventure. At first, the office vocabulary continued to fly from the language on the machine: When we made a reservation, we called flight attendants secretaries, and the hotel room was a study room. The symptom of a workaholic went through five days, we completely relaxed and got a taste. Layfkhak: it is desirable to have a rest with frequency which is recommended by the labor legislation.

For the next four years, travels with friends were planned on their own, but in 2016, the problem “no one to go with” was drawn again. Understanding that it’s still not worth reckoning on repeated casual acquaintance in a business center, I went to a seminar of a travel agency. Most of the event - stand-participants: everyone told about themselves and their dream countries. At the meeting, the spark did not flare up to anyone - I left with nothing and with no one, travel speeding failed. But next week in the VKontakte group of this meeting, I met my future best friend.

A year and a half has passed since then. Together we have already visited three countries, but my hopes for a joint vacation are dissipating next summer: I introduced a friend to a long-time comrade, and it seems that they will have a rest in the coming years together. Well, it's time to look for a new tool to find companions.

Overview of the most popular services

It is easy to find a companion on VKontakte and on Facebook - in thematic groups and public groups, users are daily looking for travel companions. According to the classroom parameters, no specialized site stands close to VKontakte and Facebook, and there are dozens of groups in the discussions and on the walls of which people are looking for each other.

For example, regularly updated topic VK group Just Travel.

But the group "Fellow travelers" where every day about a hundred fresh announcements of people from all over the country are published.

Not bad activity in the group «Search for fellow travelers | Looking for companion or fellow traveler "

In Group "Dharma Tramps" meet not only in discussing but also in the comments on the wall.

It is more convenient for residents of large cities to go to local groups: it is better to see them live in advance with your future companion, and it is more fun to board the plane together.

In the Telegram, oddly enough, the channels for searching for companions are few and modest in coverage. For example, in one of the most popular channels “Looking for a companion” a little more than a thousand participants - so if someone is looking for a free niche - welcome. Well, if you know good telegram channels that solve our problem, write in the comments.

At the same time, social networks in Russia are not only VKontakte, Facebook, Odnoklassniki and Instagram. If only because travelers have their own.

1. “We're going to get sick”

One of the most visited sites in Russia for searching for travel companions and dating for sharing time in the city. The service is multi-functional and united by a common idea - useful contacts for a variety of common goals. Here you can find a mate for a trip, fit into a big travel destination (read: join the company of travelers), find friends to learn foreign languages ​​together, engage in pair dancing, take photos of each other or just walk around the city.

Access to user announcements is available without registration. Search filters suggest that you can search for a fellow traveler by gender, age, presence / absence of children, vacation dates and desired travel location (up to 7 countries can be selected at the same time). In fact, the filters work once in a while, and sometimes they output “untargeted” people.

One of the latest innovations is a search for people by the selected geolocation. This is useful, for example, when you are looking for new friends while already in another country. That is something like Tinder for those who do not know about its existence.

Despite the slightly outdated interface and problems of search, “We are turning” is quite a working tool. New tourist announcements are published regularly, users often write themselves, offering their options for traveling and exploring the city.

2 Poputchik.ru

Two in one: a forum and a service to search for travel companions and companions for city / city leisure.

The interface does not look modern, but in a few seconds you can immediately see the sentences of those with whom you are on the way. Set filters for this on the city of start and the desired country of your travel.

Of course, with the application of restrictions, the proposals immediately become many times smaller, but you can in fact go in from the other side - to place your ad.

This is done through filling out a small form.

There are more or less alive forum where travelers meet and share their travel experiences.

3 Just a fellow traveler

A simple and slightly prettier site for all the same purpose. Choose a month, a starting and ending point, get acquainted with the announcements or publish your own.

Lack of service - low attendance and weak user activity. Counting only on him, you will be looking for a companion for a long time.

Parallel thematic direction of the site - airline reviews . Here, by the way, activity is higher than in the section with the search for new friends.

four. Fixmeet

A fresh social network that positions itself as a site for finding new friends for joint recreation, sports, leisure and travel. A simple and easy site where you can also search for a companion.

A chip is a personal calendar in which arrangements for meetings and travel are recorded. It is a pity that they have not yet implemented synchronization with Google Calendar.

five. Team2Travel

Team2travel is a clear specialization: here you are not offered to find a new friend for horse riding or reading by roles - the site is sharpened only for travel. As for the search and the interface - the most convenient and enjoyable network from here considered.

Of the benefits is a thoughtful search: the most popular travel destinations are immediately displayed, at the same time you can choose which company you plan to fit into.

Theoretically, another advantage of the service is the opportunity to get acquainted with the user profile on the social network before responding to the ad and enter into the adventure. Social profiles, however, no one fills, which is a pity.

We will not hide, the site works imperfectly. For example, one authorization through a social network is not enough; registration with a binding to email will be required. But they won't be allowed to register with mail on gmail - the system may not recognize it.

Eventually

1. The main advantage of a specialized service compared to the trend in a social network is filters. By setting the necessary parameters, you can very quickly limit the search results to only those people with whom, for example, your vacation dates and the countries you want to visit coincide. First of all, it saves time.
2. None of the above services can boast a large and high-quality audience, so the advice - try several at once, and better - in parallel with groups in social networks.

At the end of a couple of tips for those in search of a friend or girlfriend for a couple of weeks (or how it goes)

1. The main thing (and it doesn't matter if you are looking for a companion or companion) - turn your head on and be alert. If you have any doubts about the honesty of your interlocutor - it is better out of harm's fold minimize communication. How normal, for example, is that to you - a girl - another completely unfamiliar girl for no reason at all offers to fully cover the cost of your vacation, and even arrange an unforgettable shopping? This is a case that happened to my girlfriend on the site "Makhnem." There is clearly something wrong in this story, and it is better not to tempt fate to find out what it is. There are a lot of schemes of monetary and non-monetary frauds, and it does not matter whether the person you are talking to is the same sex
2. If you meet people on specialized sites - do not hesitate to ask for links to social networks (not instant messengers) in order to continue communication there. The social profile will dot the i. Having transferred communication, for example, in VKontakte, rely on your intuition and facts: look at what a person lives, what is in the sphere of his professional and personal interests - will you be comfortable together? You live in the same room, walk along the narrow streets of Verona, climb the mountains (or whatever you like), communicate, after all.
3. When composing an ad, specify:

• countries, cities (islands) that you would like to visit;

• estimated dates of your trip;

• budget and comfort level;

• format (independently, excursions, combined);

• preferences for leisure: tell us about your temperament and interests: someone wants to soak up the beach, someone considers the rest failed, if he does not visit all the fortresses, churches and natural sights of the region, does not wind several tens of kilometers in the national park. Someone is planning to cook himself, trying local products, someone is planning a break in local restaurants and bars. Joint leave is not the case when you need to pump in yourself acceptance and tolerance - your aspirations, mindset and lifestyle should lie at least in a minimally parallel direction. The more detailed you tell about yourself and your dream vacation, the less time you spend on communicating not with your people. And of course, filter ads for serious inconsistencies with your plans.

4. If you live in the same city, meet. Try to feel how comfortable you will be with each other.

Did you let a new person into your life to spend your vacation together? Tell us, it is very interesting to know your stories.

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