Here’s why taking solo vacations is even *more* important when you’re in a relationship

When you’re in a relationship with someone, most of the milestones revolve around doing things together: moving in together, meeting the parents together, getting a pet together, and going on trips together, for example. And while we love that last one — going on a romantic getaway with your partner can be very fun — it’s also crucial that coupled trips don’t make up all the traveling you do. The truth is, when you’re in a relationship, solo travel is even more important.

Yup, you should totally take solo vacations — especially when you’re happily coupled.

For some reason, a lot of people still perpetuate this idea that couples literally should never leave each other’s side, especially for big things like trips. People thing if one partner does vacation alone, that something is totally wrong with their love life. (We do this to celebs if they even attend a public event alone.) But that’s totally messed up! You don’t have to travel totally alone if you don’t want to, but we highly recommend taking a trip to see your long-distance BFF or exploring some nearby paradise for a long weekend by your lonesome. It’ll be good for your soul and your relationship.

Here’s why:

1Absence really does make things hotter.

OK, we think the old saying was something about fondness, but being away from each other will also spice up your love life. When you’re with a person every single day or night (or close to it), things can get monotonous. Taking solo vacations changes things up. And when you realize how much you miss each other, it’s so much sweeter to come home again.

2It gives you time to think.

Physically removing yourself from a relationship can give you a chance to remember that you’re not one part of couple, but an individual. You shouldn’t spend your whole vacation time reflecting on your relationship, but you might find yourself doing so anyway at some point. Being away from each other is a good way to take the pulse of why you’re in this relationship to begin with. Realizing why you miss someone (or that you actually don’t, at all) is a huge perk of traveling without each other.

3Not all couples like the same things.

You might be in madly in love, but also have different ideas of what a “vacation” should be. If they love going snowboarding and you dig the beach, taking separate spring breaks will give each of you a chance to indulge in your own interests without dragging someone along. As much as you love them, making someone do something they really don’t want to do can ruin the all the fun of a vacation.

4Seeing long-distance friends alone is just better.

If you have friends that live far away, sometimes bringing your S.O. along can sort of diminish the precious catch-up time you have with them. Having to worry about someone else’s mood while visiting your best friend is no fun. Everyone deserves some time alone with their people. Your partner should be happy to let you have that time to yourself to do your own thing.

5You can practice healthy communication.

When you travel away without bae, or they go off without you, you definitely have to have some solid communication skills and trust levels. If you don’t trust each other enough to spend time away from each other on a holiday, that’s a big sign that your relationship might need some work at home first. Traveling solo doesn’t have to mean giving someone a free pass on monogamy, unless that’s something you two have already talked about.

6You’ll have so much more to talk about.

Whether it’s swapping awful airport stories or showing each other all the great souvenirs you picked up, it’s awesome to have different experiences to bring back home to each other. Every time you venture out on your own, you’re just collecting more data about yourself. And the more you know about yourself, the stronger your relationship will be.