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The science

Travelling together: closer for a while

Couples who do something new and exciting together report feeling a bit closer, at least in the short term. Families report more bonding after trips. But the studies are small, often without a comparison group, and holidays bring their own arguments.

Evidence: Mixed

Lab experiments on couples are small and later studies disagree; family studies have no control groups.

What the studies show

In lab experiments in 2000, couples given a new, exciting task together reported small immediate gains in relationship quality. Later preregistered work is mixed: feeling that you grow together predicted daily satisfaction, but doing new things did not predict satisfaction two months later.

In 217 Japanese families measured before and after a trip, parents' wellbeing and children's everyday skills rose. There was no comparison group of families who stayed home.

A 2013 review found travel linked with benefits for couples and families, mostly from surveys. Another study noted the tension too: children frustrated by parents arguing or on their phones.

In Morocco

Morocco is easy with children: they are welcomed everywhere, and a camel ride, a beach in Essaouira or the blue lanes of Chefchaouen work at any age. For couples, the desert night and a riad in the medina are the classic shared new things.

Where it stops

  • A trip is not relationship therapy. Nothing here says one will fix a relationship.
  • The family study measured parents' own reports, with no control group.
Sources, checked 2026-11-14
  1. Aron, Norman, Aron, McKenna & Heyman (2000). Couples' shared participation in novel and arousing activities and experienced relationship quality. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology 78(2)
  2. Miyakawa & Oguchi (2022). Family tourism improves parents' well-being and children's generic skills. Tourism Management 88
  3. Durko & Petrick (2013). Family and relationship benefits of travel experiences: a literature review. Journal of Travel Research 52(6)
  4. Lehto, Choi, Lin & MacDermid (2009). Vacation and family functioning. Annals of Tourism Research 36(3)

More of the science

Holidays and happinessThe lift is real, small and short. Looking forward to it counts too.New places and memoryVaried days go with better mood; routine shrinks remembered time.Winter sunMarrakech gets about four times London's December sun. What that does and doesn't mean.Awe in the dunesAwe is a well-studied emotion. Vast places reliably trigger it.The Milky WayMost Europeans can't see it from home. In the Sahara you can.The sea, and surfingCoast visits go with feeling better. Surf therapy: too early to say.Walking in the AtlasA walk in nature lifts mood for hours. Toubkal also means altitude.The hammamNo study has tested it. What sauna research does and doesn't say.Tea with strangersTalking to strangers feels better than people expect. Sharing food builds trust.Other cultures and creativityLiving abroad is linked to creativity. A short trip wasn't.A few words of DarijaNo proven brain boost. Still the best way to start a conversation.

Plan it

Morocco with childrenWhat works at what ageA honeymoon in MoroccoRiads, desert, coast

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