No, you don’t need a shared bank account to travel with friends. Here’s how to avoid conflict

on money

Last week, I found myself splitting the tab with a group of friends I’d never travelled with before.

We were a mixed bunch, from steak lovers and vegetarians to non-drinkers and wine enthusiasts. Our supermarket shopping carts had no rhyme or reason.

In the end, we avoided conflict by setting expectations in advance and, for this particular trip, we agreed to split the bill evenly, assuming that some people saved in one category where others spent more and vice-versa. We also decided to settle up all at once on the last day of our trip, avoiding any awkward conversations down the line.

That said, there’s no shortage of horror stories of friendship-ending travel . A recent PayPal survey found U.S. adults were owed an average of $926 for group expenses such as dining and tra