You have never tried solo traveling and don´t know if you should or if it is something for you. Then this post is perfect! We summarized everything we thought was important to take into account before going on your solo travel adventure. It is scary to go abroad and travel completely on your own, especially as a woman, but it brings you such different experiences than traveling with a friend or family.
It is not for everyone, but if you are reading this then it is something you are thinking about doing and we would totally encourage you to try it at least once and then see if it is something you would do again. Trying it maybe not too far away from home and just for a few days and not for a few weeks at first. Seeing how you feel about being alone and basically being on your own abroad. There are so many great aspects of traveling alone!
1. Meeting more people
For me, the absolute best part about traveling alone is meeting so many people from all around the world. Of course,e you can also meet people while traveling with a friend or with your partner but it is easier and happens more often in my opinion when you are on your own. For you and also for other people, it is just less scary to just talk to someone who is traveling alone than to a couple of travelers at once, even though they are sure very nice.
They know that when you travel alone you are mostly open to talking to new people as well. Before I went on my trip alone, I remember that I was so scared that I really would meet new people or I would be alone all the time while traveling. This fear was so unnecessary. The easiest part about traveling alone is meeting new people. You won´t be the only one traveling alone and there will be others that are also alone and want to do stuff with you or just talk to you. Just be open and don´t pressure yourself too much about meeting people and not being alone. Even if you are alone, it is not the end of the world and has its perks as well.
Hostels are a great opportunity to meet new people easily as well as bumble friends or just random occasions during your travels. I met some of my best friends while traveling alone around the world. One in a hostel, one in a language school one just randomly on a bus in Singapore because I liked her tote bag. All those amazing people only came into my world because I traveled alone and was open to meeting new people from different backgrounds and cultures. This also leads to the next point why I would recommend travelling alone to anyone who is interested.
2. Culture Involvement
Traveling alone is argumental better in terms of cultural involvement. Taking from before that argument with meeting more people from around the world. This automatically opens you up to different cultures and gives you the opportunity to learn new things from people who live in other countries and have maybe grown up completely different than you. Also being more aware of your surroundings when traveling alone because you sometimes just watch people and are focused on the surroundings than your co-traveler.
3. Decision making
This includes also decision-making processes. When traveling alone you can and have to make every decision on your own for yourself. Which is sometimes tiring and also annoying when not having someone who is also thinking with you about the next steps making it sometimes easier when you are in a hurry or when you just don´t know where to go next, but most of the time it is so refreshing to just do what you want to do. Do you want to grab a coffee at 7am? Don´t go into the museum? Sit down to eat lunch and not grab it to go?
There is no one holding you back! But you don´t have someone else to discuss everything with. It is easier to have four eyes looking at the board at the airport than just two but everything is doable and if you are lost, you can always ask someone to help you. You are never alone and when you meet new people then you are traveling with someone else faster than you can say “solo traveler”.
4. Growth
In my opinion there is no time where you grow so much as when you travel alone for a bit. More time to think about things as well as learning more about yourself because you are exposed to so many new things. Learning so many more things about yourself and the world helps you to grow in so many ways. It is actually unbelievable what I have learned from traveling. From basics of how to efficiently book and cook etc. to social aspects of how to effortless to talk to new people and make time connections from just seeing one person once, helps me even now when I don´t travel so much alone anymore. Those soft and hard skills help you everywhere no matter if you are abroad or at home. I still make new friends in my home environment, after many years of living here.
5. Cons
Unfortunately, I also have to talk about some cons of traveling alone. Even though I think that the pros outweigh the cons by far, but still. Most importantly mentioning the safety aspect especially when traveling as a solo female traveler to different countries.
Pretravel it is important to make yourself aware of the country you are traveling to to make sure that you travel to countries that are generally safe and not particularly known for crime etc. In the end, it comes down to normal human brain cells, so to say, to not leave the house after dark or only listen to music with noise canceling when being in an unsafe location. Be aware of your surroundings and don´t do dumb things, then everything will be fine. In my opinion, stuff can happen everywhere also probably in your home country.
There will be times when you probably feel a bit lonely or want to talk to someone about your experiences. That is totally normal and part of the whole adventure. Sending pictures to your loved one or calling someone always helps in my opinion! Sometimes it is more expensive when you travel alone than traveling with someone. Especially when you are staying at a hotel because most of the time you have to book a double room, even when you are alone. Staying in hostels is better for making friends and saving money.
All in all, I would totally recommend trying solo traveling at least once in your life. Even after that one time, you learn that it is not something for you, then you don´t have to do it again. If no one wants to go with you to a certain destination then just go alone. What can happen, except for you finally being where you always wanted to go and enjoying your time, doing whatever you want to do, and meeting new friends. Try out new things and don´t be scared to do something alone once in a while because it really is healing in some way to just enjoy doing things alone not only traveling alone but also at home. Have fun on your adventure and we hope you tell us a lot about it!
Feel free to text us on our social media also if you have any questions about solo traveling! We are always happy to hear from you!
Emma
About the Author:
If Emma were a word, she would be „daydreaming“ - the kind of daydreaming that feels more active than dreamy. No matter where she is, you’ll catch her thinking about the artsy city of Melbourne, wishing to take a walk through Central Park, dreaming of seeing the Northern Lights, and so on. The list is long. What’s adorable and also very impressive is that Emma doesn’t stay lost in the haze of her dreams; it won’t be long before the first opportunity appears, and she’ll be on her way to fulfill them.
Emma
About the Author:
If Emma were a word, she would be „daydreaming“ – the kind of daydreaming that feels more active than dreamy. No matter where she is, you’ll catch her thinking about the artsy city of Melbourne, wishing to take a walk through Central Park, dreaming of seeing the Northern Lights, and so on. The list is long. What’s adorable and also very impressive is that Emma doesn’t stay lost in the haze of her dreams; it won’t be long before the first opportunity appears, and she’ll be on her way to fulfill them.
