When people find out that I travel both domestically and abroad I usually get questions of intrigue. Where have you been? How was such and such place? When they find out that I travel alone the questions become laced with concern. Is it safe? Aren’t you worried? What does your mother think? What often starts as a very promising conversation almost always ends with whatever woman or man I am talking to telling me how they could never do what I do. I am here to show every woman that traveling on your own is in every way an attainable goal on most budgets as long as you have the right tools.
You can find my tips for travel safety right here.
Reason One: Getting to know yourself and what you want
When you have to stand on your own two feet you learn to figure stuff out. Solo travel will force you to find your voice. You will not have any other choice. How else will you ask for directions to your lodging, get recommendations for food, or find the bathroom?
Traveling by yourself will hopefully help remove the pressure that often comes by traveling with others. Every like and dislike that you have is valid when you are by yourself.
You can research a whole day of activities and then spend the whole day drinking wine in your underwear. Eat the food you desire, and you don’t have to take someone else’s opinion into consideration. You have the time to binge watch a show or read a book (fun fact: Netflix plays different things in different countries. I spent a whole day in Greece watching Outlander.)
If you really just need a nap, or a long walk, or a huge cup of ice cream, you can get it. The most important thing is that you can get it without guilt.
Reason Two: It is a confidence builder
How many movies are out there about women who drop it all to head out to a new land and rediscover themselves? Under the Tuscan Sun anyone? I can remember being in Italy at 5:30 in the morning, crying, sweating, and dragging my rolling luggage down a cobblestone path. Why? I had miscalculated and thought that I would be able to use this taxi app that I found in Rome all over Italy. I was wrong.
What worked in Rome did not work in Florence. I ended up grabbing all of my stuff and booking it the 0.8 miles to the train station. If you haven’t experience it just let me tell you that rolling luggage on a cobblestone path is a real buzz kill. Doing it at 5 or so in the morning, in the dark, is a new circle of hell.
By the time I got to the train station I had minutes to spare. I frantically searched the travel board for the location of my train (which was leaving in 2 minutes) and could not find it. I asked security and they told me that the train had already left. It didn’t leave on time. Noooooooooooo, it left early. Less than 5 minutes before I arrived.
Here I am, in a foreign country and I have no train ticket or friend to call. I was on my own. Luckily it was a simple solution of buying another ticket (so long $76 to replace what had been a $11 ticket). I got on another train about an hour later. I made it to Naples safely.
That evening, as I looked out over the sea I realized how accomplished I felt. While it in no way was a massive deal it was still a problem that I was able to attack and rectify on my own. I feel that way after every trip. I have become better at public speaking, I am less introverted, I have stopped walking with my head down, I am overall more excited about life because I know that I am capable and “things” are possible.
Reason Three: Solo travel is a cure to boredom, loneliness, and wasted weekends
Sometimes you just want to get out and do things. A vacation doesn’t have to meet some sort of time requirement. Do you only have or can you only afford a weekend away? Do you want a staycation where you try new restaurants? Is there a destination that you want to try but no one else wants to go? Do you work a job where your availability doesn’t match up well with others?
While it may be scary, you really can go by yourself, and travel around your country and abroad. A weekend trip to Vegas, or a road trip through the Southeast USA, or a week long vacation in South America are all attainable goals that you can accomplish with proper planning.
I once worked with a woman who lived with her daughter, and her husband worked in the oil fields and was often gone for months at a time. Despite living her whole 40 something years in Houston, Texas she had only been to El Paso. She would ask me to bring her back post cards from my travels because she wanted pictures of what other places looked like.
Despite wanting to see other states and countries she was too afraid to go by herself and had no one to go with. Sometimes a long trip isn’t affordable or maybe there are other obligations like kids or a significant other. All of your excuses are valid but they also don’t matter. Travel can be an attainable goal for anyone if properly scaled.
Reason Four: Solo travel doesn’t have to be a permanent state
I know plenty of people who have built their own personal travel tribe through their solo travels. There are more people out there than you can imagine that travel by themselves, and they are often open to connecting with others. Your new best friend, travel buddy, or maybe even a new boo thang could be a car, plane, train, or boat ride away.
If you are looking for people who can inspire and encourage you they are out there and once you become more comfortable with solo travel the next, the bigger, and the better trip starts to feel like it is only a few clicks or taps away.
I have gone apple picking with a woman that I met in a dinner. One of my Airbnb hosts once invited me to his mother’s birthday party at a private beach in Seattle. I have received dinner recommendations from people on the train. Sometimes it is as simple as someone offering to help you take a picture. While it is a staple for me, solo travel can be a starting point for someone else while they build a circle of like-minded people.
Reason Five: Experiences over things
Gaining both experiences and things doesn’t have to be mutually exclusive but the experience of travel often outweighs the cost. If it wasn’t for my road trip to the Grand Canyon I never would have found my love for Texas where I currently live.
I have had the pleasures of having authentic Greek Yogurt. I’ve traveled the Italian countryside. I have seen the ancient ruins and stuck my toes in the Pacific Ocean. I’ve also been a tourist in my own town and learned about the city that I live in. While I have bought the tickets and the trinkets, the experiences were priceless.
So there you have it, five of the many reasons that you should start planning your solo vacation. Whether it is your first or 100th, it is always worth it. Comment below about some of your solo trips or solo trip dreams.