Admit it. You’ve thought about how it would be – dreamt about it too – to just pack your backpack or your suitcase and step out into the world. To just set off to the airport or the train station and see what comes and where you end up…
Of course, if you’ve actually already done the solo travel thing – on your own (just to be doubly clear), well then… respect girl! ? That’s brave. And following through on things is hard for most of us!
And not everyone’s got the … hmmm, we need to find a better term for this but… the ‘balls’ to do it, at least at the get-go. Seriously, it’s hard (stop me). A lot of us girls greet the idea of becoming solo female travelers with both excitement and fear. And over the years, a lot of travel myths have risen from the depths to scare us with their horror stories. This is exactly how our journey planning stops short before it’s begun; the fear is too much, and our thoughts revolve around these issues. Is a trip like this even safe? How would I get in touch with people? What if I feel travel sick?
Stop it, inner me! Just think, according to a study, it’s the actually the female sex who have conquered all corners of the world via solo travel in the last few years when compared with their male counterparts. Hah! In your face travel myths.
Not convinced? Rude, but okay ?. Luckily, I’m gonna write a few more paragraphs to change your mind (and if that doesn’t work, feel free to read again until it does). You’ll find the most helpful and awesome tips – even if I do say so myself – which I have gathered not just from my own experience, but also from the experts…
Solo Female Travelers Tip #1
Ask yourself why you want to be a solo female traveler
According to a Booking.com study, a lot of us ladies are traveling alone simply to feel inspired and refreshed. She wants to gather new experiences and prove herself – to nobody but herself. She sounds like the dream woman!
But that’s not enough! Traveling offers you a new town, it gives you the chance and actively forces you to make new friends or at least meet new people. It means that you get to see the world through completely different eyes! So why not make this your goal? While we’re on the topic of new eyes actually, make sure you bring your camera! You’ll want to keep as much as you can record and keep as much inside you as the situation calls for. You’ve heard people talk of growing right? The feeling you get later on when you’re looking at photos of you actually living your dream will be unbeatable – might even keep you going until the buzz of your next trip hits you. (Oooh, tell me more you say? Discover more here: photography traveling tips from our expert).
Another big reason why girls choose to go it alone is the refusal to wait around for friends or family to get themselves together. Hand on heart, it may sound really (really) great to get the entire gang together and have an awesome adventure together, but planning alone can become a catastrophe. Just getting your friends to agree to go down to the pub on the same evening can sometimes be a struggle. And sometimes, you simply can’t take holiday at the same time in the year. So fair enough, you do you boo (oops, sorry for that last one).
Freedom, curiosity, self-confidence and full decision-making power sound like four pretty decent reasons to cast off alone right?
Solo Female Travelers Tip #2
Pick a destination that is close to your heart
Our first tip on how to join the ranks of the solo female travelers out there might already have thrown you a bit. And as your date of departure looms nearer, the butterflies in your stomach begin a perverse devolution into caterpillars and start eating at your thoughts. ‘Can I still cancel?’ pops unbidden into your head. More than once – believe me. Which is why tip 2 is sooo important. You have to choose a destination which really speaks to you, somewhere that was always important to you, where you always wanted to go. This is your chance!
So why would you cancel? You’ve had the place in your head for so long: What will it be like? What will the people be like? How well it feel, smell, sound? You get the picture. You’ve imagined it a thousand times before and it is high time to live it too (and then to not cease talking about it for weeks afterward, duh!)
Need inspiration? We know more than a few cool places…
Solo Female Travelers Tip #3
Dinner for one? Oh god, noooo!
Sure, a little snack on the go is no skin off my nose. Getting lunch at a stretch – I can handle it. But dinner? It seems like dinner should be enjoyed in good company. Which, actually, is fine. Solo traveling does mean that you’re not allowed to speak to other people. You don’t need to be alone every second and there’s no reason why you should be either!
In the evening especially (conveniently for fellow eating-dinner-alone-aphobes), there are a lot of excellent chances to eat dinner together with other people. For example, by taking a cooking course. Or even more private: dining as a guest at someone’s house. There are platforms for this. Really! You can use them to meet people who you can do things with and play host. Pretty exciting – you can 110% meet someone you get on with.
Having friends living all over the world is nothing to complain about. Think of the possibilities of future places to stay or access to great local advice or a future much-anticipated guest in your own country!
Find out more about the solo female travelers topic here!
Solo Female Travelers Tip #4
A nod to safety
Having spoken to a good number of much-traveled and wisened travel bloggers, we found that the number one tip in relation to safety was almost always, ‘listen to your gut’. But not just that… In uncomfortable or threatening situations, try to lose yourself in the crowd. Kind of camouflaged. What I mean is, there’s no need to advertise yourself as a tourist or a foreigner. This will be more apparent with Google Maps out on your phone as you walk along, or if you are constantly asking for the way. A confident walk and a bit of research before you leave the house will stand you in good stead.
If you’re in need of travel apps specifically for solo travel, take a look at our top travel apps and take your pick!
Solo Female Travelers Tip #5
Climb aboard the trends-train
Yep, a lot of life is played out on social media, or it seems to be. But this can be a positive! Just take a look at Instagram to find the emerging or hipster places for travel. Whether it’s Marrakech or a new must-see, or alternatively some sort of travel gadget that every travel blogger is dying to get their hands on, you can hold your own. Instagram always knows best. ?
If you’re still kind of clueless as to where to look for these new trends, don’t panic. Deep breaths. We have got the hottest travel trends of 2018 all summed up for you. So it couldn’t be easier to find everything you need for the journey!
Powerful stuff, huh? Join the thousands of badass women who are going back year after year to traveling alone – there’s a reason they do it again! And if you’re a seasoned solo traveler, well, make sure to comment with some powerful tips of your own!
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