Solo Traveler is now 16 years old. Between us, Janice and I have many decades of solo travel experience. Over this time, we have published over 2,000 articles, a book, and a course; created a membership program with expert speakers, exclusive content, and regular online meetups to help our community through the no travel pandemic times; delivered monthly newsletters and listings of no/low single supplement tours and cruises for solo travelers; and, most recently, Tracey's List, all with the aim of providing tips, advice, and deals to those who love or long to travel alone. Along the way, we've learned a thing or two! While we both travel solo, we don't travel in the same way. We decided to sit down and think about what our own personal favorite advice would be. Here are 7 expert solo travel tips from each of us.
Janice's Best Solo Travel Advice for Women
- Try something new. I have discovered many new interests and likes as I've traveled solo. The big one is hiking. I had never hiked before I started traveling solo. It just wasn't part of my big city upbringing. Then I went to the Lake District, followed by Patagonia and more. Now it's part of my life at home, but more importantly it motivates me to exercise more regularly so that I have the stamina to hike when I'm away. Read Hiking Destinations for Solo Travelers: Easy Trails with Epic Views and Solo Hiking: Essential Tips to Hike Alone and Love It.
- Mix it up in a group. When joining a tour or cruise, don't settle in with the first people you meet. That may seem easy but it could become expected of you that you will join them at every meal or on every tour and that could become awkward. For the first days of a trip, I always eat meals with different people, sit in different places. I mingle. Usually, by day 3 or so, I have a good sense of who on the trip I want to spend more time with.
- Meet locals. I love meeting locals as I travel. The International Greeter Association is a network of volunteer greeters who will take you around their neighborhood or their city. This is a great option for women traveling alone, especially those who prefer a one-on-one tour, rather than being part of a larger group. Meetup.com is an international website where you can connect with locals who share an interest you have. In Hong Kong I went hiking with a local Meetup group. Read Travel Deeper: How to Connect with Locals and How to Travel Alone Without Being Lonely: 10 Tips & 6 Short Stories.
- Sink into your destination. The first moments in a new destination can be a bit of challenge. I like to start with either a walking tour or a hop on-hop off bus. They both give you an overview and point out places where you'll want to spend more time. Also, find out what the locals do. Use the local arts newspaper or a publication like Time Out which is published in major cities around the world. Is it a center for the arts? Take in the theater or galleries. Find a music festival. Go into the neighborhoods.
- Best saving money advice. I like to travel on the cheap so that I can travel more. Accommodation can take a big bite out of your travel budget, but you can save lots if you consider hostels. They're a great way to meet people and save a lot of money. Read The Hostel Experience for Solo Travelers: What to Expect. How to Stay Safe. You don't have to stay in a hostel every night. In Kauai I varied my accommodation from cheap to expensive to get a taste of the good life while stretching my budget. Read Budget Accommodation in Kauai: Four Ways to Stay. More recently I've been using Home Exchange to save money on accommodation: Home Exchange for Free Accommodation Around the World.
- Stay safe. I had one dangerous situation in Paris in my twenties so I know firsthand that safety is important. My number one rule is to stay in public when with new people. Read Solo Female Travel Safety: Advice for What Women Worry About.
- Live life preparing for your travels. Travel takes money, energy, curiosity, and a certain level of physical ability. As you live life at home, do so with intention. Have a savings account specifically for future travel. Read, listen to podcasts, and watch films from different countries to give you a larger context for your travel experience. Stay fit and healthy so that, whether you're rock climbing or navigating cobblestones, you'll have the fitness necessary for your style of travel.
Tracey's Expert Solo Travel Tips
- Hop on, even if you don't hop off. If you arrive at your destination exhausted and suffering from jetlag, take a hop on-hop off bus tour. It requires very little of you so it's perfect if you're low on energy. You'll see a lot and hear a lot even if you don't leave the bus to check out places on that first outing. Plus, you won't feel like you've lost a day and you will get a bit of a lay of the land in your destination and ideas for things you'd like to see and do in the following days.
- Get around a big city safely. I am a very frequent Uber user, both at home and away. Now that I have used it in seven different countries, I feel I can recommend it without reservation. Here’s why:
- Don’t speak the same language as the driver? No worries. As you enter the address directly in the app on your phone, there are no misunderstandings about where you want to go.
- Don’t know your way around? Worried that you’ll be taken the long way to a nearby destination? Don’t be. It’s all tracked-both you and the driver you can see the route on your phones.
- Nervous about getting in a car with a stranger? Normally, we would absolutely advise against it. But in this case, before the car ever arrives, you receive the driver’s name and photo, the make, model, and licence number of the car, and the driver’s rating according to all previous customers. Details of the trip, including a receipt are emailed to you as you exit the car, making follow-up a breeze. As a woman who travels alone, I feel very safe with Uber.
- Travel slow. Given the option, I would almost always opt to take a train rather than fly. Flying may get you there faster, but I find the experience much more pleasant and satisfying on a train. Some trains offer single seats, for those times when you want to get lost in your own thoughts while watching the landscape unfold, and some have dining or bar cars for times when you’re feeling more social. Check out my experience taking trains in Germany and France.
- Take a walking tour soon after reaching a destination. This is one of those expert solo travel tips I wish someone had shared with me many years ago. If you're at all anxious about getting out and about, joining a walking tour at the beginning of your trip will solve the problem. It gives you a time and a place you have to be, then everything will unfold for you. You may meet other travelers you want to see again. You will see things you want to come back to and explore. You will chat with others and become more relaxed in your destination. I love food walking tours for all of these reasons, plus you'll be full by the end and you can get great recommendations for your stay from the local guide. (I took a food tour in Dublin and walked away with recommendations for Galway, which worked out perfectly.) I have often regretted taking these tours late in my trip, so do as I say, not as I do, and plan it early on so you have time to make use of your newfound information.
- Be flexible. Things don’t always go according to plan, and when you’re traveling solo, all of the problem-solving and re-jigging is up to you. Flexibility is key. Being able to see opportunity in situations where things go wrong is also a huge benefit. I took a trip to Europe where nothing—and I mean nothing—worked out as I had planned. Here’s what I learned by adapting to changing circumstances, letting go of some cherished plans, and opening myself up to unexpected options.
- Ask lots of questions. When I first started traveling solo, I was afraid to ask questions. I worried that I would sound stupid. I didn’t want to admit that I was lost, or couldn’t figure out the transit schedule, or didn’t understand how things worked. I would hang back, observe what others around me were doing (sometimes for very long periods of time), pretend that I was just casually hanging out. Not anymore! Now I ask questions of everyone I encounter. For one thing, it’s the best way to find out where the locals eat, what they enjoy doing, and the best way to get around their city. For another, I have found that generally, people love to tell you about their home, and are happy to help.
- Take a class. For me, it’s cooking classes that appeal; for you, it may be something else. You will find that you will gain much more than a new skill. In Prague, I learned some universal truths without even speaking the language. In Barcelona, I met travelers from around the world, and picked up lots of tips about local food and culture from a Michelin star chef. And in both cases, I had a great meal and came home with new recipes so I could recreate the experience. Here are more of our Culinary Travel Experiences Around the World or check out our friend Elena's Creative Travel Tips: Discover More of a Destination and Yourself.
For more expert solo travel tips, check out these articles:
