Travel Solo for the First Time: Complete Guide for Newbies

How to Travel Alone for the First Time

When first-time solo travelers announce their intention to travel alone, they often face a lot of questions from family and friends. The primary one is, “why”? To get this issue out of the way, read about the why of solo travel here.

Now, let's get on to the how.

Preparation for your first solo trip can be broken down into a number of parts. You need to decide:

1. How much you have to spend.
2. Where to go.
3. How to get there.
4. Where you will stay.
5. How long you will stay.
6. How you will travel at your destination.

Huh! Those six decisions look pretty familiar to anyone who has traveled. Yes, much of solo travel is the same as all travel.

However, there is another list, this time of questions, that first-time solo travelers need to consider:

1. Am I ready to travel by myself?
2. How challenging a destination should I consider?
3. Am I comfortable with my own company?
4. Do I want to meet people on my trips or is solitude my objective?
5. What do I need to do to be safe?
6. How do I ensure my loved ones that I will be safe?
7. Am I better to go solo on a group tour or is independent solo travel right for me?

Those seven questions are not the questions that every traveler asks. They are, however, important for first-time solo travelers.

Below, we'll get into tips and advice that will help you answer each question.

Is Solo Travel a Good Idea? The Question of Confidence

Solo travel is a confidence booster but you have to actually travel solo for that to happen. So how do you gain confidence before you go? I have a few suggestions.

• Find your cheerleader. When you tell people about your trip, notice who is excited about it. Spend as much time as you can with those people as they will build your confidence. Try to avoid the naysayers.
• Stop watching crime shows. They are not representative of the dangers in the world.
• Plan how you will stay in touch with home. The fact that you will stay connected will build your confidence.
• Find a local contact. Chances are, someone you know, knows someone where you're going. Get the concept of six degrees of separation working for you.
• Find out if there is a Greeter program in your destination so that you can meet up with a local.
• Be patient with yourself. Take your time. Settle into a destination. There's no rush.

Best Countries for a First Solo Trip

Your choice of destination for your first solo trip is important. It can make the difference between a successful, confidence-building first trip with a future of many more solo trips, or one with mixed results. I suggest that first trips be to destinations where it's easy to find people who speak your language. In your own language, you'll find it easier to navigate, feel safer, and meet more people.

Certainly you can travel your own country. There is always more to see near home. But if you want to visit another country, as many new travelers do, consider Canada, the United States, the United Kingdom, Ireland, Australia, or New Zealand.

You'll find more specific ideas for where to go on your first solo trip here. You may also want to read Destinations That Are Solo Traveler Tested, Best Budget Destinations for Solo Travelers, and this post for those who like hiking and the outdoors.

Travel Solo but Not Lonely

Solo travel need not be a lonely experience. Many solo travelers say that they meet more people traveling alone than they do when traveling with others. After all, you are not focused on a companion. You are open to meeting people and that makes people feel comfortable approaching you.

However, there are things you can do to make sure you have a social experience. Here are a number of posts that will help.

• How to Travel Alone Without Being Lonely: 10 Tips & 12 Posts
• Eating Alone Is Easy When You Know How
• Tips for Shy Solo Travelers

Stay Safe While Traveling Solo

There is so much to be said on this topic, especially for first-time solo travelers.

Here's a link to our Solo Travel Safety: 50 Tips post that covers just about everything you need to know.

Here are a few basics:

• Arrive at a new destination well before dark. Daylight gives you a better sense of the safety of a place.
• Take the business card of your hotel with you when you go out for the day.
• Don't tell people you meet where you're staying. Your accommodation should be your safe zone.
• Be prepared to be impolite if someone is bothering you.
• Always have travel insurance. Since I started to travel at 15 years of age, I've always had insurance. Read: Going Alone? A Complete Guide to Travel Insurance for Solo Travelers in which I analyze the price and benefits of a number of insurance policies.
• Use public Wi-Fi with a VPN. If you're planning to use public Wi-Fi for doing anything that requires security, such as booking a hotel room with a credit card, make sure you have a VPN. Read Best VPN for Travel: What, Why and Feature-Price Comparison.
• Keep your money and credit cards in multiple places. Read How to Manage Money While Traveling.

Remember, as you travel you're in a holiday mindset and a different culture. Both factors will affect your ability to judge situations. To keep you safe in a variety of situations, it's helpful to be clear on your safety rules before going. And, most importantly, trust your instincts.

How to Plan to Travel Alone

If you have decided that you have the confidence, that you are comfortable in your own company, and that you can take care of your safety, you may have decided that you will travel solo independently.

Here are my suggestions:

• Make a budget. Know how much you can spend so that you plan your transportation and accommodation, the two most expensive aspects of a trip, accordingly.
• Know the basics. Before you leave, be sure you understand the visa requirements and spend a few moments to understand the currency exchange. Make sure your passport doesn’t expire for at least three months after your trip ends as some countries have such a minimum for visitors.
• Book your flights/trains. Yes, you check your passport and visa needs first and then book your flights. You don't want to get ahead of yourself, put the money out for a flight and discover later that you have to pay a fee to have it changed. Also, book your transportation so that you arrive before dusk. Everything looks better in daylight and, if your hotel/hostel isn't to your liking, you'll have time to make changes.
• Book your accommodation. Arriving in a new city, not knowing how it works, and still having to find a place to stay can be stressful. Plus, you can end up spending more than you budgeted because you just have to get a place. Read Best Accommodation for Solo Travelers.
• Study a map. Maps provide a bird’s-eye view of a new destination. They give you a sense of distance between places and, therefore, what’s possible to do in a day. You’ll also get a sense of where the areas are that you want to avoid for safety reasons.
• Add important numbers to your phone. Research useful apps for your phone and download them when you have free Wi-Fi. While you may not want to stay connected with home as you travel, important numbers should be in your phone before you leave. Get the front desk staff at your accommodation to help you add important local numbers to your phone such as the one for your hotel or hostel.
• Pack light so that you can manage your own things. One carry-on sized bag and a daypack or large purse should do it. Here's how to pack light. A reader recently provided an excellent reason for this from their own experience: “I used the info on your blog about traveling with only carry-on and a small wardrobe when I traveled solo to Peru. Having no checked bag saved me from missing a connecting flight in the Lima airport.”
• Arrive at the airport, train, or bus station early. Whether it’s traffic congestion or a massive lineup at the airport, many things can slow you down when trying to catch a flight.
• Don’t plan much for your first day. Take the time to settle in and get to know the city and how it works. Do people line up for the bus? What’s the street food like and where are the busiest stands? What’s within walking distance of your lodging? Take it slow and learn.

Tips from Seasoned Solo Travelers

Over on the Solo Travel Society on Facebook, there are many experienced solo travelers as well as people who are new to traveling alone. I asked those experienced travelers what tips they would offer a solo travel newbie and here's what they had to say.

• Annalie  Carry a game with you, like a backgammon set, chess, a pack of cards. People all over the world can become friends over a simple game!
• Scott  Leave the third pair of socks and the fourth t-shirt at home. Pack more smiles than you think you'll need, and more patience. Take all the expectations out of your pack and leave 'em at home.
• Pamela  Go to the market while you are traveling. The experience will shed light on cultural, culinary, agricultural, linguistic, and family composition differences. People are always willing to teach you something new and befriend a stranger with a wealth of information. My first experience of this was in Aruba. I saw very little at the market that I was familiar with, but I came out with knowledge and friends.
• Tony  Join free walking tours whenever you can! It's great for getting to know the city, learning its history, and meeting other backpackers.
• Laurie  Spend Day One at your new destination getting oriented: stop at the local chamber of commerce for a free map and suggestions for must-see points of interest; if you ride, rent a bicycle, you'll cover a lot more ground and still be able to see things up close and personal; chat with storekeepers, cab drivers, and servers and ask them their thoughts about their mayor, their favorite place to eat and drink, changes they've seen in the area over the years, and where they would take out-of-town visitors. Spend the rest of your time following up on their suggestions and return to let them know how you fared.
• Toni  Give yourself the gift of strangers: ask questions, share impressions, get directions. Use Facebook or Twitter to friend or follow for ongoing exchange and learning.
• Sam  Make sure (wherever possible) that you arrive at your next destination during daylight hours. When you have to find your way from the airport or train station to your accommodation it is much less nerve-racking to do this during the day when you can see where you are going and there are lots of people around and shops open to ask for directions. Once you get to your accommodation you then still have some time up your sleeve to get your bearings, have a look around, and plan where you will start exploring the next day. Plus, if you are staying at a hostel it is good to arrive before people are making dinner or having afternoon drinks as this is one of the best times to get a feel for the place and meet new people.
• Tracey  Take the time to observe how people interact and how things work. While sitting at a sidewalk cafe, on a park bench, or just killing time standing in a lineup, I love to watch locals going about their day. If you pay attention to the little things, you can learn a lot: how to use public transit (and how to conduct yourself on it), whether to pay your bill at your table or at the counter, whether people are expected to line up in an orderly fashion or just jump in where you can, how to tip, or how to hail a cab. I find this particularly useful in a place where I don't speak the language.