Travelling Solo: why and how?

Pros of solo travelling

When travelling to an unknown place alone, one is able to fully immerse in the local culture, architecture, people, language etc. because there is nothing else that one needs to pay attention to. There is no friend to catch up with, no travel buddy to discuss your everyday life and problems with, and no familiar group to go out with just to get wasted. All of this makes a solo traveller more susceptible to his or her surroundings and may thus enhance the experience of visiting a new city or country. Let the place show you what it’s got! Being alone also makes you more likely to initiate conversations with locals, be it bus drivers, museum, restaurant or hostel staff, random people on the street, or other travellers, all of whom may share pieces of their lives that you cannot get to know by any other means. You may visit all the possible museums, galleries, hotels and restaurants in any given place, but unless you talk to the locals, you will never get to truly experience the essence and charm of a place and you will likely always feel out of place. Therefore, solo travelling is one of the best ways to get an idea of how a particular locale works and feels to you! Finally, if you are by yourself, you will be able to do whatever you want whenever you like without compromising and having to take into account co-travellers’ interests. This comes particularly handy when your time is limited and you have to scratch some sights or activities off of your starting itinerary.

Cons of solo travelling

Certainly, there are also disadvantages to travelling alone. First, you will have to take care of everything by yourself, including flight and hotel booking, food, activity planning and safety, which requires a good amount of independence, and reading and familiarizing with local customs even before you depart. Second, travelling alone may sometimes be more expensive than travelling in pairs or groups. For example, you cannot simply share a taxi ride, and unless you have a significant budget, you will have to stay in dorms in order not to have astronomical bills for hotel rooms. Third, solo travelling may give you a chance to fully immerse in a new place, but when something goes wrong you will be by yourself, too. This means you should keep some emergency contact numbers with you at all times and stay alert, confident and reasonable in dodgy situations. Fourth, you may feel bored at times, but there are numerous ways to deal with this – check out some of the tips below!

Tips for solo travelling

Hostels are some of the best places to meet fellow travellers, who are also looking for people to hang out with. You may even end up travelling together in the future.

If you feel lonely, consider joining a tour. These are great particularly when you want to avoid renting a car (quite an expense if you are by yourself!) and there is no public transportation that can take you there.

Go off the beaten track if you can. You are more likely to meet particularly interesting and inspiring people there. Also, having fewer people around facilitates easy conversation.

Use the opportunity to gain some new skills. Do something you have always wanted to do but found little support at home. Brush up your photography skills. Take a local cooking class. If you are staying longer, sign up for a language, yoga, dance, music or any other class.

To save money, familiarize yourself with free walking tours, discounts that apply to you, public transportation, hostels, memberships that can help you save in a long run, such as Hostelling International, and grocery stores as opposed to restaurants.

Have your phone for emergencies and for keeping in touch with friends and family at home, but do not let your phone overwhelm you to the extent that you become detached from the new place. You can check your Facebook Newsfeed from your bed at home too – when you are on the road, you should be exploring new things.

Have travel insurance and make sure you know which local hospitals and other health care providers accept the one you have. Some may work by having you pay upfront and then reimbursing you, so keep that in mind.

Have fun and enjoy yourself, but do not get overly intoxicated. You will be more vulnerable in such state and people who may initially appear as your new friends may take advantage of that.

For safety reasons, let somebody back home know where you will be going. Share your itinerary, hostel reservations and travel plans.

Don’t be afraid to be rude if you feel that somebody is harassing you.

Do not attract unnecessary attention: dress conservatively, hide your valuables, wear a money belt under your clothes, and avoid walking alone in uninhabited areas, particularly at night.

To conclude, solo travelling is an amazing experience, through which you will meet a lot of remarkable people. Sharing my own experience, during an eight-hour layover in Zurich I met somebody who I travelled around Germany and the Netherlands for about ten days just a few months after and am still in touch with. In a remote village of Xinaliq in Azerbaijan, I met a family from Baku, and a few months later I travelled to Cyprus with one of the sons. While I was studying in New York, I met a sweet Kazakh girl, whom I met up with twice during my trip to Almaty. Connecting the dots on a map like this makes the world look like a really small place with friends and acquaintances all over, you just have to be open-minded, talkative and have a big smile on your face!