Wondering how to travel alone for the first time? I understand; I have been there myself and it can be scary to think about. But we all have to start somewhere right? These tips that I have put together will help you feel a little less worried about travelling alone and maybe make you think about things that you haven’t thought about before. I am excited for you! Excited that you are ready to start solo travelling.
11 Life-Changing Tips For How To Travel Alone For The First Time
1. Start Small & Build Confidence
If you’re nervous, begin with a short solo trip to a nearby destination before diving into a long-haul international adventure. A weekend away or a week somewhere will give you the perfect little taste of travelling solo. Sometimes it can be daunting because we get worried about feeling lonely, well a short getaway will help see how you cope alone for a little bit of time if you aren’t used to being in your own company very much.
2. Choose a Solo-Friendly Destination
It’s always a good idea to choose a country that is on the safer side for solo travellers, especially if you aren’t used to solo travel. Places like Australia, Japan, Indonesia and New Zealand are great countries to visit solo for the first time. Staying in cities or tourist areas will help you connect with other travellers and offer more opportunities to easily get around and sightsee.
When you choose a country that is a little safer to travel to alone, you will feel a little more confident and most likely enjoy this first trip a little more because you don’t have to worry so much about crime or always be on guard. Depending on the experience you want will determine the country/ places that you will want to visit but just remember to choose a destination that you feel comfortable with.
3. Pack Light & Smart
I always struggle with packing; I find that I always end up packing way too much. But there are a few things that I have to pack. These include A power bank, baby wipes, a camera, lightweight clothing, sickness medication, a tripod (only if you want to photograph yourself in cool places), a reusable water bottle, a first aid kit, headphones and a Kindle.
Everyone is different when it comes to packing, but packing light is always a great choice, and you’ll thank yourself later. I try to pack a carry-on bag for short trips, but for longer trips, I’ll have my camera backpack as a carry-on and then a larger travel backpack for all my clothing and toiletries.
How To Travel Alone For The First Time
4. Learn Basic Local Phrases
Knowing a few words like “hello,” “thank you,” and “help” in the local language can make a big difference in how locals treat you. It is important to connect with locals but also to help you if you get stuck or are in a situation where you need help. It’s great that so many countries now know English, especially in tourist areas, saying that many countries don’t. If you struggle to learn keywords or phrases in another language, it’s a good idea to download Google Translate.
You can download the language you need and your primary language to be able to use offline and it’s such a useful tool to help navigate in foreign areas. https://translate.google.com/
5. Stay Connected & Share Your Location
When I started travelling overseas, I only relied upon wifi hotspots to be connected when overseas. These days, I would never travel without being connected, yes, I’ll go to locations that might not have reception. Or choose not to be online but at least I know that in an emergency I can seek help. But for my protection, I tend to purchase e-sims before entering a country or purchase a sim card when I arrive in that country. A local SIM card or eSIM can keep you online. Ones like Holafly or Simify are great choices for eSIMs, every country will have their local phone providers and best to seek these out when you arrive in the country. https://esim.holafly.com/
Apps like Google Maps, Find My Friends or Life360 to share your location with someone you trust. Always share your location with at least one person! This adds extra security for yourself or if someone were to steal your phone the other person who has your location can help track it down!
6. Book Your First Night’s Stay in Advance
Even if you like to be spontaneous, having a safe and comfortable place secured for your first night will ease travel anxiety. I like to book at least 2/3 nights before I arrive in a new country and to pre-organise transport from the airport to the accommodation. This is the best how-to travel alone tip for the first time because it can help you smoothly transition into a new place a lot easier than if you get to an airport and have to figure everything out after a long day or two of travel.
In some places you can’t pre-book transport, e.g. Mexico City (Ubers or Taxis on arrival is best). But knowing where you are staying for the first few nights is a wonderful way to relax yourself and enjoy getting to know your way around a new destination!
How To Travel Alone For The First Time
7. Trust Your Gut & Stay Aware
Solo travel is freeing, but always be mindful of your surroundings. If something feels off, remove yourself from the situation. Every time I travel my senses are heightened, I guess this is because I am out of my comfort zone in a place I no nothing about. It’s the most important time to trust your gut and listen to what it’s telling you. If you are someone and you have a feeling that is making you uneasy, go back to your accommodation or try and meet travel buddies to explore with.
It’s so important to trust yourself and use common sense when travelling; this is going to make your trip more enjoyable and help you from potentially ending up in bad situations. Staying aware of your surroundings and noticing things out of the ordinary will help you stay safe too. I remember once in Cape Town, I felt like I was being followed by a random guy. He was wearing a hoodie and was behind me for a long period; I had my phone out as I was using it for maps. This set off my gut reaction that something wasn’t right and I went into the first shop that was busy to change this situation. Who knows what would have happened if I kept walking, maybe nothing or maybe something bad. But I listened and trusted myself to know that I needed to get out of the situation I was in.
8. Connect with Other Travellers
Hostels, walking tours, and apps like Meetup or Couchsurfing Hangouts are great ways to meet fellow travellers without feeling lonely. It is normal to feel a little lonely during your travels but if it is affecting you more than it should then find people to hang with. This was my biggest worry when I first started solo travelling! I was so scared of feeling lonely and having no one to enjoy my trip with. But I soon realised that I could make friends anywhere. I enjoyed having moments where I could socialise but also moments to be alone.
Making friends while travelling is one of the best experiences you can have. You’ll meet people from all over the world and learn people’s stories that might be so different or similar from your own. If you need help to know where to meet other travellers you can head to this blog post for all your tips!
9. Eat Solo with Confidence
Embrace solo dining! Bring a book, sit at the bar, or enjoy people-watching. Or try food tours and cooking classes for a social twist. I love eating alone when travelling. Travelling and taking myself out for a nice meal is honestly the best feeling and I struggle with budgeting when travelling. Because I love to treat myself to a nice meal.
If you need something to do while sitting there enjoying a meal, take a book or your laptop and indulge in a little time or research your next travel destination. I once took myself out for a nice lunch and met a wonderful man who asked me on a date. We then spent the next three days together and he showed me around his city. You just never know what amazing things could happen by taking yourself out for a solo meal.
10. Have a Backup Plan
Keep copies of important documents, a secondary payment method, and an emergency fund. Travel mishaps happen—be prepared. This is such an important tip and maybe I should have put it first but there will be moments along your travels where shit goes sideways. Whether it be a missed flight, lost bag or passport, visa issues… or a hundred other things.
I have been pretty lucky with my travels so far that not many bad things have happened (touch wood). But on my way home from Colombia, I wasn’t allowed on my flight home due to visa issues in Chille. Stranded at the airport, I video-called Mum, crying my eyes out, not sure what to do. It’s scary sometimes, and you feel so hopeless and not sure what to do next. After a little while, I calmed myself down and went to the help desk of the airline for my flight from Chile to Australia. They helped me out and told me that I could fly into Chile and stay in the airport until my next flight. I have never wanted to hug someone as much as that lady!
This is a great opportunity to remember that you always have options and backup plans are going to help you when things go south. Travel Insurance is so important, and making sure you have copies of your passport and ID. I always take two different bank cards with me that are linked to different accounts and separate them in case one goes missing, stolen or has been compromised.
11. Embrace the Freedom & Take It Slow
The beauty of solo travel is doing whatever you want. Don’t rush. Soak it in, take photos, and enjoy the adventure at your own pace. Sometimes, you can’t take it slow because you have a certain time frame, but give yourself a few days where you have nothing planned. To either just enjoy a day of doing nothing or for a spontaneous adventure to sweep you off your feet.
I loved backpacking for three months and only having a few nights booked in advance, it gave me the flexibility to change my itinerary at any moment and allowed me to slow down and enjoy moments of rest and relaxation when I needed them.
So if you get the opportunity to take it slow, enjoy every moment of being by yourself and knowing how amazing you are.
How To Travel Alone For The First Time
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