When I’m on the road, I get a lot of questions about how I travel alone all the time and whether or not I get nervous or scared. My immediate answer is always “no” but I know that even more so now, people worry about young women out on the road all by themselves. This is not a comprehensive list by any means, but it’s my personal top 10 tips for solo female travelers, as someone who’s been traveling all across the world alone for the last 10 years.
To be fair, I think I’m the type of person that likes to travel alone when possible. I like the control of it, meaning the schedule is in my hands, activities, etc. Everything is up to me. I also like the lack of pressure, other than the pressure I put on myself, to navigate properly, etc. Sometimes you run into issues traveling, that’s just the reality, but at least when I’m by myself I can regroup and handle it accordingly. I often feel a pressure when I’m with other people that I don’t when I’m by myself (but that’s just me).
Without further ado, here are my top 10 tips for solo female travel.
1. Watch the news
This might seem like a really odd one to start off with – but if you are educating yourself on your surroundings, you won’t be surprised to find out a few things while you are visiting them. If a bombing happened the week before, if there has been any major crimes happen recently, etc. I just like to keep up to date while I’m traveling on what’s going on around me and how this may or may not affect me traveling.
A good example of this is one time I was in England, there was a French Air Strike that happened. I was on my way to the airport to fly to Paris when I got a text from EasyJet saying the flight had been cancelled due to this. Had I looked at the news before we left, I would have seen the announcement and probably not paid £30 for a one way ticket to this airport. Just stay aware of the local goings-on.
2. Tell someone where you’re going / Check In
I know that it’s fun to be spontaneous and just book a last minute trip – but it is always a great idea to let someone know of your plans. If you are heading away from the weekend, text or email someone and say you will be in this city/country, on these days and here is how to get a hold of you! It’s just a smart way to travel instead of going to a new country by yourself with no one else knowing you are there. Once there, be sure and check in with that person (or persons) and let them know you’ve arrived safe and sound. This way, your family will be less anxious about you being out and about traveling because they are well aware of your plans.
One thing I’ll also add is that there are so many ways to check in with people nowadays — whether it’s through Apple’s recent release of the “check in” functionality, or by using an app like Life360 (which is actually what my family and I use) and it works internationally — there’s so many ways to check in now.
3. Buy a lock
This is a trivial one, however, still important. If you’re staying at hostels across Europe, they often offer a locker service or even lockers within the rooms. This way, you can go explore the city without having to lug around your backpack/valuables. Buy a lock and lock things up.
4. Plan transportation ahead of time
I’m all for winging trips and just seeing what happens when you get there, however; I wouldn’t do that if it was a solo trip. There are a few reasons that I recommend planning your transportation ahead of time:
- It eases your anxiety when you know how you are going to get from place to place,
- It allows you to be smart with your time and not waste it figuring out that city/country’s transportation system. Honestly, when you plan your transportation ahead of time, you will know how long you have to be at a train/bus station by yourself and possibly what is around the area (or how far of a walk it is) to a local coffee shop, etc.
- For example, when I did a solo trip to Ireland, I mapped out how I was going to get from the airport to the town I was staying in. I had to sit in this small village before my next bus for about four hours. So I ventured out and found a coffee shop to hang out in. If I had done a little more research, I probably would have taken an earlier flight so that I could travel during the day to my location and not at night. So always try to plan transportation ahead of time!
5. Make friends with fellow travelers
One of the best things you can do while traveling solo is to make friends with fellow travelers. It eases the tension if you are sleeping in the same room as them at a hostel, but it also might get you a dinner date or a pub partner.
While I’m all for eating alone (sometimes I prefer it), it’s always nice to make friends with people around you. I did this while I was on that Ireland trip and I ended up having an amazing dinner with a girl from Austria. It can’t hurt to make friends and build relationships all over the world.
6. Don’t walk alone late, late at night
Now, I will say that I would walk home sometimes at like 3-4am when I lived in London… but that’s because I knew the area and I felt safe there. If I am in a new city/country AND I’m by myself – I don’t walk home by myself past midnight – at the latest. It’s not that I’m scared or I don’t trust people, I just genuinely am creeped out by night time and the things that could happen during the night (I know, I’m a chicken). However, if you are like me then you will also do this as well and be sure and get home before it gets too late.
7. Do your research on the local culture
Depending on where you go, some things you wear may or may not be inappropriate. This isn’t often the case in MOST European countries but I had a flatmate visit Morocco and it was very much so. Just do a little bit of research about the culture and environment of the place you are visiting and make sure you aren’t offending the locals while there.
This also goes for learning a bit of the language — it doesn’t hurt to know some basic phrases or questions in the language of the country you’re planning to visit.
8. Watch your belongings like it’s your job
All kinds of stuff goes into our purses, backpacks, etc. and what happens if we don’t watch it and take care of it? Someone takes it. It’s so easy for someone to grab your stuff while you aren’t looking. So do yourself a favor while you are traveling and keep your personal belongings on you at all times.
If you’re sitting at a table in Paris, for example, don’t put your purse or backpack on the arm or back of the chair. Safest thing to do is keep it in your lap so that you’re able to hold on to it. Also, don’t lay things on top of the table like your wallet, passport, etc. That can easily be snatched up. Just be aware of your surroundings and keep your stuff close to you at all times.
9. Be prepared for anything
Anything can happen while you are out traveling around, so knowing the local emergency numbers or who to get into contact with can save you valuable time! I had an incident happen while I was in London and we had to call 999 in order to file a report. I also had another incident happen where we had to visit the police station and so knowing where that was located saved us so much time and energy. Be aware of where things are if you need them but also have their number handy just in case!
10. Have fun
I know this is scary and you are on your own (whether this is your first trip or your millionth) nerves can settle in and be a little overwhelming. However, always remember — have fun!! You are on the adventure of a lifetime and so many people would kill to be in your shoes, so enjoy it and have a blast because you only get one life and you better do it right!
What would you add? Is there anything I missed? These are my top 10 solo female travel tips. I’ve traveled through several countries by myself over the last 10 years and while super basic, I know that each of these tips will help prepare you to have the best solo trip possible and if you have a fear of solo travel, check out my blog post on how to get over that!
