Thinking about traveling solo but feeling a little nervous? Don’t worry, our solo travel tips are here to ease your worries and help you feel more confident about your adventure!
Be a Tourist in your own city
This is the advice I give every first time solo female traveller. One of the biggest constraints that most people face when it comes to solo travelling is the confidence to start.
Book Your Transport
Now you know where you are going and how you are going to travel, , it’s time to book how you’ll get there.
If you’re on a flight-inclusive group tour, you can skip this step. Otherwise, most flights and rail tickets are non-refundable or expensive to change, so it pays to firm up your plans at this stage.
Where you can, try to arrive during daylight.
I once made the mistake of arriving in a city after dark and having to find my hotel in the pitch black. It felt intimidating at best, and at worst genuinely unnerving. Arriving in daylight makes the same walk far less daunting.
Talk to locals to get the best solo holiday tips
I love talking to local women to get some of the best travel solo tips. They know the destination inside out since they live there and they can help you better than any guidebook.
Most people around the world are nice and will be ready to help you out with their suggestions.
Even though I love chatting with local cab guys, I am always careful to not mention that I am travelling solo.
I know most of them are just curious but after having a bad experience in Amsterdam where the guy wanted to come up to my room (despite me telling him that I have friends waiting), I just tell them that my husband reached early and is sleeping in the room.
Unexpected Social Shifts
There’s a belief that traveling alone means isolation.
Sometimes it does. But often it opens doors.
Without a companion, people ask strangers for recommendations. Join local walking tours. Strike up conversations with café owners. Sit next to someone on a train and actually talk.
Not every interaction is deep. Many are brief and forgettable.
But something changes socially.
When you’re alone, you are more approachable. And you approach more.
This surprises many first-time solo travelers. The social world expands, not shrinks.
Try something new
One of the things I love most about solo travel is that I am a braver version of myself when I’m alone and away from home. There’s freedom to be anybody you want to be when no one knows who you are. You’ll never catch me at a group class in my own town. But a class where I’ll learn to weave baskets, dance salsa, paint a portrait, make pottery or downward-dog with perfect strangers when I’m traveling solo? Sign me up!
Participating in a class or workshop connects you with local experts and possibly other travelers. Step out of your comfort zone and take a language lesson, join a cooking class or learn a new skill in a hands-on workshop. At the very least, you’ll walk away with more knowledge (and possibly a good meal or handmade souvenir), but you also might emerge with a new friend or two.
Choose a destination where hospitality is rooted in the culture
When you’re traveling solo, you’ll inevitably need to ask for help, directions or recommendations. There will be days when you feel anxious, lost or lonely. I’ve found that those challenging moments are infinitely easier in places where there’s an ancient culture of care and respect for guests.
In Japan, for example, where I had my very first solo travel experience, there’s the omotenashi concept of hospitality; it originated from traditional tea ceremonies and involves wholeheartedly taking care of guests. On that trip, I was young, alone, inexperienced and traveling without all the tech and apps we now rely on. I arrived during a typhoon, so my plane landed in a different city in the middle of the night. I had no one to meet me and no idea how I was going to get to my intended destination, but strangers immediately stepped in and helped me book a train.
Similarly, in Jordan, where I have been traveling solo for nearly 10 years, the warm hospitality and sense of community is rooted in Bedouin traditions and Jordan’s longstanding role as a place of refuge. On my first trip there, I lost count of the number of times I was greeted with “Ahlan wa sahlan. Welcome to Jordan,” and invited into people’s homes for coffee or a meal. On one of my return trips, I accidentally left my laptop in an Uber, and the driver insisted on bringing it back to me rather than letting me pay for another taxi to meet him! If you’re traveling solo in Jordan, you never have to worry about getting lost or being alone; the people there are some of the kindest and most generous I’ve met in all of my travels.
Take small steps
Not ready or interested in putting yourself out there in a big way, yet also not keen on complete isolation? Start small. Brief interactions, called microconnections, can have big, positive impacts on mental health. And these interactions, such as chatting with a shopkeeper, aren’t just quick conversations that can alleviate loneliness; they can open the door to sharing a moment and learning more about each other. Many of my most cherished solo travel memories and friendships have started with small conversations with shopkeepers, waiters and other residents—and then led to coffee chats, dinner plans and even wedding invitations!
I talk to myself…
I travelled solo to Spain and was staying for one month, so I posted a note for a travelling companion. I got a response from a man (gay and perfect!) who could meet up and travel with me. We got along really well, but he went to Greece while I had another five days of holiday left. I never thought I would feel disoriented and alone on my first trip to Europe but there I was feeling really blue. I was getting so desperate that I even tried to change my return ticket but to no avail. The weather was rainy and cold, not ideal for touring around. I decided to really push myself and go beyond what I ever thought I was capable of. I checked the weather report that night, and found a warm and sunny climate in the southeast of Spain and the next morning, I boarded a train and headed for the sun. It was not as exciting as it might have been had I been travelling there with someone else, but given the circumstances, ‘wasting’ five days in the south of Spain was not so bad.
Before you Leave, Plan for Solo Travel Confidence
There are many things you can do before you leave that will build your confidence to travel solo.
- Get a local contact. Remember six degrees of separation? Well, that number was determined based on snail mail – long before Facebook. Now you likely have a friend of a friend just about everywhere in the world who is local and whom you could meet for a coffee or call should you have a moment of anxiety.
Book your first few nights’ accommodation. Your accommodation is your safe haven. Whether it’s a hotel, hostel, B&B, or apartment, book a place with great reviews before you leave so that you know you’ll have a soft landing when you get there. Pro tip: arrive in the afternoon so that if it doesn’t meet your expectations, you have time to make a change
3.Find your cheerleader. When you’re getting nervous, talk to friends who are thrilled about your upcoming trip and stay away from those who are only lukewarm or even negative. Those enthusiasts will bolster you and contribute to developing your solo travel confidence.
The First Day Feels Strange
The first morning of a solo trip feels different from any other departure.
There’s no coordinating wake-up calls. No one asking if you packed chargers. No shared excitement in the cab to the airport.
It’s just… movement.
And at the airport gate, something subtle happens. The noise of everyone else traveling in groups becomes more noticeable. Families clustering. Friends comparing itineraries.
Alone feels louder than expected.
For some, that first evening is the hardest. Ordering dinner without conversation. Sitting in a hotel room that echoes slightly more than usual. Wondering if this was a bold decision or an unnecessary one.
But then the next morning arrives.
And routine begins to form.