Conquer Your Fears about Traveling Alone: Part I
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If you have been considering going on a trip by yourself but something is holding you back, you came to the right place! Traveling alone is fun and rewarding – you can go where you want, when you want – so let’s alleviate your fears so that you can have an experience to last a lifetime!
When I was 35, I took a trip to Italy with my brother. Italy was life-changing for me for a couple of reasons: I was an Art History minor in college (with Michelangelo as a favorite artist), I was trying to learn to speak Italian, and we wanted to visit the village in the Alps where our nonna was born.
This week across the northern part of Italy reignited my wanderlust so much that I quit my job to travel. Alone. To a list of places that I wasn’t even sure were a good idea.
It is understandable to be afraid about your first (or 100th, really – there is always fear of the unknown!) trip by yourself, so I want to give you some comfort that I, and everyone else who has done it, have been there.
So if you are considering taking a trip by yourself, whether it is across the state or across the world, do it! You’ll be surprised at how rewarding it is. I remember what one of my dearest friends from that job said to me (during an ugly goodbye cry) – “take a look at yourself in the mirror before you leave for your first trip, because that’s not the girl who’s coming back.”
I know how that sounds for a 35-year-old woman, but it turned out to be so true.
I am going to address the most common fears I have either had or heard from others about solo travel over a couple of different posts.
[If you have any travel fears you would like to add to the list, email me! I love to hear from you all!]
I’ll start with my biggest worry. I remember calling my mother from O’Hare as I was waiting for my flight, crying that I was afraid to go somewhere by myself. She said “Sara, you’re going to the New York of England.” (I was going to London.) Mom’s are always right – I had a blast.
Fear #1: What If I Get Bored, or Worse, Lonely?
Of all the scary things that go through a lady’s head when she considers traveling abroad alone, this was hands down the scariest to me. Yes, it rivals safety in my mind.
There’s a reason though. As a 30th birthday gift to myself, I went to the Bahamas alone for 5 days. As a water baby, I thought almost a week on a beach with a stack of books would be heaven on Earth. It was quite the opposite. After two days I was suddenly lonely, realizing how alone I was with nothing to do.
I learned a lesson though. There are two logistical keys to planning a solo trip that will help boredom and loneliness from occurring:
1. Go to somewhere with a lot of activity.
That could mean a city or an adventure trip (Machu Picchu, for example).
2. Make the trip shorter rather than longer.
Please note that this is also my travel style in general. I go, see the things I want to see, then get out. Some people like to lounge around and live like locals, but that just isn’t for me.
Here is another beautiful thing about solo travel – you can accommodate YOUR style and interests and don’t have to take someone else’s into consideration.
When you pack your days with activity and are surrounded by people, you will be exhausted by the end of the day and probably want to be alone, so boredom and loneliness aren’t even an option.
If you are looking for tours or additional activities wherever you are going, I highly recommend Viator (part of TripAdvisor).
I have used them all over the place, from a wine tour into Tuscany from Florence to a day tour in Ulaanbaatar. (If they have activities in Mongolia, they truly have something for you anywhere your heart takes you!)
Whether it’s a cooking class in a local family’s kitchen, a day tour with a native speaker, or a helicopter tour over Mount Everest, Viator has something for you (that you may not have even thought of). Click here to see the wiiiiiiiiide availability of fun things awaiting you across the world – it will give you wanderlust just browsing through the options!
Now that you have a vacation that structurally prevents boredom and loneliness, there are a couple of additional tricks I use.
I cover this partially in my blog post How to Enjoy Your Stay in a Hotel…No Matter Where You Are. Basically you need to have wi-fi (which, in 2022, you probably will) and some entertainment options.
When you have wi-fi, you can call loved ones for free with the iPhone (sorry, I don’t know how it works for Androids!). You can also download WhatsApp, which works regardless of your phone type. Texting with someone or hearing their voice is a great way to ground you and take away any homesickness.
My other must-have is an iPad loaded with shows and movies.
This is a safety measure in case the hotel TV doesn’t have any English TV channels (or if the only English option is CNN). Having TV I like makes me feel normal and grounded. Also it’s important to have a good book (these ones are GREAT travel options – they are all page turners across a variety of genres that will hook you immediately and will disassociate your mind from any unpleasant thoughts).
I have Netflix, Hulu, and Amazon Prime on my iPad.
A good rule of thumb is to download a bunch of things rather than hoping that you can stream abroad.
It differs by streaming service, country, and movie/show, but you will not be able to stream everything. (For example, there were only 3 movies my brother and I could stream in Italy. We watched Hot Chick at least 4 times.)
However, sometimes you can’t watch downloaded things and have to stream instead. When I was in Taiwan, I had to watch Jack Ryan streaming on Amazon Prime because of Taiwanese rules I suppose. (No complaints – I love that series and highly recommend it!)
The moral of the story is to be prepared – have at least one streaming service on your tablet, and download some entertainment on it. But be prepared to improvise. You may want to do research to see what might be available or not by country, but I actually don’t know if that information is widely available or understandable!
I hope these tips get you thinking about booking your next trip all by yourself. I guarantee you will not regret it!
And now I’m itching to pack a bag and go somewhere…
If you hate packing (and wasting money on checking bags), click here for my ultimate packing list for traveling with just a carry on!
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