5 Tips to Travel Alone and Enjoy it

Have you ever thought about traveling alone, wandering around the streets of a city, exploring, learning about its culture, and getting to know its people, all on your own? The idea of solo traveling might be a bit scary to some, but also it is such a beautiful experience, especially if you are an introvert. There is a misconception about solo traveling that you have to get totally disconnected and isolated, but that is not the case. You can still stay in contact with your people back home, or get engaged in light conversation with the people of the city you are visiting.

 

Mostly, we prefer enjoying the company of friends or family when planning a trip which is all fun and exciting, but in fact, solo traveling can also be lots of fun and has several benefits such as:

 

• You learn to solve problems on your own and become more dependent on yourself rather than others.

• You learn how to enjoy your own company.

• You gain more confidence.

• You get to learn more about yourself.

•You will learn how to become calmer in difficult situations.

 

If you are new to the experience but have it on your bucket list, here are some tips to follow that will help you have a successful and positive experience as a first time traveling alone:

 

1. Do your homework. Plan your trip well. Do your research on the good hotels for your stay, the must-visit places. There are several Facebook groups where members share their experiences in every city for you to learn something and keep in mind the things you need to do and the things to avoid.

 

2. Monitor your cash and your budget. Sometimes, we might get carried away when we travel abroad, especially when it comes to shopping or wanting to dine frequently at fancy restaurants. So we spend, spend, and spend then suddenly realize that money is running out. Also, keep a credit card with you for emergencies.

 

3. Don’t squeeze everything you want to do in the first day or two. Spread the activities or itinerary throughout the days of your trip so you keep something interesting for every day. If you visit every place you want to only in the first day or two, you might end up with so little to do on the remaining of your trip and then end up feeling bored.

 

4. Learn at least the basics of the local language. Of course, you don’t have to learn the whole language, but at least learn a couple of words and phrases to help you get by if you are facing any difficult situations.

 

5. Talk to the locals. To learn about the culture of the city you are visiting, get to meet and talk to locals. They are the window to their culture. They will also tell you about their famous local restaurants for you to experience their food, the hidden gems in the city, and what is not to be missed. And of course, you’ve met new people.