All By Myself: A Solo Travel Manifesto

Travelling solo is an experience that every person should have at least once in their life. There. I said it. However, I do realise that it might seem like a daunting prospect to many people. For those people, I wrote this solo travel manifesto.

We can all agree that travelling is amazing. You get to meet people from all over the world, you experience different cultures and you can try authentic street food from foreign cuisines. But there’s just something about solo travel that can’t be explained rationally. You have to actually do it to know what I’m talking about.

When I tell people I love travelling solo, the most common question I get is “But why?”. What could possibly be so amazing about solo travel that people write books about it? That people dedicate their lives to travelling all by themselves?

Keep reading to find out why I – and so many others – have fallen in love with solo travel.

There are many misconceptions about solo travel, which I want to fix with this post.

Should I travel alone?

The short answer is yes.

The long answer: yes, because as a solo traveller, you’re much more likely to pay more attention to what’s going on around you.

With fewer distractions in the form of people talking to you about the last episode of Game of Thrones or asking you what you think about their new sneakers, you can fully take in the scenery and enjoy the view.

Besides that, you will also meet far more people when you’re on a solo trip.

Making friends as a solo traveller is much easier because you’re more approachable than a group of backpacking friends in a party hostel. People will talk to you, even if they’re just doing it out of pity.

Last, but definitely not least: you’re independent.

You have nobody to answer for your decisions and nobody to keep in mind when making plans for the next day. You can literally do whatever your heart desires.

Do you want to have a few drinks at the hostel bar? Tick off all the tourist hotspots? Walk to your next attraction because you’re too cheap to take the bus?

Go for it. Nobody’s going to stop you.

If you’re not quite comfortable with the idea of solo travel yet, check these posts out:

How solo travel changes you

Travelling solo changes you. When travelling alone, things will inevitably go wrong.

The only person you can blame is yourself, and the only person who can solve the problems you run into is you.

That might seem like a bad thing, but don’t be fooled – when you can’t fall back on anyone else to get you out of a tough situation, that’s when you learn.

You get out of your comfort zone.

You become a more independent and solution-driven person.

The more you travel by yourself, the more you realise that the world is an amazing place and there are so many things left to explore that your life probably won’t be long enough to see them all.

How to prepare for your first solo trip

If you’ve made the decision to travel solo, there are a few steps you have to take to plan your first solo trip. Here are the most important ones.

First: set a budget.

You can spend as much or as little money on solo travel as you want to, but it’s important to have some indication as to how much you’ll be spending before you step foot on the plane.

Secondly: choose your destination and date.

Your budget will be impacted by when and where you’re travelling. If you’re looking to travel on a shoestring budget, be sure to choose a destination that can accommodate that.

Pro tip: travel in the shoulder season for the best prices while still getting great weather conditions.

Thirdly: book your transport and accommodation (at least for the first two nights).

I usually start my flight search on Cheapflights or Google Flights before taking a look at other flight websites like Expedia, Skyscanner and Momondo.

For solo travellers, hostels are a great alternative to hotels, because they allow you to meet like-minded people and they won’t take a huge bite out of your budget.

My favourite website to use when booking hostels is Hostelworld.

Solo traveller riding motorcycle on winding road through forest

Now that you’ve got most of the logistics out of the way, you still might need to prepare for this trip mentally.

Getting over your fear of being alone can be hard, but it’s important to keep in mind that being alone does not mean you’re lonely.

Don’t be afraid to eat by yourself. Sit at the bar and talk to the bartender, or take a seat at a communal table and strike up a conversation with fellow travellers.

You’ll be surprised how easy it is to talk to people when you’re travelling alone.

Remember to pack light – carry-on only, if possible. Since you’re travelling solo, you’ll have to carry all your baggage by yourself.

So, as you can see, travelling by yourself is similar to travelling with other people. But at the same time, the differences are huge.

Solo travel is a wonderful paradox that you have to experience before you can start to understand it.

Isn’t that the beauty of it all?

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