By: Frayed Passport
If you’re thinking about taking your first solo trip and your stomach already feels like it’s riding a rollercoaster, that’s normal. It’s not because you aren’t ready for it, but rather because solo travel forces you to get out of your comfort zone and trust yourself.
But! Once you take that first solo trip, you’ll wonder why you waited so long to do it. You get to travel how you want, eat whatever you’d like, sleep when you want, and follow your curiosity. The trip can be calm or it can be wild, but either way, it’s yours!
Here’s how to get started, what to expect, and where to go when you’re ready to stop waiting for someone else’s schedule to line up.
Start with a Low-Stakes, High-Reward Trip
Photo by ALEJANDRO POHLENZ on Unsplash
You don’t have to launch your solo travel career by flying to the other side of the world with nothing but a backpack and blind faith. Ease in!
Take a weekend road trip. Spend a few nights in a nearby city and play tourist in your own region. Or book a short flight and stay somewhere with walkable streets, good public transit, and plenty of daytime activities.
Your first trip shouldn’t be about proving anything – use your first solo trip to learn what type of traveler you are on your own. Do you like lots of structure? Prefer to wing it? Thrive in nature? Feel safest around other travelers? The only way to learn that is to go.
Here are three amazing solo travel adventures to check out if you’re traveling alone for the first time:
Road Trips and Campsite Solitude
There’s a particular freedom in driving wherever you want, sleeping in your own little mobile home, and waking up with a different view every morning. That’s what makes road trips a top-tier solo adventure!
Whether you rent a campervan or throw a tent in the trunk, this kind of trip lets you be in charge of the pace. Pull over for roadside attractions. Nap when you feel like it. Skip the overpriced tourist traps and chase waterfalls instead.
When it comes to comfort, you don’t have to rough it. You can stay in the best RV parks across the country, with laundry facilities, clean bathrooms, wifi, and even communal fire pits where it’s easy to meet other travelers. Campgrounds usually have that “instant neighborhood” feel, especially in popular hiking areas – you might feel anxious at first, but your new friends will welcome you with open arms!
- Love quirky roadside attractions? Don’t miss the Skunk Ape HQ if you’re road tripping in Florida!
Retreats with a Built-in Community
If you want structure, safety, and connection (but still crave alone time), a travel retreat can be the perfect bridge to solo travel. Basically, you book a spot, show up, and go with the itinerary that’s already been created for you. And if you’re flying solo for the first time, having a detailed schedule in place can feel like a life raft.
There are retreats for every interest: surfing in Costa Rica, cooking in Thailand, hiking in the Rockies, foraging in the Pacific Northwest. You get the thrill of going somewhere new without the stress of managing every little detail. You’ll have alone time built in, but there’s always someone nearby to grab lunch with or hike alongside if you want.
Volunteer Travel: Purpose-Driven and People-Oriented
If you feel awkward sightseeing solo or want to put your energy into something meaningful, consider volunteer travel. You’ll do some good for a community in need, and since you’re showing up with purpose, that can take a lot of the pressure off of planning.
You could teach English in rural Thailand, help with conservation in Costa Rica, assist with coral reef clean-up in the Philippines, or even take part in archaeology projects underwater. Good international volunteer projects provide structure, housing, and community, all within areas that have a need and expressed interest in welcoming volunteer travelers. You explore through service, and along the way, you gain a deeper connection to the place you’re in.
Pack Light, Plan Smart, and Leave Room for Spontaneity
Photo by Alexey Demidov on Unsplash
As with most things in life, the difference between a great solo trip and a stressful one is usually logistics.
Book your first two nights of accommodation ahead of time. Make sure you know how to get from the airport or station to where you’re staying. Download offline maps. Carry a backup charger. Have a credit card that doesn’t have insane foreign transaction fees. And when in doubt, get the travel insurance.
But don’t schedule every moment! You want enough room in your itinerary to discover something better than the plan.
A few more resources for our solo traveler friends:
- Solo travel archives
- How to avoid loneliness and boredom on solo travel
- What it’s like to be an introverted digital nomad
- 9 hostel and hotel safety tips for female solo travelers
- 8 ways to have a safe, fun, amazing solo adventure
If solo travel still feels a little intimidating, that’s good! That means it’s going to stretch you. But start small, stay smart, and don’t overthink it. You might be surprised how quickly fear turns into freedom once you’re out there doing it.
Happy Travels!
Featured image by Alexey Demidov on Unsplash
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