When hearing about people traveling alone, a lot of people’s typical reactions are “Oh no! I could never?” or “Wow that’s so scary!” or even “Poor them, they must be so lonely!” …and they shut down the possibility without a second thought. Not to mention, we are constantly told as women that we are “fragile” or “vulnerable”, and these are reason enough to not do things. Well we say, screw that! We’re here to encourage more women to try traveling alone and reap the many benefits of solo travel that can impact your life, your confidence, even your career!
1. Freedom to Do As You Please
Traveling with friends can be fun until two people want to do opposite things. That’s why I say skip the drama, travel alone and travel the way you like. That way, you can decide all your activities, wake up as early as you like (or sleep in late) and you only have to worry about pleasing yourself. It gives you the freedom to be selfish and do as you wish without having to answer to anyone else’s needs.
2. Meet new friends you might not have otherwise
My favourite part of traveling alone is always the copious amounts of new friends I make from all over the world. Usually, when traveling with friends, it can be more difficult to meet other people. However, by traveling alone other solo travelers feel more comfortable to approach you. This allows you to meet some of the coolest, hippest, quirkiest people from all over the world! I’ve met people from countries I didn’t even know existed (some I’m pretty sure were made up). Traveling alone allows you to make new travel BFFs everywhere you go and to constantly be exposed to new cultures.
3. The Empowerment is real.
There is something about traveling by yourself that gives you a deep feeling of power. After forcing yourself out of your comfort zone and out into the unknown you start to realize that you don’t need anyone! You can do the thang all by your damn self. You are powerful. It’s that feeling of “I am woman, hear me ROAR!”
If I wanted to fly to Egypt to see the pyramids I dreamt of as a child but none of my friends wanted to go, I did it! If I wanted to go to Paris to eat an entire baguette under the eiffel tower, I went!
We are made to believe that we need others to enjoy our time and places so we don’t realize we can have just as much fun by ourselves! And when we step outside of the norm we experience a whole new freedom and power that we never knew we had before which makes us how strong and capable we are to take on the world!
There are more benefits to solo traveling than I can count. It is truly responsible for shaping me as a person. It has taught me confidence, social awareness and intelligence, cultural awareness (just lots of awareness really) and so much more. It has cured me of my social anxiety and made me realize what a badass I truly am. Even if it’s only once, every girl should travel solo.
PIN IT FOR LATER!
