i keep reading about being lonely as a solo traveler..what about the safety issues as a female solo travel???? any one experiencing your intuition as a guide during solo travel???

quote:

Originally posted by Rogerio:
After 7 months travelling, and meeting people mostly through some language courses I've been taking, I too am a wee tired of introducing myself (specially cuz i have a relly long introduction).

I also can relate to sometimes wishing I were with people more than just 'friends of occasion'. Everyonce in a while I'll meet people who I think are great but it always ends.

Having someone to share with you this amazing trip you're embarking with also has its benefits. Some of the best moments are when you're sitting somewhere, beer in hand, talking about 'those days'.

After 9 months, when I go back to the US, I shall have no one to sit down with and just raise a bottle in cheers with. I'll have friends all over the world (ok, Europe) but it's not the same.

Alas, it's a curse of the human condition never to be just happy with what we got

An old post, but really hit the nail on the head. I spent 5 weeks in Europe (so my experience is more limited, but the principle is the same), two of those weeks with a friend from high school, and three 'alone.'

When I got back I found out that no one was really that interested in my "this one time..." stories except for the guy that had been there sharing them with me, so that is definitely a huge bonus of a companion on your trip. It's a bit of a drag to come home from seeing all these amazing things, and realizing that most people at home don't really care to hear your warstories, and can't understand the appeal of a lot of them (for some reason my "this one time I got caught in a scheme in Morocco that started when I boarded the bus in the morning, and ended 12 hours later when I arrived in the Sahara" story is usually met with a polite nod).

In the three weeks I was alone, I was rarely ever really alone except when I chose to be.

The toughest part of going it alone for me is the transient friendships. The atmosphere of the backpacking scene makes it easy to find tons and tons of great friends, the tough part is knowing that no matter how much you like these new friends, you'll soon part ways with them, and find yourself starting friendships all over again at your next stop.

quote:

Originally posted by artemis007:
i keep reading about being lonely as a solo traveler..what about the safety issues as a female solo travel????

Hi Artemis!

This subject comes up on the boards quite regularly. A few threads you might want to check out can be found here.

Generally speaking, the same safety issues apply as when you are back home. But apart from this, it very much depends on where you want to travel to. You can be cetain to be harrassed in some countries, but much of that is harmless. On the other hand, some cultures may have a more hostile attitude to female solo travellers and I would probably buddy up there. One solution can be to have a ring on your finger and photos of you 'children' (depending how old you are) to show around. Observe the local dress code (covered head/long skirts in some areas), even if other travellers don't.

There are many regions where there are lots of female solo travellers. Start out in a popular destination to get used to travelling. For the less popular destinations, do as much background research beforehand as possible. The destination forums on these boards are a good place to start, plus the books some people have suggested and blogs by solo travellers.

Is Solo Travel Lonely Travel?

for me, rarely.

I often ask myself the same questions about solo travel. Whether I enjoy travelling alone or travelling with others. The truth is, being on your own you can literally travel however you please and not worry about making compromises. Nothing is worse than being anchored down by someone who's ideas of travel are different than your own.

At the same time, there will be times when you see or experience something truly special and you wish you had someone to share it with. For me, those feelings have not been great enough at this point for me to trade in the joys of solo travel.

PUMPS LIFE INTO AN OLD THREAD...

I just left a few days in Holland, and only spoke to the people I gave my money to. Oh...and that lost crazy person.
BUT....I felt validated when I walked to Centraal and saw all the Contiki people waiting around to board thier bus (NOW I know what a Contiki bus bunny looks like! Thanks BnA!) I had the freedom to go where I wanted, when I wanted. And if you're stuck in a group of insufferable whiners...well you're stuck. If I don't like the place I'm in..I'll leave and find somewhere else.
Maybe I'll try harder next time to find friendly face...

I'm leaving the country in January for an indeterminate period of time (up to one year) and have been struggling with this for months. I've traveled alone twice before -- once for a few months, once for a couple of weeks -- and I did not love it either time. I'm a huge fan of sharing experiences and random commentary: 'my, that painting is pretty,' 'geez, that guy is weird,' 'i'm hungry, you?,' 'what do you think about that?' But even when I met people on my travels with whom to go around and share random comments, not many were kindred-spirit types. I've always been one to have a small circle of close-knit friends with whom I spend a lot of time, and not a whole bunch of acquaintances. I think that's one reason for the problems I had on my past solo travels.

BUT all that said, I think I'm ready for it this time. I've been in the same place -- at a job I really dislike -- for 6 years! I'm in an incredibly deep rut and time is going so fast I feel like Life is passing me by. So I think taking some time to slow down, be on my own, discover new people and cultures, is just what the doctor ordered. It will be liberating in many respects going to places where no one knows me and making my way through the world -- quite literally -- on my own.

So it's a rollercoaster now, and I'm sure it will be while I'm on the road, but deep down I'm thrilled (if also scared) to be doing it. In the end, how many people really get the chance, and have the courage, to take off on their own to discover new worlds (at least, new to them)? After meeting the Bootsnall crowd, it turns out to be a lot more people than I ever fathomed to guess, but just a pittance of the western, let alone world, population.

quote:

Originally posted by Finally:
After meeting the Bootsnall crowd, it turns out to be a lot more people than I ever fathomed to guess, but just a pittance of the western, let alone world, population.

I prefer to think of the Booties as the riches rather than the pittance

Seriously, though - I know what you're saying. I'm too far away from my goal to really feel the anticipation/fear/abject terror yet, but I'm sure it will come one day. I'm looking forward to it like you wouldn't believe.

Dare to be one of the rich, I say. Good luck!

Hey, my first time here. So there i go. I agree it gets lonely if you want it to get so. Four years ago i went on my first big travel to India with seven(!!!) buddies. After a month five of them left. I stayed with the person closest to me. Call it "Natural selection". We made the whole round trip and there for we spent most of the time together. We had some tense moments and we had some awesome once too. But that's how it usualy works. To the end of our trip we had bit more then three week left so we decided to go our own ways. It wasn't about we nerved eachother, we wanted to see diferent things and we knew it would be hard to make an kompromise between a desert and the mountains. We talked it trough and split already looking foreward seeing each other again, but very excited about the new time ahead too. Have to tell you - these were the best three weeks of my life in that time so far. Not only you decide where you would like to go - without any compromise, but you define your way how to think about things you see, people you meet, but also you'll learn a lot about your self. You'll realise you like to be alone, in your "private bubble" and you'll realise that you can actualy leave that bubble when ever you like and find somebody to talk to (even if it's only a beautifull flower). Because out there, there are so many people they would love to talk to you and it is only up to you when you allow them to do so. This planet gets so overpopulated that we don't need to worry anymore to discover the feeling of lonelynes in ourself. We should enjoy it and explore it. Because it's only the true nature of your self you'll discover. Sometimes it will hurt, sometimes you'll be surprised. So if you have the choice, go alone. ...because you actually never are

I'm so glad this thread was bumped to the top. It's exactly what I needed to read tonight. I'm leaving on a 3-4 month solo (for the most part, with friends and family joining me for parts) in April. I'm really excited but tonight was feeling somewhat anxious about the whole thing. Not any more! Thanks for the mental boost.

I always do lonely travel...mix in a few tour type trips, but its alright...if you are outgoing and willing to start conversation with a complete stranger you will be fine

I made the mistake of inviting a friend on my 9 week trip last year. She was to join me on my 4th week & finish the trip with me. I got sick of her after 5 days. After a bit of soul searching....and some crying on this site, I choose to leave her in Vienna and head to Germany then to the UK.

It was the best decision I could have made. Most of my best travels and experiences have been alone. My next trip (in 15 months), I will have friends and family show up at 'rest stops' along my RTW trip, so I can share war stories, have some companionship and have them see whatever they want to see.

One thing, at least for me, about traveling alone, is that at those times when you feel most alone, I find that you can't run & hide from yourself, instead you need to face yourself & deal with whatever is bothering you. One unexpected consequence of my trip is that I came back with defined goals and a game plan-something which I never had before.

One other thing, pay attention to the advice in this community, esp. the advice that is repeated. I wish I had paid attention to more of the advice here, I could have saved myself lots of headaches.

This subject has come up many times I'm sure. I've done independent travel as well as small group adventure travel (such as Intrepid). I've also travelled with friends. But last year I did something very different that I never thought I'd do, or even like. I went on a Contiki tour (yes, CONTIKI!! Ha ha) with some friends. It was their "European Discovery" package, which covered the standard starter countries like France, Germany, Italy, Switz., etc. A friend of mine convinced me that we should do it at least once in our lives (before we grew out of the age range requirements) just to say we did it. Plus, he'd never been to Europe before and wanted to get a taste of as many countries as possible. So I grabbed another friend and the three of us signed up. Because we went on an October tour, most of the brats were in school and our group consisted of mainly 20's working professionals and a handful of us 30's working professionals. There was, as I was told, a lady who was 38 (Contiki age limit is 35). There were 50 of us packed into a tour bus for about 12 days, blasting through every country and city at lightning fast speeds, eating cheesy group meals, and visiting touristy monuments en masse. As strange as this sounds, I had an absolute blast. Ok, I didn't like waking up at 6 or 7 every morning but I'd also never travelled this way before, so it was all a new and interesting experience for me. Plus, there were so pretty cool people in the group. I'm not sure if I would do it again, but I am glad I did it at least this once.

I do get lonely when travelling alone. I've come to expect it now so when it happens I am not caught off guard. Fortunately it's easy to meet new people when travelling so sometimes I have to force myself to be extra outgoing! When I do feel lonely I try to remind myself that I'd much rather feel lonely on occasion than be stuck with a travel partner who cramps my style.