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Now is the perfect moment to embark on your long hoped-for solo adventure, a dream you’ve cherished but never put into motion. Solo travel sounds scary at first glance, but it can be the best part of your life as you are the only one who decides where and when to go and how to spend your vacation. Freedom of decision is a very important part of our lives. So get your notebook ready and start planning your solo adventure with these travel tips.

How to Plan Your First Solo Travel: 13 Important Tips

1. Select Your Ideal Destination

Picking a solo-friendly destination is the key to a happy solo vacation, especially for solo travelers, as you should feel comfortable and safe in a new place. But, on the other hand, the wrong destination can ruin the whole solo travel experience, which nobody wants, right?

 

If you have never traveled before, picking the destination can be the most challenging part for you as you likely want to go everywhere. To choose the right destination, search for other travelers’ stories and see their experiences or break down the most important things you need. Be it weather, food, language, distance, etc., and go from there. Breaking down such details will help you to make a decision easier as well.

 

2. Research About Your Destination

Once you know where you are going to go by yourself, research the destination. For example, check how safe it is, what is the best time to visit, if there are any customs you need to be aware of (especially in Muslim countries), what the currency is, the language they speak, navigation system, food, etc. Get as much information as possible to be fully prepared for your alone adventure. This will also help you to easily decide where to solo travel as some destinations might be simply not suitable for the solo journey.

3. Research All Travel Requirements

This is a crucial step in your solo trip planning, which can’t be missed. Before going anywhere, you always need to check the travel requirements, so you are fully aware and prepared. Plus, make sure you do it in advance. If you require a visa; for example, it will most likely take time to apply and get approved. That said, do not leave it till the end if you do not want to postpone or cancel your trip if your visa is not ready.

I didn’t do it for my recent trip to Turkey and had some trouble getting in with my US passport. Later I realized that I could just show them my Russian passport and not buy a visa. But, it was postfactum. So, make sure you never miss this planning step.

• For some destinations, you will have to buy Travel insurance, but not it’s not a lot of them. Despite its pretty much optional, its still good to have in case of emergencies, but also keep in mind that most likely your CC  offers this option as well, but with limited coverage. So, do not forget to check with your bank on that.

 

4. Plan Your Solo Activities

Now is the perfect time to decide on your activities. This is the most enjoyable part of any trip planning. Do you prefer active or passive travel? Are you interested in some adventurous activities? Or more thinking about laying on the beach. Think about what you would like to do. It’s better to be something new, so you will get out of your comfort zone and get a unique experience. That is what the whole solo travel is about. Get out of your comfort zone and learn more about yourself.

 

When I plan my activities, I like to use the Get Your Guide travel site. They offer plenty of significant activities for every interest and budget worldwide. You just need to enter the location to see all available options. It is also super easy and affordable and I love it.

5. Create Your Travel Itinerary

Creating an itinerary for your alone trip can be optional if you are more spontaneous, but honestly, I would highly suggest doing that. You might ask why. Well, if you have all your activities planned, you know how to manage your own time, so you do not have to hurry, and you will make sure you visit all the places and do all the activities on your list. But if you decide to go without your itinerary, you might end up with a big problem where you will be frustrated and lost because you didn’t organize it.

 

6. Choose Suitable Accommodation

Choosing suitable accommodation is another necessary part of your traveling alone journey. It is very important to pick accommodation close to the attractions you need and in a safe area. This will save you time and money.

As a solo traveler, I always try to stay in hostels as it is cheaper, more fun, and most of the time they provide Free breakfast, which is obviously a big plus.

7. Plan Your Budget

Planning a budget is a good part of a solo trip, but it is optional. I never have a budget, but I keep in mind how much money I would like to spend. I can’t say it is an excellent strategy, though, as there will always be unplanned expenses, and since you are on vacation, you care little how much you spend there. Also, you can be surprised once you go back home and check your bank statements. So, the advice is always to plan your budget.

 

8. Decide On Transportation

Navigating the city alone by public transportation is very easy and convenient if you go to big cities with a great navigation system. On the other hand, renting a car by yourself can be costly and, in most cases, unnecessary. So, before going to the new place, make sure you decide on these types of things to avoid any problems on the spot.

 

9. Book Your Tickets in Advance

This is another fun part of planning a future trip; your luck depends on how early you start looking for tickets. The earlier you start, the better deal you can find. This is the #1 rule. There are so many tips about the best approach to finding a great travel deal and cheap accommodation, which you can learn by reading the posts above.

 

10. Plan What to Pack

Packing, packing, packing. How many times as a traveler you have been over-packed and overcharged because of the weight? Right, packing is the key to a great solo vacation. Let’s be honest with each other. When we travel solo, we do not need fancy clothes, heels, or other unnecessary attributes such as jewelry or something else we do not wear daily. The primary rule is always to pack light. Packing light is straightforward; trust me; it will change your total solo travel experience once you start doing it.

 

11. Make a Backup Plan

A backup plan is a great idea, especially when traveling alone as a woman. Why? The answer is so simple. Solo travel can be unpredictable despite you planning everything. Yes, you heard that right. As an example, airlines can cancel flights or tour agencies can cancel tours last minute. The accommodation might not meet your expectations, or the location can be off, etc. In any situation, having a backup strategy can help.

 

• Write down or save somewhere the address of your accommodation along with the phone. Then, if there is no internet, you will always have it handy, and in case you get lost, you can get to the hotel/hostel safely.
• Always have some emergency cash. Most likely, you will have to use it.
• Make copies of important documents before you head to your destination and keep them separate from the originals.

 

12. Consider Solo Exploration or Take Tours

When you travel solo, you always need to consider that some places are better to visit with a company, and you can easily explore some by yourself. If you decide to take a tour, it is highly suggested to book upfront, because of availability, etc. There is also a possibility of combining both. You can spend a half-day exploring on your own and a half-day by taking a tour. No matter what you prefer, I suggest planning it as early as possible to avoid hiccups.

13. Be Ready For an Adventure

On Day “X” have a good mood, hold your documents, luggage, and get ready for your solo journey

 

5 Main Challenges You Can Face as a Solo Traveler and How to Overcome Them

Solo travel is a perfect way to explore places on your own and learn more about your personality, but of course, like with other types of travel, it has some disadvantages. Here is a list of 5 significant problems you can face on your solo adventure and how to solve them.

1. Managing Travel Expenses

How to deal with it: Well, who said you always have to eat out? Right, nobody. Eating out is pretty expensive, especially solo, we all know that. So instead, why don’t you buy some groceries and make your food if you have a kitchen? Or just order delivery. It will be much cheaper. But if you still want to experience local food by trying it in the restaurants, look for more affordable non-touristy places and also for coupons that are widely available on the internet. A great site to look for such coupons is Groupon.

 

2. Securing Your Belongings

I’ve noticed that many people who plan their solo travel ask what to do in such a scenario. Well, for example, you want to swim, and you are afraid that your stuff will be stolen. So you need to buy a waterproof bug and swim with it or swim closer to the beach and watch your belongings. So that’s what I usually do. Yes, it’s not very convenient, but it is better than nothing. So there are always ways to figure out how to solve the problem.

 

3. Capturing Memories is Hard

Honestly, it’s not always a problem as most of the time, you are not going to like your pics taken by somebody, right?:). So I wouldn’t even consider this a problem. Nowadays, everybody uses a tripod and selfie stick, which does the trick and works just fine. You do not have to hurry, you can switch as many poses as you want, and you will not be worried about the other person and feel guilty that they have to take so many of your pics.

Learn the tricks on how to get great photos by yourself.

4. You Are Limited With Places to Visit as Some Are Better Visited With a Company

That’s true, but not critical. It is totally OK that you don’t feel comfortable visiting some places where you can feel awkward being alone there, but instead of thinking about that, concentrate on areas which you can visit. Spend your time planning your discovery tours and enjoy your time.

 

5. Dining Solo

This one is the most popular. Every solo traveler worries about that. Believe me, it can be weird the first time, but after, you will get used to it and stop paying attention to people who you think are watching you or even bother asking why you are alone. Bring your favorite book or read some articles on your phone. So you will be busy with yourself and food, and there will be no time for worries about what others think. If you still want to have an interaction with somebody, sit by the bar. Bartenders will always be happy to talk to solo guests.

 

Final thoughts

Thinking of your first solo trip can be very stressful, but planning a trip alone could never be more possible than now. Dreams should come true, and nothing should stop you from traveling (except for serious health problems). That being said, if you have always dreamed about traveling alone, now is your time. These planning tips for solo travel should ease your stress and make you feel more comfortable taking your first-ever solo trip. Happy travel, and thanks for reading.

 

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