I have been traveling solo extensively since 2012. Even before I started blogging about my travels, I used to share my travels on Facebook. In these years, I have received numerous messages from women I met on all walks of my life, or even the ones I have never met. Messages of encouragement, appreciation, expression of desire to do what I’m doing, questions and tips on solo traveling for women in India inundated my inboxes and blog comments. A week ago, I was a speaker for a blogging event where I had a very interactive session with enthusiastic women who aim to be solo travelers some day. And I have been promising a lot of women who follow my blog, to come up with this post. Here’s to all the bold and beautiful ladies out there. (and even the handsome guys who want to travel solo)
Let me put before you the deeper aspects of solo traveling, before I share the practical tips.
1. Have a Strong Reason to Travel Solo
Solo Travel is not a trend to be followed. Yes, it sounds cool to see a woman traveling solo, but it’s not for the trend or for the cool solo-selfies that you would enjoy traveling solo. Travel itself is a very deep, meaningful event for me. I see travel as the best way for me in the direction of evolvement.
Solo travel breaks all my inhibitions and makes me bolder and more confident each day. This is the reason for me getting out of my comfort zone and try some new adventure on each of my trips. Travel is not just a passing fad for me, but a meaningful way of life.
2. Identify if you fear Loneliness or enjoy Solitude
Know yourself and analyse your personality before you choose to travel solo. Can you live all by yourself in your own city, your comfort zone, that is? Do you enjoy dining out alone? Do you have a strong passion to explore new places and are motivated enough to head out on your own even when your friends turn down the offer?
If you know you are constantly craving for a company, I would suggest you to be away from solo travels. Loneliness would only make your travel experiences sad. Traveling alone will bring in its own set of problems which you need to deal with on your own in a new land.
But, if you have embraced the solitude, then my friend, you are in the league. Solitude is dangerous, it is addictive. Once you know how peaceful it is, you don't wanna deal with people anymore. Solo travel would make you love your solitude at an extent from where it might be difficult for you to get back.
But, if you have embraced the solitude, then my friend, you are in the league. Solitude is dangerous, it is addictive. Once you know how peaceful it is, you don't wanna deal with people anymore. Solo travel would make you love your solitude at an extent from where it might be difficult for you to get back.
3. Believe in yourself
Coming from an Indian family, I know how our families mould us and condition us to live a life in a certain way which suits the society norms. If you really need to follow your heart, whether for travel or anything else, you need to uncage your mind from the set boundaries. As I’ve rightly read it somewhere “Magic happens once you get out of your comfort zone”! What restricts you from getting out of that zone are self-doubts and worries about how things would be once you do it. So believe in yourself and just get started.
4. Get Started
If you have passed the above 3 criteria and you know you can travel solo, all you need is that one final push to start. Believe me, all it takes is just a start. Even as an experienced solo traveler, I still sometimes face apprehensions when I land at new destination- “Am I doing the right thing by being all by myself at this place?” and the next thought is - “Now that I’m already here, let me make the most of it” and this thought leads to the most exciting journeys of my life. So, it’s just these small starts that make big differences in your travels and your life.
5. Follow your instincts
This is the biggest gift solo traveling has given to me. My impulses were always strong. Its just that because of the naysayers, I never learnt to follow them or believe in them. People out there were always ready to discourage and make me doubt my instincts. On my solo travels, I got to experiment on following my senses completely, without anyone’s involvement or interference. Over a period of time, I learnt to believe in and follow my own instincts and started traveling fearlessly. I even trekked solo in Ladakh.
This is like a chicken and egg problem. You need to believe in yourself to enjoy solo travels. The more you practise, the better you get with it.
Once you have cleared your mind, the practical implementation is not too difficult. I'll share tips for women on solo traveling in my next post.
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