10 Tips for Enjoying Solo Travel

Travelling alone can sound daunting at first. Who will you eat dinner with? What happens if you get lost? Will you feel lonely?

The reality is that solo travel can be one of the most rewarding ways to experience a new place. You have complete freedom to decide where you go, what you do and how you spend your time, without having to compromise with anyone else.

Charlotte, the founder of Roam The World Club knows a thing or two about travelling solo. Over the years, solo trips have included travelling through Southeast Asia, Australia and New Zealand, experiencing exciting new destinations, meeting people along the way and navigating the independence and best ways to be safe while traveling solo.

So, whether you're already travelling solo or thinking about taking the leap, here are ten tips to help you make the most of your time away.

1. Get comfortable doing things alone

One of the biggest adjustments when travelling solo is getting used to doing things you would normally do with someone else.

Eating at a restaurant alone can feel strange at first. So can sitting in a café, going to a museum or having a drink in a bar.

But after a while, it becomes surprisingly liberating.

Take a book, people-watch, listen to some music or simply enjoy your surroundings. Nobody is waiting for you to finish eating and nobody is asking what you want to do next. And if you're worried about people noticing that you're alone, chances are they really aren't. Everyone is usually far too busy doing their own thing.

2. Don't be afraid to talk to people

Travelling alone doesn't mean you have to spend your entire trip alone.

In fact, being on your own can sometimes make meeting people easier. When you're not travelling as part of a group, you're often more approachable, and you may find yourself striking up conversations that wouldn't have happened otherwise.

Chat to someone at your accommodation, speak to a local café owner or ask another traveller where they've been.

You don't need to become best friends with everyone you meet. Sometimes a ten-minute conversation with a stranger is enough to make a day more memorable, and may give you some ideas of new places to visit and explore.

3. Give yourself time to wander

One of the best things about travelling solo is not having to stick to somebody else's plans.

See an interesting street? Walk down it.

Spot a café that looks inviting? Stop for a coffee.

Want to spend another hour wandering around the market? Why not?

Having no one else to consider also makes it a great opportunity to explore with your camera. When you're travelling with someone, there can sometimes be a feeling that you need to keep moving, especially if you've stopped to photograph a particular building, street scene or moment.

When you're alone, there's no one waiting for you to get the shot.

Take your time. Try a different angle. Wait for someone to walk into the frame. Look for interesting light or shadows. If the first photograph doesn't work, try again.

There's no pressure to hurry on to the next thing.

Some of the best travel photographs come from simply wandering without a particular image in mind. Give yourself the freedom to explore and see what catches your eye.

You might even get a little lost along the way, although perhaps keep Google Maps handy for when you actually need to find your way home.

4. Don't feel like you have to see everything

There's a temptation when you're travelling to make every day count.

You have limited time, so you need to see the landmark, visit the museum, walk around the old town, find the best restaurant and somehow fit in a sunset viewpoint before dinner.

But you don't have to.

Give yourself permission to have a slow day. Sit on the beach. Find a café and stay there for an hour. Read a book. Take a walk with no particular destination.

You're on holiday, not completing a challenge. Some of the most enjoyable days can be the ones where you don't actually do very much.

Maybe your solo trip is to a hotel by the beach with litle else around, great! Take advantage of the slow days and relax.

5. Join a tour or activity

If you're starting to feel a little lonely, or simply want to meet people, joining an organised activity can be a great option.

Try a walking tour, food tour, cooking class, boat trip or day excursion. You'll get to experience more of your destination while naturally having the opportunity to meet other travellers.

And you don't have to commit to spending the rest of your trip with the people you meet. Sometimes it's nice simply to have a few hours of company before heading off to explore on your own again.

6. Say Yes to Something Unexpected

One of the best things about travelling solo is having the freedom to push yourself outside your comfort zone.

During a solo trip to the Philippines, the opportunity came up to go zip-lining. Heights aren't exactly a favourite, and zip-lining was something completely new, but when are you ever going to get the chance to zip line between two tropical islands ever again?

Sometimes, you just have to take a breath and do it.

Solo travel gives you the opportunity to say yes to experiences that you might normally talk yourself out of with someone else. Of course, pushing yourself doesn't mean ignoring your instincts. If something genuinely doesn't feel right, you don't have to do it.

But sometimes the only thing holding you back is fear.

You can do it. Push yourself. And that feeling afterwards? Amazing. Those are the moments that make travelling worth it.

7. Remember That You Don't Have to Prove Anything

There can be a strange pressure when travelling alone to make your trip sound exciting, as though every day needs to involve an adventure. It doesn't.

You don't need to climb the mountain, visit every attraction or spend every evening meeting new people. If you want to spend an afternoon reading in a café or chilling on a beach, that's perfectly fine too.

Your trip doesn't have to look impressive to anyone else. It just needs to be yours.

8. Don't Be Afraid to Change Your Plans

One of the biggest advantages of travelling alone is that you are in charge. If you arrive somewhere and don't like it, leave. If you discover somewhere you love, stay longer. If the weather changes your plans, find something else to do.

You don't have to stick rigidly to an itinerary just because you made it before you left home.

9. Come Home With More Than Photographs

When you're travelling, it's easy to focus on the big things. The famous landmarks, the must-see attractions and the photographs you know you want to capture.

But sometimes it's the little things that stay with you.

The old man reading a newspaper outside a café. Washing hanging between balconies. A street musician playing on a corner. The smell coming from a tiny restaurant. A conversation with someone you met for just a few minutes.

These everyday moments might not have been part of your itinerary, but they can become some of your favourite memories.

Photography is a great way to capture these little glimpses of everyday life, but a trip should leave you with more than just photographs. It should leave you with stories, experiences, new perspectives and perhaps a little more confidence than you had when you left.

Maybe you tried something that scared you. Maybe you made a new friend. Maybe you spent an afternoon wandering with no idea where you were going.

Those are the things you'll remember long after the photographs have been put away.

So take the photographs, but don't forget to look beyond the viewfinder too. Pay attention. Be curious. Take it all in.

You never know which little moment will stay with you.

10. Enjoy the freedom of solo travel

Perhaps the biggest piece of advice for anyone travelling alone is simply to embrace the freedom that comes with it.

You don't have to compromise. You don't have to follow somebody else's schedule. You can change your plans, spend an afternoon doing absolutely nothing, eat wherever you want or wander down a street simply because it looks interesting.

There might be moments when you feel lonely or out of your comfort zone. That's completely normal.

But there will also be moments when you realise that you're sitting somewhere completely unfamiliar, enjoying your own company, and thinking:

I actually quite like this.

Solo travel isn't about never feeling alone. It's about discovering that you can enjoy your own company while experiencing somewhere new.

And sometimes, that's the most rewarding journey of all.