Planning your first solo trip is exciting yet a bit scary. Traveling solo brings with it freedom and flexibility (read why I love to travel solo here). However, not having a travel partner can feel overwhelming at times. You’ll be the one booking, planning, and essentially making all the decisions. By preparing a few things prior to traveling solo, you can ease some of the anxiety and stressors that might come up on the trip had you not been prepared.
Keep reading to find out how to plan for your first solo trip!
Start Small
For your first solo trip, I always suggest starting small. If you’ve never even gone to dinner or a movie by yourself, it’s quite unrealistic to expect to book a month-long solo trip and not be totally out of your element. I wrote a post about things to do to start traveling solo. I talk about taking yourself on solo dates and booking solo weekend getaways, have a read here!
Research
Being prepared is absolutely key to reducing anxiety, fear, and overthinking that comes with solo travel. Reading travel blogs (like mine!) and social media content from creators who have lived in or traveled to your destination is super helpful. They provide finding valuable information on where to stay, things to do, places to eat, etc.
When I first started traveling solo, I made full itineraries for my destinations and this helped me feel more at ease. I’m not saying that you need to plan every second of your day but having a loose idea of what you’ll do and backup plans for when things inevitably go wrong (museums aren’t open on Mondays & Tuesdays, a specific restaurant is permanently closed due to the pandemic, it’s raining for your outdoor adventure, etc.) can help you ease into traveling solo.
Decide on Your Destination
After doing some research, you’ve probably realized all destinations aren’t created equal. Not every city or country is laid out to be solo female traveler-friendly. But that doesn’t mean that you should restrict yourself from visiting a country because it’s deemed as unsafe. I would just recommend to ease in for your very first solo trip.
Select a destination where you know a bit of the language or your native language, know people who are in the country or nearby, and maybe even somewhere you have previously been. I truly believe that every single country can be both safe and unsafe for female travelers. While doing a little bit of research is helpful, don’t get too in the weeds. Be smart and safe on your first trip as you learn to navigate solo travel.
Signup for Travel Insurance
It doesn’t matter what country or if you “don’t plan on getting sick” or aren’t “doing anything actively to get hurt”. Travel insurance is coverage designed to protect against risks and financial losses that could happen while traveling. This could be anything from missed airline connections and delayed or lost luggage all the way to injuries or major illnesses.
Get a quick quote for SafetyWing Travel Insurance 👇
In this post [The Best Travel Insurance for Every Traveler] I cover the various types of travel insurance with pros and cons for each, questions you should ask before signing up, and my personal experiences of when I needed travel insurance.
Travel insurance is an incredibly smart safety net to have while traveling. Expect delays and cancellations and prepare for injuries or illness and you’ll be the smartest traveler around!
Pack Light
Packing light is a smart idea when you’re traveling in general but especially while traveling solo. You want to make sure you’re easily able to move your luggage around by yourself. There will be no one there to grab your suitcase from the carousel or lug it up 3 flights of stairs.
Oftentimes you’ll find you don’t actually use most of the stuff you bring, so be responsible about that. Call ahead to see what’s provided at your accommodation, check the weather, and think about what activities you’ll be doing. Using packing cubes was a game changer for me! It’s allowed me to easily travel with just a backpack and carryon luggage. Also, I always make sure to have space to bring stuff back! 😉
Bring Cash & 2 Cards
Always have cash in the local currency when you arrive for a cab, tip, and a snack! I always suggest withdrawing a small amount of cash from your local bank beforehand as airport fees are crazy. Check with your bank how far in advance you need to order.
Once you get settled, you can find a nearby ATM to withdraw more cash from. Depending on where you are, you may be able to use your cards to pay for things. The reason I suggest bringing 2 cards but not carrying both on you at the same time, is just in case one gets lost, stolen, or damaged. A backup card can save you in a bind!
Have a Travel Emergency Fund
Sh!t happens! You never know what might come up or happen to you in life especially while traveling. Have a realistic budget for your trip (Need help with that? Download my budget tracker here) but also have a little safety net if you will. It never hurts to have an emergency travel fund! And hey, if you don’t use it…it’ll be there for next time!
I also strongly suggest you have a travel credit card. 1. it’s the best way to earn rewards and book free flights & hotels & 2. it can be used in the case of a travel emergency!
If you’re unfamiliar with how travel points work, all the benefits, and want to compare travel credit cards then I highly suggest diving into The Points Guy site. There is a massive amount of valuable information and this article is a great start for diving into the best travel credit cards.
Book Accommodations in Advance
Whether you’ve decided to stay in a hostel, homestay, Airbnb, or hotel, I think it’s super important to book your accommodations in advance for your first solo trip. This way even if all has gone wrong on your travel day, you know you have a safe place to crash for the night.
If you’re looking to meet other solo travelers and are ok with roughing it a bit, I’d highly suggest staying in a hostel. I’ve met some incredible people from my hostel days in SE Asia. Many of whom I still keep in touch with to this day. If that is not the focus of your trip, it’s always nice to book a hotel or little studio Airbnb like this one I found in Mexico City or this one on Maui.
Join a Group Tour
Not only are group tours the perfect way to do less planning yourself and see more but they are the perfect way to meet people! The demographic for group tours ranges but 9/10 there will be at least one other solo traveler on a group tour.
I start by browsing through GetYourGuide’s site which hosts a variety of activities like foodie market tours, cooking classes, tours to tourist attractions, dinner cruises, etc. I find something that looks interesting to me and usually book a tour for my second day. This way I can interact with some new people and if I connect with someone and am in the mood, we can make plans to explore another day on my trip.
8 Tips on How to Meet People While Traveling Solo
WiFi Availability, SIM Card, or Data Plan
Depending on the country and length of time you’re going, you might need to check with your service provider to ensure your phone will work with your plan. If it doesn’t then you’ll need to get a SIM card. Oftentimes when I’m traveling, I won’t get a SIM card and I’ll just use WiFi when it’s available at airports, hotels, cafes, etc. But for your first solo trip, I do recommend being able to contact people as you’re navigating by yourself.
Download Offline Translator
This is super important if you’re traveling to a country that doesn’t speak your native language. The GoogleTranslate APP allows you to download the offline language you select which means even if you don’t have WiFi or service, you can still use the translator for this specific language. Do this in advance, so you won’t have to worry about not being able to find something, pay for something, or go somewhere.
Make Copies
It’s always a smart idea to have hard copies and easily accessible digital copies of important documents on your phone. Examples of these are a passport, passport photos, vaccine records, and a visa.
Scan or take pictures of all important documents and leave a digital copy with someone at home (spouse, family, bestie) and upload them to your phone. Put them in an album, so you’ll be able to easily access them.
Want more resources for traveling solo? Click here 👇
