Traveling solo is an incredibly empowering and eye-opening experience. When you travel alone, you learn things about yourself that you might've never have known otherwise. At the same time, for many people, it is terrifying. But it doesn't have to be. Here are some steps that are worth exploring before you travel to a new country alone.
The First Steps in Traveling Solo
Step 1: Practice Being Alone:
Being alone can be hard for many of us. With cellphones and social media, in the current decade, being alone is actually hard to do. You always have the options of being around people. If you want to solo travel though you have to get used to being on your own. SO
PRACTICE!
- Go to a movie alone
- Eat at a sit down restaurant by yourself
- Go to a bar and have a drink on your own.
It is amazing what you end up seeing when you aren’t distracted by conversation and or your phone.
Step 2: Take it slow:
Before you travel to a new country alone try going somewhere close by for a weekend trip. There are plenty of great hostels that you can find in the US if you still want a social experience. For safety reasons, make sure to tell someone where you are going, but after that just have fun!
Step 3: Dream:
The most important part of any trip is the initial DREAM. Identifying that place is the first step in making it become a reality. Take some time to think about where you might go if you could go anywhere in the world. You might surprise yourself.
Step 4: Set an Intention:
Next set an intention of when and where you will go. Action most definitely follows thought. When you make the intention to go visit your dream destination you are one step closer in making it happen.
Step 5: Do Some Research:
This step is a little tricky. As a new traveler you are probably going to want to plan out every little detail of your trip. I would highly recommend NOT doing this. Some of my best adventures have happened when I don’t have a plan.
On the other hand, if you’ve never traveled before it is good to do some research ahead of time so you know what you are getting into. Some good places to start would be:
- Checking the visa requirements
- Take a look on the cdc website for health related information pertaining to your country of choice.
- Have an idea of what sort of weather you will be encountering
Step 6: Just Go Travel!
No matter how much you prepare you really are not going to know if you like solo traveling until you try it. There is no time like the present to try something new. Pick your place, buy a ticket and just go travel! Don’t overthink it just do it! Easier said than done I know but trust me it will all be worth it. Even if it goes terribly wrong at least you will get a good story out of it.
Curious about more tips for Solo Traveling for Newbies? Check out this blog post: 10 Ways to Make Solo Traveling More Fun – Coming Soon to Bold Destinations.
