Solo travel isn’t just for members of the lonely hearts club or Into the Wild-style recluses anymore. A 2015 study showed a jump in the number of travelers choosing to fly solo each year and another 2014 survey found that the majority are American women. If you still need convincing, 59 percent of those women wanderlusters loved their traveling alone so much, they said they’re planning another adventure by themselves in the next year.
Whether your ideal vacation is an escape from the daily grind on a deserted beach or a journey of self-discovery on the hippie trail, traveling alone is something everyone should try at least once. So maybe bae can’t take time off work, your schedule doesn’t line up with your family’s or you and your BFF just can’t agree on a dream destination. Don’t let that keep you from exploring the world because there are so many reasons to travel solo.
7 Reasons You Should Travel Solo (Hilton)
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You'll Get to Know Yourself
Diane von Furstenberg said that "the most important relationship in your life is the relationship you have with yourself. Because no matter what happens, you will always be with yourself." Nowhere does this become more clear than when you find yourself suddenly a stranger in a strange land.
Meeting the challenge of traveling by yourself can help you discover your strengths and needs. When you have to call all the shots yourself — and can't blame an unexpected outcome on anyone else — you learn to rely on yourself. You just may make yourself say, "Throw your hands up at me," Destiny's Child circa 2001-style.
Being surrounded by newness in a faraway place forces you out of habits and brings into focus what's really important to you or what may be holding you back. And though solo life on the road can sometimes be lonely, loneliness gives you time to reflect on your goals; if you don't already, a solo voyage is a great time to try out keeping a journal. Giving yourself a break from the distraction of other people (and technology, if you can resist) is also a surefire way to pull you into the present moment. Plus, some healthy distance from the people in your life can help you take stock of your relationships — whether that's letting someone go or making you even more grateful for the people and place you get to come home to.
Image: @karliekloss
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No Travel Fights
The BFF dynamic doesn't always translate away from home and even the chillest person can turn into a monster in the TSA line. Mark Twain clearly got this when he said, "I have found out that there ain’t no surer way to find out whether you like people or hate them than to travel with them."
Traveling is amazing, but it can also be chaotic at times; there are tons of decisions that have to be made, things don't always go as planned and that's part of the adventure. But take a missed flight, throw in some jet lag and the best intentions sometimes get lost in translation. One Slate writer even went so far as to suggest that couples should always fly separately. Of course, we like to believe that there's that perfect travel buddy out there for everyone. But if you haven't found that special someone who will let you borrow their underwear when your suitcase gets lost, consider using that as a launch pad to travel solo — you may just meet your sightseeing soulmate on the road.
Image: @lupitanyongo
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Vacation Hookups
Speaking of meeting people on the road, foreign flings are one of the perks for solo travelers. It's easy to make romance part of your itinerary: locate the nightlife scene, plan an activity that encourages intimacy (like tango lessons in Argentina or partner yoga in Bali), turn on Tinder (or find out what the most popular regional dating app is) and, of course, pack protection.
Remember how on the last day of summer camp everyone would suddenly have the courage to make out with everyone else because they knew they'd never see each other again? The same effect works when you're traveling — you're already out of your comfort zone, so it's way easier to just take the leap. Hey, it worked in Eat Pray Love, Before Sunrise, Vicky Cristina Barcelona, An American in Paris, Under the Tuscan Sun, Dirty Dancing: Havana Nights, Roman Holiday and probably a million other travel rom-coms. What is it about a foreign accent that makes the meet-cute that much cuter? It's basically science that a sexy foreign accent is the number one aphrodisiac.
Seriously though, the Daily Mail reported that more than 40 percent of British women under 30 have had a holiday fling, so consider the odds in your favor. And if you're not single, just remember the old adage that absence makes the heart grow fonder — and think about how much bae will miss you.
Image: @joansmalls
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You'll Save Money
Sure, when you travel alone you may miss out on discounts, like group rates or splitting a double hotel room with your traveling companion. But because there's been such a spike in solo sojourning in recent years, more and more hotels, tours and cruises are dropping the practice of charging single supplement fees and are now making accommodations for people traveling alone. Some online travel sites now even include search engine filters to help those traveling alone save money. So, do your research and don't let money matters discourage you from venturing out on your own.
If you've ever tried to stay on budget while traveling with someone who has a different idea about what a shoestring looks like, you can appreciate the power of peer pressure when it comes to spending. A study in the Journal of Consumer Psychology showed that shopping with your friends increases your urge to purchase, so when there's no one else to encourage you to buy that tacky souvenir you don't need or to spring for the first class upgrade, it's easier to make a vacation budget and stick to it.
Image: @vanessahudgens
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Operate on Me-Time
Traveling with a group can be like herding cats, but even traveling with just your best friend or significant other requires a lot of compromise. Sometimes it's totally worth it, but solo travelers also know that nothing makes the world feel so much like your oyster as being able to make your own itinerary. Go ahead, have gelato for breakfast, lunch and dinner. Turn around and walk back to take a closer look at the window display that caught your eye 10 blocks back. Nap in the afternoon, sleeping diagonally in the bed. Linger over the museum plaques as closely as you want or breeze straight through to the gift shop. Take as many do-overs as you need to frame that perfect sunset shot. And never feel like you're missing out on that big world out there while your travel buddy insists on charging their smartphone or blowdrying their hair in the hotel. Henry David Thoreau nailed it when he said, "The man who goes alone can start today; but he who travels with another must wait till that other is ready..."
Image: @rubyrose
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Connect With Locals
Sometimes you travel by yourself to get away from it all and there's no doubt that a little solo cafe contemplation is really rejuvenating. But eventually even shrinking violets finish the only paperback they brought and get so conversation-starved they'll talk to anybody — and this opportunity for connecting with locals is one of the huge benefits of traveling by yourself.
When you vacation with friends, it's so much easier to find comfort in numbers and only engage with each other in your native tongue. Taking the time to learn some key phrases in the local language, though, is so rewarding — a few little words go a long way to show that you're interested in someone else's culture and you never know when a simple greeting will end up in an invitation to join an authentic family dinner or score you a hand-drawn map to the locals-only beach. It's always important to stay safe, but embracing the fact that solo travelers tend to attract the curiosity of locals (and are much more approachable than a gaggling group of foreigners) can lead to lifelong connections.
Image: @shaym
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There's No Time Like Now
There's truly never been a better time to venture out on your own. Thanks to Instagram, Facebook, Snapchat, et al., not to mention the proliferation of Wi-Fi zones in even the most remote locations, staying in touch with loved ones around the world is insanely easy. Having your friends and family in your back pocket can give you a boost of confidence on a solo expedition. In addition, social networks like Meetup, Couchsurfing or ridesharing sites can help you find locals interested in sharing their culture and get in touch with fellow nomads. EatWith is a new-ish platform that brings together guests and local hosts in more than 200 European and U.S. cities for home-cooked communal meals and TravBuddy shows you where other solo travelers are headed and lets you share itineraries. Plus, you know you need an excuse to put your selfie stick to good use.
Image: @saintrecords
