Have you ever travelled alone? No? Then you have no idea what you are missing! Solo travel is awesome. Here’s why:
Do anything, go anywhere
Bike 100km non-stop if you want. Don’t leave your hotel bed for the next two days because you have a sore ass from all that biking. Just sit by a lake and gather your thoughts in silence, or stop and stare at the rain as long as you like. Survive on sandwiches for a week. Head out for Rome and decide midway to go to Vienna. You’ll get to Rome sooner or later because all roads lead there anyway! You won’t have your travel companion(s) interrupting your travel plans. You don’t have to compromise and you can travel selfishly and this is amazingly liberating. Travelling solo is all about celebrating yourself.
It’s easy to make friends
When we say travelling alone, we don’t mean you have to be alone for the entire length of your trip. Other travellers will find it easier to approach you when you are travelling solo or sitting alone at a pub (but keep your antenna up for trouble). And you’ll find it easier to mingle with a group. At some point in your trip, you are very likely to meet another cool traveller and the two of you may decide to travel for some days together Just go with the flow and you will find the world friendlier than you had imagined.
It’s easier to travel on a budget
It’s so much easier to stick to your budget when you are travelling solo. Solo hitchhikers are more likely to be picked up than a group. It’s also easier to get a Couchsurfing host while travelling alone for the simple reason that one couch is easier to find than two! Likewise, when searching for a bunk to sleep on in hostels during peak season, the chances of a single bed being available is more.
You learn to watch your back
There’s no one watching your back when you are travelling solo. You’ve got to be on guard at all times and trust your instincts about how to deal with various situations. While making the most of your trip, you also have to take care of your health because no one wants to fall sick in a foreign country when you don’t have a friend around to help you. All this teaches you to be responsible.
If you’re convinced that you really need to make that one trip at least all by yourself, here’s how to do it…
- Pack light. There is going to be only you doing all the carrying. More than everyday outfits, make sure you have clean underwear.
- Pack, and then repack with only half of the original items you had in mind: travelling solo is best done light.
- Carry enough or more than enough money. Beg, borrow from your parents or from your own pocket. You will always need more than you anticipate. Always.
- If you’re a girl travelling alone, carry a whole safety kit, complete with Swiss knife, razors, pepper spray.
- Also, try and make your travels (by bus or train) in the day time.
- When you’re travelling alone, other travellers will come up and start talking to you. Don’t run away from fear, that’s how you make new friends.
- Read a good book, one that inspires you to see however much you can. That’s what the Beat generation was all about-so maybe something from that literature.
- Always remember, you are completely by yourself. You have to talk to strangers, fix your travels and accommodation, and figure out your entire stay. There will be times when you will feel lonely and yet you will never be alone.
- You will get lost at some point. Don’t freak out, take it as an adventure. Stay calm, follow your map or just ask people on the road. You’ll always find your way back.
- Always look like you know where you’re going, even if you are hopelessly lost.
- At any point, make sure you are in a state to walk or at least stagger back to your lodging. You are your own keeper.
- You are going to get overexcited and spend exorbitant amounts of money on good food and alcohol. It will be difficult, but have a frugal plan. You need to survive with that amount for the next few days too. Or you know, you might have to end up selling your watch or washing dishes!
- Your travel will probably be for a week or two. Make a practical plan, but don’t sit in one place for the whole trip. You don’t find adventure in the dingy busy lanes of a metropolitan city
- Adventure is present in every nook and cranny. You have to also go looking for it. And interacting with local people and listening to their stories that can change you- that’s a beginning.
- Avoid unwanted attention by wearing a fake wedding ring. Create a story (preferably with photographic proof) of your imaginary husband, and practise telling it to your friends until it’s flawless!
- Find out about hotel/hostel curfews: there’s nothing worse than being homeless for the night.
- Invest in a bag with a sturdy zip/ fastening that can’t be opened very easily.
- Get a realistic sense of how long and how much it would cost you to get from the airport to your hotel: this is the part of your trip where you are most likely to get ripped off.
- Get used to eating alone. Perks include never having to share your ice-cream sundae!
- Smile, whenever and wherever possible.
- Make a travel blog, make a bucket list, and make it crazy.
- Use your contacts if you have friends or family in a place where you’re going; don’t be afraid to ask them for advice, or better still, a couch to crash!
- Make sure you have comprehensive travel insurance, in some countries medical care can cost an arm and a leg.
Have a general idea of what a good exchange rate is; it’s so easy to get ripped off when you’re not familiar with a currency.
[By Arnab Nandy, Sibendu Das, Heenali Patel, Clio Zauner, Sanjana Ray]