Comfortable on Your Own?
Travel tips for solo travelers? If you’re reading this you probably consider yourself independent and most likely enjoy your own company.
You’ve also probably been seriously thinking about traveling solo, but what are some travel tips to know before leaving?
Below are some tips that a solo traveler should consider before heading out on their own.
Travel Tips #1: Check Your Mentality
Speaking from my own experience, people who usually lean more on the independent side tend to find themselves doing things on their own.
I also consider myself the same way, but having this type of mentality isn’t always the best approach when traveling solo.
You most likely have your own reasons for wanting to solo travel, whether that involves meeting new people or not.
Being able to switch from “loner” to “social butterfly” and vice versa is something you’ll eventually have to master in your own way.
Being More Social
On the other hand, if you’re independent but very much want to be social, meet new people, and have memorable experiences,.
Then yes, you’ll most likely meet new people and have those travel experiences.
But if you’re traveling solo, you have to understand that there’s a good chance that those people you meet are just temporary parts of your travel experience as a whole.
When or if you continue on your travels, most of those people will have gone their separate ways from your own.
At that point, you will most definitely find yourself alone (until you meet new people, of course).
If you decide to make solo travel a permanent part of your life, then this will happen frequently.
You’ll have to be ok with the fact that a big part of solo travel is the “solo” part, and you’ll have to either get used to the alone time or be a person who just naturally enjoys it.
Being Closed Off
Now you might be thinking, What if I don’t want to meet new people? Why would I have to be more social?
The reason that being more social is important is that you’ll eventually need to interact with people to do things and get around.
If you’re constantly closing yourself off from people while traveling, you’ll have a hard time getting around, and travel will just feel like one uncomfortable experience after another.
A big part of solo travel is exploring and learning more about your surroundings, but how would you be able to do that effectively if you weren’t willing to meet different people?
Keeping to yourself will leave you missing out on a lot of local information that could prove useful on your travels.
Not to mention, if you decide to go to a different country where the culture places more emphasis on “community,”
You might be seen as unfriendly and may end up being treated poorly.
Being extremely closed off will just end up being more detrimental to your travels in general.
So it’s best to put some effort into being more social and aware of the people around you.
The Best of Both Worlds
If you want to make the most of solo travel, you’ll want to be a person who approaches travel with both of these mindsets.
You’ll have to be a person who loves alone time and introspection but also loves to meet new people and have those experiences.
The ideal solo travel mentality is the perfect combination of introversion and extroversion.
Of course, no one is going to be completely in the middle, but the goal is to be as close to that ideal as possible.
You love the calm before the storm, but you also can’t wait to dive in when it hits.
Travel Tips #2: Be Ok With a Faster Lifestyle
Constantly traveling from one place to another will make life feel as if it were moving faster.
How fast it may feel will depend on the person and what their life was like before traveling.
Even if you’re the type of person who tends to keep to themselves and follows a fairly unchanging routine, the number of experiences you’ll have will go up substantially.
Making life feel like you’re living a faster version of your previous lifestyle. Now, I’m not saying it’s going to be some adrenaline-pumped experience (although it could be if you have that type of personality).
I’m saying that however you were living your life before, it will be turned up a notch just because of the constant travel.
To better picture this, let’s say you’re the type of person who follows a pretty standard routine.
Let’s say every morning you get up and cook breakfast, and when you’re done eating, you go for a walk.
There’s nothing special about that; there are probably millions of people who have a similar routine.
Now imagine adding travel to that part of your routine.
When you add travel to that routine, something as basic as waking up and cooking breakfast will all of a sudden be a different experience every time you set foot in a new place.
A Not So Basic Routine
Your basic routine of waking up and cooking breakfast will have you waking up in a different place with different scenery and cooking breakfast in different ways.
You might not even be able to cook breakfast and have to find another way to get your daily nutrients in.
Following the routine example from above, let’s say you’re now ready to go for your daily walk.
You’ll pretty much have to explore a new environment every time you get to your destination, just because walking is part of your every-day routine.
You’ll constantly meet different people and are more likely to experience something surprising just by going for a walk every morning.
Now think about a person who might not really follow a standard daily routine. Imagine all the various experiences they would have.
If a person with a basic routine can have that much potential for varied experiences just because of travel,.
Then a person who already lives spontaneously will probably live an even crazier life just by adding constant travel to their lifestyle.
As a solo traveler, you have to be willing to keep up with the faster pace of life and all the spontaneity that comes with traveling.
Travel Tips #3: Be Creative
Tapping into your creativity with the way you approach things can help a lot with your travels in general.
This tip is sort of in line with the last tip, but being generally more of a creative person can help you get through the challenges and unforeseen problems that come with constant travel.
(Having to find creative or unorthodox solutions to problems that might arise due to constantly being on the move.)
Being able to think outside the box can help you meet new people, understand their point of view, think about your own personal goals, and find creative solutions to unique problems.
Approach Travel From Unique Angles and Perspectives
Try to approach different scenarios in other ways. Instead of following your normal routine, try switching it up.
If you like going for walks, try renting a bike and see how that feels, or if there’s a beach or pool around, go for a swim instead of walking.
Simple things like this can go a long way toward having a more varied experience while you travel.
Even deciding to do something simple, like taking different routes to the same location, can become an interesting way of exploring your destination.
Trying to approach travel in this way can really increase your chances of having a more worthwhile experience.
Creative Satisfaction
Even being creative in the traditional sense can help you enjoy your travels more.
Creativity can help with managing stress by expressing what’s on your mind and seeing that expression translated into real life.
That might sound like something a therapist would say, but there’s a certain sense of satisfaction that comes from creating something pictured in your mind and seeing it in real life.
That feeling of creative satisfaction feels almost uplifting and makes you feel good about yourself.
Especially when it comes to traveling on your own, it’s easy to become overwhelmed by the constant change that comes with travel.
Leaning on a creative outlet to help you cope is sort of like doing maintenance on your mind.
It’s a good way to keep your mind healthy and focused so you can be mentally prepared for future travels.
Having more creativity in your life, whether that be in the traditional sense or by approaching your travels with an “outside the box” way of thinking, can go a long way in making your travels that much more enjoyable.
More Travel Tips? Is That All?
There’s much more to solo travel than just the tips above, but if you’re able to fully grasp these ideas and put them into practice on your travels,.
You’ll have a better chance of having a more interesting and enjoyable experience.
Solo travel will be different for everyone, but just like anything else, there are certain things to consider that can prepare you for what to expect when deciding to travel on your own for the first time.
If you want to read more on solo travel, visit the blog at Traks&Paks.com.
