If you ended up here, chances are solo travel is something you are a least a little bit interested in. That or some blonde curly-haired girl is incessantly talking about how great solo traveling is like she’s a lovestruck teenager obsessed with talking about her misunderstood, poetic, and exciting boyfriend. Yes, this was the best analogy I could come up with. Nonetheless, you absolutely should solo travel at least once while you grace this planet. And this post is just to begin the discussion on why. There are some pretty great reasons, so let’s start there.
You get the chance to remove yourself from the bubble of your world. It is so easy to get caught into your rhythm of life combined with the same characters you know and love (most the time). They know and love you too, but this creates a sense of you that is made inside the borders of what you are a part of. This is great, and I think mindset truly dictates the borders of this life. However, there is still something to be said about removing, even if briefly, the comfort factor present when settled in a spot. *Insert solo traveling.*
The ~goddamn incredible~ people. I used to think I was an interesting individual with lots to bring to the table. Then I had a conversation with literally anyone in a hostel. Big twenty-year-old revelation that the world does not revolve around me and everyone has their own intricate lives. If not an argument of the lasting and incredible relationships you can create abroad, then seriously you can learn so much from just conversing with strangers with an open-mind.
THE FOOD. This one is too easy. Food tastes better when you are on vacation mode. I don’t make the rules. I do follow the one that goes, “Okay, I’ll have another, I’m on vacation.”
You make the rules. What do you want to do? Spend hours wandering around a city, stopping each time you want to try one of those pastries. Great. Lay on the beach for hours on end daydreaming about the surfer that passed by and what type of accent they have. Amazing. Take every walking tour to learn everything about the place you’ve come to until you have ancient greek-worthy calves. Incredible. You don’t have to check in with anyone or pretend you want to stare at paintings all day if you don’t. The freedom is a major selling point. Be sold on this.
In combination with the freedom, you learn so much about yourself. I think this is invaluable in each realm of life regardless of where you are at or who you are spending time with. Sharing experiences with the ones you love is amazing, but learning to appreciate these experiences by yourself is in of itself liberating.
Learn about a culture, a language, a unique dish you can bring back home. The world is your oyster. You have the flexibility and dependency to lean into the new place you are in while solo.
There are so many misconceptions about solo traveling and what it is like, (plug: the reason for this blog), but you won’t know what it is like unless you just do it. Cue Shia LeBeouf. Life is short my friends, take a chance, and go explore it.
LIVE FULLY 