If you travel alone, you get as much or as little time as you want at the Royal Palace of Madrid. Photo by: Evan Berman

Most of what I write on this site talks about making the most of your travel experience– after all the website is called Maxing Out Memories! I want to talk about a question that I get asked frequently when someone finds out about the travels and events I engage in: “Do you do this by yourself?” The answer is not always yes, but it is quite frequently.

It seems strange to me that solo travel is not more common. After all, America has a culture of individuality– think Lift Yourself up by Your Bootstraps or Rugged Individualism. Yet, travel is often associated with a group of friends, a romantic getaway, or a family vacation. Those can all be enjoyable experiences, but today I want to discuss the joy of solo travel.

How I Started to Travel Alone

As with most things in life, solo travel is hardest to do the first time. Once you’ve traveled by yourself, it is much easier to do it again. When I was in college, I studied abroad in Paris, France. I had some great friends and enjoyed hanging out with them… in Paris. When it came time to travel, most of them wanted to visit very different places than I did. And that’s fine, everyone’s travel style is different! After two weekends, I realized it was up to me to plan a trip for myself if I wanted to see the places I had dreamed of.

My first trip? Visiting Belgium which is a quick 2-hour train ride from Paris. I booked a room in a hostel to have company and meet new friends. Any attraction I saw was one I was interested in seeing. The restaurants that I chose had weird specialties and exotic food that might not appeal to everyone. I spent over an hour at one famous beer bar. In short,I was hooked! If I’m travelling with 10 other people and want to see a sight that nobody else does, I might feel compelled to skip it. Same with a restaurant or attraction.

Nothing encompasses this more than the return train ride. I had planned to take a train that arrived in Paris around 2pm. I was having so much fun on that last day that I opted to stay in Belgium and return to Paris at 8pm! This style is certainly not for everyone, though. If the above is revolting to you, I’d argue that solo travel is also for you! You’ll have the ability to plan everything to a T and never have to worry about someone like me cramping your style!

After that first trip (baby steps), I was off to the races. Austria and Slovakia, Zurich and Geneva, Spain, Poland, and Norway. The grand finale was Ireland for St. Patrick’s Day. As my glazed eyes in the below photo attest, I managed to have a terrific time despite not knowing anyone there. But, that’s a story for another time. 🙂

How to Travel Alone

Let’s start with an obvious truth: everyone has a different style of travelling. The good news of going by yourself? You never have to compromise on that! (Unless of course your style of travel is by private jet. Then you might need to compromise a bit 😉 ).

If you’re feeling a bit nervous about travelling alone, just remember you’re never truly alone! The next time you have a work trip or need to head home for the holidays, pay attention to that flight or the meals you have. Are you stressed? Probably not and you can certainly have fun in Rome, Paris, or a beautiful mountain!

You know better than anyone else what you want in a trip, but here are a few pointers.

General Tips:

• Only visit and stay in places that you feel safe in
  • Even if you only feel safe at a resort, it’s most important that you can enjoy peace of mind. If you’re worried about crime or your livelihood in a place, don’t go there! It doesn’t matter if other people tell you it’s safe– it’s a solo trip, so it’s your call!
  • This goes for lodging and transportation as well. Do you feel uncomfortable with the idea of a hostel? Don’t stay there! Want to avoid public transportation or driving a car? Don’t do it!
• Do your research in advance
  • This is advice I give in every travel situation but is especially true here. Travelling by yourself means that you cannot count on someone else coming up with suggestions for a life-changing experience (though locals are a great source of these!)
  • Make sure you know where you want to stay (downtown, suburbs, beach, etc.), what you want to do, and what you want to get out of a trip.
• Treat yourself
  • Whether you are travelling on a budget or living luxuriously, I recommend that everyone splurge on 1 meal, stay, or experience.
  • Pro tip: do this on the last day/night of your trip so that you have something special you are looking forward to AND you finish your trip strong!
  • Need an idea? Spend $20 more than you normally do by booking a reservation at a fancy restaurant. Take a boat toar instead of walking around a city. Book a private tour of a museum instead of going during regular hours.
• Take a souvenir (or 10!)
  • This may seem obvious, but we forget things over time. No matter how good a trip is, some of the details will start to fade in 6 months. By the time 5 years has gone, you’ll be so glad that you have a keepsake to remind you of the fun that you have.
  • Pro tip: most airlines limit you to one carry-on and one personal item (if that) in economy. I’ve never had a problem carrying 2-4 bags onto the plane in addition to your carry-on. In short, ensure you remember your trip by getting a souvenir for anything that you really enjoyed.

Whether you’re a veteran traveller or this is your first trip, you won’t get to everything and that’s ok. Travel is about enjoying time spent in another city or country and expanding your worldview. Allow yourself to be happy and you will be!

How I Travel Alone

I gave some general pointers of how to approach travelling alone. Now it’s time to pull back the curtain and talk about how I do it.

1. Think of a destination (ex. Patagonia or Eastern Europe)
2. Book international flights first, using points and miles when possible.
   • Pro tip: you don’t need to fly directly from your home city to the destination city. I’ll share more about this in a future article but take advantage of deals such as cheap intra-Europe flights to find better deals
3. After the flights are confirmed, think through the locations to visit during the trip. Allow flexibility to call an audible (ex. adding a last minute stop in Buenos Aires well after the flights to and from Santiago were booked on the South American Adventure)
4. Plan out the experience or reservation where I want to treat myself. Book a table at a terrific restaurant or a tour of the Northern Lights
5. Stay in an area where I can meet new friends. In the past, I booked hostels. Now, I like to look for a hotel in a neighborhood with lots of restaurants and nightlife.
6. Do a deep dive into what exactly I want to see. I make a top-5 list for each city I visit that encompasses sights, restaurants, and bars.
   • If I have time to do more, great. I at least know that I can see the things that are most important to me.
7. Have plans but don’t be beholden to them.
   • Sometimes the plan is to visit one place, but when I get there, I notice a funky restaurant with some special dish I’ve never heard of. If that’s the case, I drop everything and try it!
8. Be constantly on the go
   • This one is highly tailored to me. When I travel, I want to see everything that a city/country has. That means I don’t want to waste any time. I’m out the door by 8:30am/9am most days and don’t stop until well past 11pm. Life is to be enjoyed!
   • If you’re idea of travel is relaxing on the beach, do the opposite of this. Enjoy yourself, have 1 (or 5) drinks more than normal. Turn your phone off, don’t check emails. Make sure you’re getting as much out of the trip as you want!
9. Have fun, but take note of memories
   • I mentioned this in bullet 4 above, but our memories do fade. One tradition I have is that every place I go, I buy a postcard. I must have 200+ postcards by now! Pictures are great but souvenirs help us remember the good times we had. See a cute little handicraft? That would look great next to my desk…
     • If I’m struggling at work, one quick glance and I’m transported to the sunshine of a prior adventure!

Recap

Travelling alone can be daunting. Take a deep breath and imagine the freedom that you’ll get by being able to visit whatever you would like, whenever you would like. If all else fails, drop me a note and just maybe I’ll join you on a trip! Remember, you’re on a website called Maxing Out Memories, get out there and make some of your own!

Evan