Traveling solo is one of those things that people love doing, especially when they want to get away from the busy world and introspect on life and its meaning. Well, not necessarily always. Sometimes you want to go solo because it’s just easier planning a solo vacation and you can do exactly what you want without having to compromise with anyone! But traveling solo also means that your sense of accountability and responsibility needs to be at an all-time high. We bring you some practical tips that can help you have a safe and fun solo vacation!

Thoroughly research your destination

It is very important for a solo woman traveller to be completely aware of the place you are visiting. Make sure to check out various website to get a feel of the place and try to source information from other women travellers who have been there before you. First hand accounts by bloggers often give you a real feel of the land and you can be prepared for any eventuality that may occur.

Keep all documents safe

Keeping your documents on you is very important at all times, especially when you are in a foreign land. However, make sure to have copies of all documents stored in accessible places in each bag you’re carrying. More importantly, make soft copies of the documents and store them on your phone, laptops, and especially in a secure location like a cloud server that only you can access with a password. That way, even if you lose the physical documents, you can access them online.

Stay in touch with folks back home

Yes, the whole idea of a vacation is to get away from the everyday boring life and you really do not want to contact people. But it is very important to have regular contact so that there is someone who will be able to account for you and/or have your back.  In fact, a fixed time for a Skype call or a video call makes sense for women traveling solo, because then not only is your family reassured, you can also show off your perfect vacation in real time!

Low-key is the key!

Be it your outfits or you luggage, make sure to keep it low-key. Heavy luggage not only weighs you down it also makes you more vulnerable to thieves and robbers. It is the same with your clothes and accessories. Make sure to dress according to the location you are traveling it – no, you need not give up your unique dressing sense, but just make sure to dress such that you do not stand out in a crowd and attract the wrong kind of attention. Being able to mingle in with the locals is an important aspect of staying safe when you are traveling alone.

Make local friends

That’s a corollary from the previous point, but has been repeated since it is very important for your safety. Mix with the local crowds, chat up the cab driver that is going to drive you around, speak with the hotel people and get friendly with them, and if possible try to figure out if you have a friend that you could connect with. Of course the old saying about not speaking with strangers that our mothers used to tell us about as kids still stands true – when making friend with locals use  your intuition and good sense to decipher good from bad, and stay away from the latter.

Most importantly, always go with your gut feeling. Remember that when you travel alone your senses are already heightened and you are hyper-aware of your surroundings; and hence the chances of you getting into trouble can be considerably lower if you only keep your eyes and ears open. Travel alone, be safe, and discover a new side to you that you probably didn’t know existed!