Do you have any thoughts on solo travel

[SmackFu]

Other options I’ve tried, being in much the same boat:

1. Big bus package tours of Europe. Fun. Easy. Meet tons of people from all over. Groups are too big. Stereotypical tourist experience. The age-limited ones like Contiki tend to be mostly singles. Non age-limited ones tend to be 50+ and lots of couples.

2. Small camping tours, like TrekAmerica or SunTrek. Small groups. Got to like camping. Almost all singles. Lots of Europeans. Cheap. Low-key.

I think the hostel thing is the best, but these are other options if you want a stable group for the whole trip. The main problem is that smetimes the stable group sucks, and you’d rather have the freedom to ditch them all. Plus hostel people are more interesting than tour people. Sorry, but true.

[amarinth]

I’ve always traveled by myself (if I didn’t, I wouldn’t go anywhere) and I love it.

It isn’t never lonely, but most of the time, I’m fine. There’s no compromise, nothing that stops me from doing what I want when I want, or from cancelling my plans on a whim. If something looks interesting, I can see it. If something feels overrated, I can stop. Plus, when you’re not with anyone - you have to interact with the people where you’re going. And they’re really quite interesting.

The only thing that’s bad is a lot of times things are priced “per person based on double occupancy” and when you’re alone, suddenly a reasonable price becomes ridiculous.

[Quasimodal]

I just got back from six weeks of solo backpacking in central Europe. Best experience of my life. My only regret is I didn’t do it when I was twenty. For me it was a life altering experience.

[Spectre_of_Pithecanthropus]

Deleted.

[gardentraveler]

One more vote for “do it!”

I came in to second (or third…) the opinion that you should stay at hostels. You’ll find lots of people your age and maybe even find people traveling to some of the same destinations as you.

I love meeting up with people when I travel, but traveling is more fun by yourself because of the lack of compromising that someone mentioned upthread.

You can also get travel ideas right here on the Dope. Here’s the thread that goes with the trip Priceguy just came back from. There are also lots of threads asking for travel advice right here in IMHO. (I’ll be posting one myself later today.)

[hijack]Glad you had such a great trip to Mexico, olives![/hijack]

Have fun!!

GT

[treis]

@mhairi2222

I’ve been wanting to travel since I left high school 6 years ago, but haven’t. I’ve been reading the thread about “advice you’d give your 18 year old self” and the “regret” thread, and it’s made me really want to just get out there.
But, one of the reasons I’ve never gone is that no-one I know wants to go travelling for any length of time. They all have jobs/businesses they won’t leave, or just plain don’t want to.
So, I’d love to hear if you have any thoughts, opinions or experiences of solo travel around the globe. From what I imagine it might be quite lonely, and this would far outweigh the benefit most people rave about: not having to compromise on what YOU want to do.
So, you guys got anything to share??
Thanks

Hostels are like the first day of college. No one really knows anyone else, but that’s ok because no one really knows anyone else. Other people will be traveling alone, and even those traveling in groups will get tired of each other. You won’t have any trouble finding someone to do activities with.