Why I travel solo and you should too

Last year in April, I set out to my first solo trip. Since then, I did several solo trips and now idea of going on my own is the best feeling ever. When I did my first trip, I had no idea how is it gonna go but not only it turned out to be fantastic, it also taught me a lot of think.

Back then, I didn’t have anyone to travel with me but now I have friends who would like to travel with me. But the idea of traveling solo is more exciting to me and following are some the reasons I enjoy solo traveling.

1- You make friends

A lot of people confuse solo traveling with traveling alone. Traveling solo never means traveling without other people. To me the whole idea of traveling solo is to start the journey on my own,. On my way, I always meet the most amazing people and end up traveling and sharing experiences with them.

2- You’re the Boss

You’re the only person you have to please. Climbed a mountain today and wanna climb again tomorrow? No one is stopping you. Wanna take a walk instead of taking public transport, no one’s gonna argue against it. Literally, you’re free to do anything you want without any pressure from friends or your SO. You’re free to adventure as you like.

3- You Engage with locals

When you’re on your own, you have to ask around local people for things like transport, restaurants and shops. That gets the conversation started and sometimes you ended up having long meaningful conversation with them. When you’re traveling solo, your mind is also focused on observing small details that makes you connected with local environment and gives you the opportunity to experience culture and values in a deep way.

4- You become Confident, Curious, Fearless and Open Minded

When I started traveling solo, I was a loner but became a lone wolf. I made friends and lovers all over the places I went. Traveling solo gives you opportunity to talk and mingle with local people and it changes the way you think, it makes you open-minded and confident.

You learn that it’s ok to be different. Being the only person with different skin color and language in a new place and later becoming friends with those strangers is such an empowering experience. It changes your fear of unknown into curiosity and you become fearless.

5- You get to spend quality time with you

Admit it, our daily lives are mess. From time we wake up to time we sleep, something is running in our heads about our work, education or problems. We never get the chance to spend time with ourselves in peace. Traveling solo gives us alone time where we can think about lives in a positive sense. Go take a hike alone in nature and you’ll come back a different person.

6- You get to appreciate small things back in home

Being away from home on your own, you learn to appreciate small things you have at home like your comfy bed and pillow. Next time you grab beers with you friends in your city, you realize how special they are and how much happiness they contribute to your daily life.

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I have been advocating solo travel for more than a year as it brought many positive changes in me that reflects on my everyday life. I made several good friends during my solo travels. If you’re hesitating or afraid or traveling by yourself just like I used to, give it a try. Fly to a near by country for a weekend, stay in hostel and see how it goes. Trust me you’ll fall in love with solo traveling and ask yourself, “Why I never did it before?”