Why I Love Traveling Alone

I’ve been taking solo trips for about 5 years now, and I’m obsessed. Don’t get me wrong, taking a trip with family and friends can be fun, but wow… traveling alone has changed the game for me. Before I started traveling, I always thought I couldn’t go anywhere new (especially abroad) alone, and that I’d have to wait for friends or a partner in order to see the world. Now, I’m almost 30 and can say with confidence that that thought process couldn’t be farther from the truth.

Yes, I still go places with other people. I went to Scotland with a friend in November 2021, and just got back from Iceland with another. Even so, traveling solo is my preferred method of both new and old places.

Yeah yeah, you like it sooo much, we get it. But why? What makes traveling ALONE so great? Let me share a few things with you, and maybe you can see where I’m coming from here. Before we get into that though, some context: I’m an only child. Not only that, but I’m an only child of divorced parents in a small family, which means I’ve spent a lot of my life entertaining myself, and have gotten very comfortable with my own company. It’s also the backbone for a lot of the reasons I love solo travel so much, so let’s get into those.

You get to choose everything. The location, budget, travel dates, activities, the food, flights, everything. This is huge for me, especially since I’m such a big planner. The big theme of traveling alone is that it’s up to you, a LITERAL choose your own adventure. Do whatever you want on your own schedule. Change your mind? Do something different!

No compromising. This definitely ties into the first point, but since it’s just you, you don’t need to compromise! No worries that someone else doesn’t like the restaurant you picked, or doesn’t want to do that 3 hour glacier hike with you.  I’ll admit, I’m really not good at compromising. I’ll do it, but I won’t like it, and that for sure brings down the mood of a trip.

You get to enjoy your own company. It may sound silly, but I really do enjoy being alone. Not in a “oh god, I hate everyone, leave me alone” way, but more of a “I’m taking this time off from work and regular life to truly enjoy myself without worry” way. Like I mentioned, I grew up as an only child of divorced parents, so when I wasn’t with my cousins (or after we moved away), I spent a lot of time by myself. It doesn’t bother me, and now as an adult, I seek out that time alone to relax and recharge.

I’m a photographer, so when I travel, I spend a lot of time thinking about photos I want to take, and that can be frustrating for travel buddies that aren’t into that. I recently went to Iceland with a friend - we had a GREAT time, post coming eventually - and I’ll admit that I spent a lot of time wondering if I was being annoying when trying to capture everything I could on camera. Spoiler alert, I wasn’t, but it reminded me that when I travel alone, I can take all the time I want to get the shot I’m picturing, and nobody is bored or waiting on me.

And my last reason I love solo travel is the ability to meet new people. I know, I just went on for ages about why I like being places alone and not talking to other people, what the heck? Yeah, turns out that traveling alone is great to meet other like-minded solo travelers, making friends with tour guides, and meeting people from the place you’re visiting! I’ve met some amazing friends just by being somewhere by myself, and I probably wouldn’t have been able to do that if I was traveling with another person. Easy ways to meet people if you’re traveling alone? Take a tour or do an activity (like a luxury canal cruise in Amsterdam), stay in a shared hostel dorm, or attend an event!

All of this being said, I highly encourage people to travel as much as they are able, both alone and with others, depending on preferences. Now that I’ve been on two trips with friends and a few with family, I can say it was fun! I had a great time on trips with other people, but I still love solo travel, and will likely never give it up. The confidence and peace I get when I travel alone is something I’ve come to crave at this point, and I’m eagerly awaiting the next adventure I have planned.

Have you ever traveled alone? I’d love to hear your thoughts - did you like it, what would you change, how does it compare to traveling with others? Tell me all the things!

As always, stay hydrated, stay safe, and book the flight.