Solo travel tips
Hello again from Tokyo, where things are slowly starting to cool down, and winter will be on it's way way soon. I've been out enjoying some beautiful autumn days and some colourful parks and gardens while the leaves turn different shades of yellow, orange and red. I also caught up with an old coworker and good friend who was back in Japan for a holiday, so that was really good too. After my trip to Seoul, I thought I'd compile a list of some helpful solo travel tips. Travelling alone internationally can be daunting, especially if you don't speak the language, but once you've done it once, it really does give you a sense of achievement. Here are some practical pieces of advice should you find yourself travelling alone.
1) Act confident. Even if you don't feel confident or don't know 100% where you're going, acting like you know where you're going will help you blend in and you won't look like a potential target for thieves and scammers. This really helped me. I actually had two Korean students approach me and ask me if I was a student because I looked 'so natural'. Planning out your route to the train/bus station or to the attractions you want to see beforehand will help you with this and also ensure that you don't get too lost.
2) Stay in hostels! This is the best thing you can do as a solo traveller, especially if you're young, as it will give you a chance to mix with others and find people to have a meal with in the evenings. Eating alone is a huge thing that people feel awkward about when travelling solo, but staying at a hostel can eliminate this problem. Hostels are a great way to meet people from all over the world, and they're usually super affordable. The place I stayed at in Seoul was $72 NZD for four nights, and this included breakfast. I felt really safe leaving things in my hostel, but I know that Seoul is safer than other cities in places like Europe, so do be careful with your valuables, and use the lockers provided. Top tip: not every hostel will have locks on their lockers, so it may be a good idea to pack a small padlock just in case.
3) Be organised! This is particularly important when you're travelling alone as you can't rely on other people to have things you may need such as adaptors, chargers, copies of your passport or extra cash if you run out. Make sure you have the correct adaptors and chargers, and enough money to last you for the duration of your trip. Having two forms of payment (eg cash and a credit card) is also a good idea if something happens. For example, sometimes your card may not be accepted in certain stores for whatever reason, so then you can use cash, or you might run out of cash and can't find an ATM nearby, so you can (hopefully) pay with your credit card. Always have a backup plan!
4) Let people know where you're going and how long you'll be gone for. This is another safety thing, and it's important to keep family and friends in the loop, especially if something major like a natural disaster happens while you're on your trip.
5) Get travel insurance. Even if it's just a short trip, or you don't think you'll need it, it will give you some peace of mind if anything goes wrong. You never know when you might lose something valuable/have something valuable stolen such as your passport, phone or wallet. Your suitcase may get lost or damaged by the airline, or you might get injured or sick, and travel insurance can help out a lot in any of these situations.
6) Make sure you have a power bank to charge your devices so that you always have a way of contacting people in an emergency. In today's day and age, connectivity is super important in an emergency, and having a power bank and charging cable with you will ensure that your phone doesn't die should you need it urgently. It will also help entertain you on those long bus rides/train journeys, as well as for navigation purposes. Which leads me to my next point...
7) Look out for big map boards and signs in stations and on the streets! Sometimes Google maps can lead you astray, and subway stations can be hella confusing with many different exits. The signs will help guide you to the right exit 100% of the time, whereas Google Maps may get confused when you're underground and reception is sometimes bad. If in doubt, follow the signs!
8) Do a tour! There are many different kinds of tours you can join, including city walking tours, historical tours like the one I did to the DMZ, food tours, the list goes on. You can learn a lot more about the history and culture of a place by having a guide, and it's another opportunity to meet new people.
9) Be sensible. Don't get inebriated to the point where you can't get yourself back to your accommodation, don't go down those dark alleyways, and keep track of your belongings. If someone approaches you and things feel off, or they ask you to do something you're not comfortable with, leave the situation as quickly as you can. All of these are things you'd be careful about in your home country, so just use common sense, and you'll be absolutely fine.
10) Have fun, and make the most of this experience! Solo travel can be just as fun as a group trip with friends. You get to decide what to eat, how early/late you want to get up, where to go and what to do, all without having to compromise with other people. It gives you complete freedom over your itinerary, and you will still have chances to mix and mingle with others if you stay in a hostel. The only downside is not having a reliable photographer to capture you in the shot, but that's what selfie mode is for, right?
So there you have it, ten tips for travelling alone. I hope this has inspired anyone thinking about doing some solo travel, but has been too scared. It's really not as daunting as you might imagine, and despite common misconceptions that travelling alone isn't as fun or exciting as travelling with others, you can have a great time by yourself just fine! You'll learn about yourself, the world around you and become a lot more independent as you solve problems and navigate things in another country. Who knows, you may even make some new friends along the way, and it's extremely liberating to go exploring all by yourself.
Thanks as always for reading, and I'll be back with another update soon!
Hannah
1) Act confident. Even if you don't feel confident or don't know 100% where you're going, acting like you know where you're going will help you blend in and you won't look like a potential target for thieves and scammers. This really helped me. I actually had two Korean students approach me and ask me if I was a student because I looked 'so natural'. Planning out your route to the train/bus station or to the attractions you want to see beforehand will help you with this and also ensure that you don't get too lost.
2) Stay in hostels! This is the best thing you can do as a solo traveller, especially if you're young, as it will give you a chance to mix with others and find people to have a meal with in the evenings. Eating alone is a huge thing that people feel awkward about when travelling solo, but staying at a hostel can eliminate this problem. Hostels are a great way to meet people from all over the world, and they're usually super affordable. The place I stayed at in Seoul was $72 NZD for four nights, and this included breakfast. I felt really safe leaving things in my hostel, but I know that Seoul is safer than other cities in places like Europe, so do be careful with your valuables, and use the lockers provided. Top tip: not every hostel will have locks on their lockers, so it may be a good idea to pack a small padlock just in case.
3) Be organised! This is particularly important when you're travelling alone as you can't rely on other people to have things you may need such as adaptors, chargers, copies of your passport or extra cash if you run out. Make sure you have the correct adaptors and chargers, and enough money to last you for the duration of your trip. Having two forms of payment (eg cash and a credit card) is also a good idea if something happens. For example, sometimes your card may not be accepted in certain stores for whatever reason, so then you can use cash, or you might run out of cash and can't find an ATM nearby, so you can (hopefully) pay with your credit card. Always have a backup plan!
4) Let people know where you're going and how long you'll be gone for. This is another safety thing, and it's important to keep family and friends in the loop, especially if something major like a natural disaster happens while you're on your trip.
5) Get travel insurance. Even if it's just a short trip, or you don't think you'll need it, it will give you some peace of mind if anything goes wrong. You never know when you might lose something valuable/have something valuable stolen such as your passport, phone or wallet. Your suitcase may get lost or damaged by the airline, or you might get injured or sick, and travel insurance can help out a lot in any of these situations.
6) Make sure you have a power bank to charge your devices so that you always have a way of contacting people in an emergency. In today's day and age, connectivity is super important in an emergency, and having a power bank and charging cable with you will ensure that your phone doesn't die should you need it urgently. It will also help entertain you on those long bus rides/train journeys, as well as for navigation purposes. Which leads me to my next point...
7) Look out for big map boards and signs in stations and on the streets! Sometimes Google maps can lead you astray, and subway stations can be hella confusing with many different exits. The signs will help guide you to the right exit 100% of the time, whereas Google Maps may get confused when you're underground and reception is sometimes bad. If in doubt, follow the signs!
8) Do a tour! There are many different kinds of tours you can join, including city walking tours, historical tours like the one I did to the DMZ, food tours, the list goes on. You can learn a lot more about the history and culture of a place by having a guide, and it's another opportunity to meet new people.
9) Be sensible. Don't get inebriated to the point where you can't get yourself back to your accommodation, don't go down those dark alleyways, and keep track of your belongings. If someone approaches you and things feel off, or they ask you to do something you're not comfortable with, leave the situation as quickly as you can. All of these are things you'd be careful about in your home country, so just use common sense, and you'll be absolutely fine.
10) Have fun, and make the most of this experience! Solo travel can be just as fun as a group trip with friends. You get to decide what to eat, how early/late you want to get up, where to go and what to do, all without having to compromise with other people. It gives you complete freedom over your itinerary, and you will still have chances to mix and mingle with others if you stay in a hostel. The only downside is not having a reliable photographer to capture you in the shot, but that's what selfie mode is for, right?
So there you have it, ten tips for travelling alone. I hope this has inspired anyone thinking about doing some solo travel, but has been too scared. It's really not as daunting as you might imagine, and despite common misconceptions that travelling alone isn't as fun or exciting as travelling with others, you can have a great time by yourself just fine! You'll learn about yourself, the world around you and become a lot more independent as you solve problems and navigate things in another country. Who knows, you may even make some new friends along the way, and it's extremely liberating to go exploring all by yourself.
Thanks as always for reading, and I'll be back with another update soon!
Hannah
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