Misconceptions Of Traveling Alone

If you’re waiting for the right moment or person to support you in your endeavors, you may be waiting a long time. By depending on others to fulfill the experiences we want out of life, we leave ourselves vulnerable by giving others the power to disappoint us. Ultimately, it becomes our own faults and failures that we must deal with by ourselves. So ask yourself this question—“If I can deal with the failures alone, why can’t I deal with the success of pursuing my goal of traveling alone?”

There are benefits and disadvantages of traveling alone, and the same applies to traveling in groups. Here, I’ll address some common misconceptions I’ve heard about traveling alone.

Traveling Alone Is Dangerous

If you’re like me and from a major U.S. city, it’s funny to hear people talk about how dangerous traveling abroad is. Think about it: there are dangerous areas in cities like Los Angeles, Chicago and New York City. I’ve never visited a city abroad that I believed was more dangerous than Chicago. While in Chicago, I felt safe. That’s because I used common sense and avoided the areas I knew weren’t safe. Chi Town is a huge city with so much to offer in terms of culture, sports, cuisine and nightlife. Each year millions of people safely visit and partake in the amazement that Chicago offers. The same applies to foreign travel.

Check out the safety portion of The Basics: Becoming a Traveler 101 for information on how to be safe when traveling overseas. 

It’s More Expensive

Wrong! If you’re reading this blog, then you’re probably looking to save money. My goal is to steer you in the right direction. There are travelers and there are tourists. A tourist is hesitant to leave their comfort zone, so they stay and eat at places that sound familiar. That’s fine, but those big name hotels and restaurants are expensive whether you’re traveling solo or with others.

You know what else is expensive? Going to restaurants and hotels that you really don’t want to go to, but you’re doing it because someone in the group decided for everyone that it was a great idea. Now you have to split the costs. When you’re alone, you make the decisions.

You’ll Be Alone

What’s the matter with doing things alone like shopping, eating, going to the movies… or standing on top Mt. Fuji in Japan because you had courage to turn your dream into reality? The answer is, there’s nothing wrong with it!

When I first started traveling, I thought I was alone because my family and friends weren’t there to share the experiences with me. It was difficult sharing experiences with loved ones who couldn’t relate to the things I did. Although some of my family and friends were capable of joining my adventures, they chose not to because they didn’t share my interest in things like eating insects in Cambodia. I didn’t share their interests in things like watching ‘Game of Thrones’. Nonetheless, we’re supportive one another’s goals and passions.

Unless you’re planning on backpacking through Antarctica, chances are you’ll be around people wherever you go. Being alone comes from not having people to share your experiences with. You just have to figure out how to bring the right people into your world. To do this, you have to place yourself in situations where you can meet people.

The best ways I found to deal with loneliness while traveling:

Stay At Hostels

A lot of people who travel solo stay at hostels. Do you know who solo travelers relate to and trust most? That’s right… other solo travelers.

I met one of my best friends at a hostel in Montevideo, Uruguay. It took less than 2 hours of knowing one another before we decided to travel from one of the most western cities to the most eastern city in Uruguay.

Another good friend that I met at a hostel in Burma gave me her Wi-Fi password before I knew her name. By teaming up, I ended up seeing attractions I didn’t even know were in the country.

Go On Tours

Travelers can be tourists, too. Find a cheap or free tour. You improve your chances of meeting people.

People Watch 

Once, when I was in Cuzco, Peru, I chose to rent a room at an inexpensive hotel (cheap does not always mean lower quality), instead of staying in a hostel. To combat the feeling of being alone, I just went to the plaza, found a place to sit, and watched people as they went about their lives. With so many people around me, I didn’t feel lonely.

Don’t Be Afraid To Talk To People

A lot of people around the world speak multiple languages, and with many of the people you meet while traveling, English is likely one of the languages they speak. However, if you put in the effort to learn how to say “Hi” in their language, locals would be appreciative, open up, and at least try to speak with you. This may help you get a photo other than a selfie.

Traveling Alone Is Boring

“Traveling alone is boring” isn’t even a fair statement to make. You can remove “traveling” from that statement and replace it with anything that a person enjoys doing. No matter what you’re doing – whether you’re alone or with others – you’ll get bored at some point. This is definitely true if you’re traveling with me!

If you’re the person who never gets bored when you’re alone and someone convinced you that traveling alone is boring, you may ask “if that’s the case, why travel?” My response is, “It takes me out of my comfort zone and forces me to live on the edge. The risk that comes with living on the edge is that sometimes it’s dull, while other times, it’s breathtaking.”

Conclusion

The purpose of this post isn’t to promote traveling alone as the most amazing self fulfilling thing you can do in life. I support the idea that anything a person is passionate about is worth doing alone, if that’s the ultimatum. This post is to prevent you from giving up on your goals because someone else said that your aspirations are boring, dangerous, etc. If you decide you don’t want to travel alone, that’s fine as long as it’s you who makes the decision. 

For me, the benefits of traveling and all the pleasure I get out of it far outweigh the occasional discomfort I feel when traveling alone.