You will come across hundreds of blog posts out there that rave about the benefits of travelling alone. And yes, there are a number of benefits that you can’t get when you travel with others. Such as operating on your own time schedule and doing exactly what you want when you want. Don’t get me wrong solo travel can be incredibly empowering and I have definitely experienced this. However, I wanted to take the time to share with you the other side to solo travel. The not so ‘happy-go-lucky’ side.
As a travel-obsessed adventurer I have always had the mindset that you can’t just ‘sit around and wait’ for someone to be able to come exploring on a trip with you. But, I will admit it took a long time and few solo trips for me to start feeling comfortable travelling on my own…and it is something that I’m still working on. That may come as a shock to those that know me really well as a vibrant, EXTRAvert (see what I did there LOL) but it’s true…I travel alone to fall in love with new places and meet new people/get out of my comfort zone, but not because I love being on my own for extended periods of time. I tend to crave the company of someone fun and being able to share amazing experiences with someone close to me.
So let’s get down to it. Here are the 5 things I find hard about travelling solo:
1. It makes photography more complicated and frustrating.
Rather than having someone to nail your best angles and be awkward with together trying to navigate people at crowded attractions you have to master the art of using the tripod… or ask randoms who may or may not be great with the camera.
2. Can be more expensive…
If you want to get out of the ‘cheapo’ dorm room and have a private bathroom 🙁 Sometimes you just want a few creature comforts but the shoestring budget you are on doesn’t quite allow for that. And splitting a car hire between two is always GREAT for stretching the budget and having more freedom to explore…as well as someone to navigate for you if foreign roads are a little different and traffic is crazy.
3. Eating out/dressing up and partying alone
CRINGE! Sometimes this can make me feel embarrassed by my own life (umm…table for one urgh!). Dancing, drinking and eating fancy food is just not the same on your own.
4. No one to talk to OR laugh with /lean on when things aren’t going great.
I know we have the wonderful ways of modern technology such as FaceTime and lots of different forms of messaging but it really isn’t the same as direct, personal connection when it comes to everyday travel experiences. Which brings me to my next point…
5. You can feel SUPER LONEY
It is really important to feel comfortable embracing your own company but that can get old after a while and it is natural to desire and crave the company of others. It does not make you any less of an independent person and, as weird as it sounds I get serious FOMO when I see all these loved up couples on instagram travelling together and I’m like hey–maybe I will just take my dog on a road trip…ya feel me?!
As I said previously, there are some amazing benefits to solo travel and I definitely encourage everyone to experience this at some point, but I really wanted to share another side to something that is usually praised and glorified. That being said, I genuinely feel that the issues I mentioned are not major enough to stop me from solo travel and overall the benefits (I think) outweigh the negatives.
Do you ever struggle with solo travel? Or maybe you absolutely LOVE it?! Let me know in the comments below!
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