How to Enjoy Yourself Traveling Alone

Thinking About Traveling Alone?

Travelling by yourself means not being able to rely on anyone else to get the most out of your trips. Many great things come along because of it. You’ll become more creative, you’ll be a better problem solver and you’ll get better at putting yourself out there! Although there are some people might doubt how is it joyful to travel all by one self, while some people think it’s great because you can do whatever you want, whenever you want and you don't have to satisfy anyone else. Solo travel means you are left to navigate your place in the world, to embrace or shun the ever-changing call of the wild. No matter where you go and what you do, it will change you.

Shut your self-doubt

Traveling alone can be uncomfortable, scary, unpredictable but also exciting. It definitely takes a certain personality to travel alone. You probably have to be somewhat of a loner to enjoy being alone. But it's not written in stone. Obviously, you have to be comfortable being alone. You have to know it's OK to be alone. It's OK to dine alone in a four Michelin star restaurant. It's OK to sleep alone in a room. Once you get over that you are set. The worst scenario is that you will be bored or lonely in a strange city rather than in your home city, that’s all. You're not traveling alone; you're traveling without a companion.

Start with the Places that Really Interest You

Start with some mini trips, find your own rhythm and move on to bigger adventure. For starters, we'd suggest you go to the places that you personally really want to see. I’ve heard people who are drown to anime so they pick Japan for their first big trip; people who’s always curious about Buddhism and visit Thailand. You might also consider activities or things that truly interest you and which you are passionate about. Could be cooking, diving, or women(!?). Have you ever heard of Latin romance tours? There are some pretty interesting documentaries online. Haha.

Socialize with Other Travelers

One thing you have to remember is that you are not the only person traveling alone. There are tons of others who travel alone and they are also looking to meet other travelers and would be more than happy to share your journey for a while. It’s easy to meet people if you stay at hostels. Airbnb is great as well if your host is in town.  Join cooking class, sign up walking tours or use Tinder to find a hot local date. Don't be afraid to spark up a conversation, sometimes act dumb and ask more questions help a lot. Little chances that people you meet while traveling will be your BFF but you'll always learn something new.

Socialize with the Locals

That’s definitely the key to make the most out of your trips. They know the ins-and-outs of their city and have enough experience to know which the best is. There are free walking tours in most cities. A lot of times the tour guides are college students making side money, tip them good if you’re not too short with money. I know some travelers on a super budget would fade out while the tour comes to an end. Expats are superb as well! Join expats Facebook group of the city or you can download the app “meetup” and join the group activities of your interest. They are always very very friendly and helpful, and most importantly, they speak fluent English.

Get a Good Book on the Go

We got so caught up with technology that our attention span has gone way shorter. Traveling alone is a great opportunity to get disconnected and go on a

digital detox. I think people nowadays really overlook how toxic checking their phone 24/7 is. You get dopamine when receiving texts or seeing photos that you’re tagged in. Dopamine controls the "pleasure" systems of the brain “. Read a good book is a great way to break that dopamine loops. Is there a book that you always say you want to read when you have time? Now, it’s the best time. Plus, you’ll look extra hot when you are holding a book instead of our phone. Btw, there’s a fun Instagram account called “hotdudesreading”. Does it inspire you to read?

Be safe

When you’re on the go, STAY LOW-KEY. But do not worry too much, the world isn't as unsafe as portrayed by media. But make sure you don’t flash jewelry or expensive cameras and electronics. Be discreet to avoid unwanted attention especially if you’re traveling in those adventurous places. And you might want to check what your insurance covers as well. It’s not fun paying a huge amount of bill and laying in a hospital bed alone in a foreign country. There is one thing people tend to overlook when traveling, that is to protect your identity on the road. If you're going to be using public WiFi on your travels or do some online banking or just use your credit card. We suggest you to use a VPN.

So, there’s no more canceling your travel plan because travel partner can’t fit your schedule. There are so many perks of traveling alone if you are still doubting! While traveling by yourself, there will for sure be some time for you to quietly reflect on yourself. You’ll be able to reflect on all of yourself – the good, the bad, and the ugly. You will find yourself become more confident, know yourself more and start enjoying your own company. It’s easier to make friends and you get to personalize your budget and enjoy complete flexibility: If you want to get up at 5:30 and watch the sun rise, you can! If you want to take a nap at 4:00 and then go out for dinner at 22:00 you can! 

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Budget Tips for Savvy Travelers

I wish I had a bunch of money and my brain doesn’t have to process how much I am spending when traveling. But the reality is the opposite. Here are some main parts to look for when planning ahead and while on the go. Hope it’s helpful!

Off peak

Two major parts of the expense are flight tickets and accommodation. Off season is the best if your schedule can fit in. If you happen to get a great deal, you’re saving a bunch already. In some cases, off season can be boring and a disaster though. Take Europe for example, there are some great deals available during winter, as low as 1500 USD for a ten-day trip including flight tickets and accommodation. But the thing is, the weather is just going to be freezing, you don’t even want to take out your hands out of your pockets to take pictures.

With some tropical islands, there are months considered to be off peak, while the weather isn’t making much of a difference. It will be less crowded for sure, but the party scene is not going to be the same. With this case, it really depends on how you like your vacation to be. If you’re traveling with your boo, a nice hotel room would already make a good trip. But if you’re traveling with your mates, night life is the wilder, the better.

One more off-peak tip. When you’re eating out, look out for off peak discount. In Southeast Asia, my ultimate favorite app is “eatigo”. You get 50 percent off during certain hours going in to restaurants, from five-star hotel buffet to nice family diner. Happy hour is great as well! Day drinking is the best when you’re on vacation mode! Everything is next level pleasant when you’re tipsy.

Eat in and Get Local Food

Dining out can really add up. Especially, if you’re travelling for longer-term. I remember when I was a student, I saved up and traveled to Europe, I brought a bunch of granola bars because I couldn’t afford eating out and granola bars are very easy to carry around while you probably spend your whole day being out and are far from where you’re staying. What I should have done is to go to the super market, get bread and ham to make sandwiches to-go instead.

Snacking can be more expensive than having a regular meal. Street food and beverages seem cheap and are hard to resist, while it can really add up. Before you know, you already consume way more sugar than you should. If you would like to stay healthy even when you’re traveling, bring water! This way you stay hydrated and avoid extra sugar and extra spending.

It can be frustrating when ordering food in a foreign country when you don’t speak the language. But with the restaurants that do provide English menu, are usually more expensive by a certain percentage. Foods are a lot less expensive if you walk just one or two streets further from the super touristy center. Learn a few key words in their language if you’re feeling motivated. You can walk into a super local restaurant and simply point at the things that you want. Have a big smile on your face when walking in, be polite and show off a few sentences of their language, people are usually super welcoming, nice and friendly (even in France)!

Make sure there’s a kitchen in your hostel or in your Airbnb. Cook your own meal is the way to budget! Also, there are usually some great discount if you get prepared food in super market or convenient store in the late hours.

School Zone is Golden

When picking which area to stay, forget about hotels all together and go straight for school zone. There will be options that are a lot cheaper if it's close to a university. Not only the food is going to be cheaper, it’s likely to bump into some cool cafes and cheap college bars around there as well. Skip the most touristy and you get to save about 30 percent without any efforts.

If you are staying longer, why not make friends with the locals and hangout with them? College students are naturally the kings and queens of budgeting. They know where the free events are. Speaking of free events, there are numerous museums that are free of charge as well as some exhibitions while some frequently offer discounts and even free days.

College students are usually very genuine and love to make friends with foreigners, plus they speak better English compare to regular people. Download “couchsurfing” whether you’re couch-surfing or not. It’s a fun community, and it’s easy to make friends there.

Transportation

If you want to save money with transportation, you really need to spend time doing your research. With flights, make sure you use VPN when searching and include neighboring airports as well. Prices can be different depends on your location. You can simply use a VPN or use incognito window to avoid this situation. When flying longer distance, you can play around different combinations to find the greatest deal. In many cases, you can easily save around three hundred dollars flying across continents but end up spending another full day. Consider visa situation for layover as well. When it comes to transportation options, remember that prices don’t always relate logically to the speed or the mode of transportation. But make sure you do your research and know what’s most important to you, whether it’s time or money.

For domestic transportation, if the distance is long overnight buses are great because it’s cheaper and you can save accommodation for one night. For transportation within the city, make sure you do the math and maximize those one-day pass or 14 days pass. Sometimes it’s not necessarily cheaper, though. One of my favorite way to get around is definitely biking! If you’re staying longer, you can get a second-hand bike to get around and sell it when you leave. In most cities, there are city-bikes available for cheap price. I honestly think it’s the best way to explore!

So here you go, those are the tips on saving money when traveling. Happy travels!

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