Traveling with family and friends can be incredibly rewarding, offering experiences and laughs that can bind us for a lifetime. So it might seem that going on vacation alone would be a less enriching experience; without our favorite people to share it with, how could it compare?
And yet many veteran travelers have memories of extraordinary, eye-opening solo trips, of glorious days when they set out alone and found and saw and noticed things they might never have done otherwise.
Why travel alone? Consider finding out for yourself. Here are 11 reasons why you should travel alone at least once in your life.
You’ll Meet More Locals
Unable to rely on your traveling partners to buy breakfast, use their better language skills to get things done, or distract you during a boring train ride, you’ll have to turn to the locals—whether you’re looking for human interaction or not.
A solo traveler can also seem more approachable. If you’re with a partner or friend, it’s tempting to talk mostly with each other, and outsiders might not want to impose. But if you’re by yourself, it’s often easier for someone else to strike up a conversation with you (or vice versa.
You Can Change Plans on a Dime
When traveling in a group, changing plans can be rife with interpersonal, financial, and other concerns. When on a vacation alone, you can simply make a decision and move on. This can apply to decisions both small and large, from deciding where to eat to choosing whether to rent a car and leave town.
There’s No Insulation from Experience
When we are with friends and family, much of our experience is a shared one, which can offer rich rewards but can also create a buffer between us and the world around us. Traveling alone makes remaining in the bubble of your own comfort zone nigh on impossible—which can lead to more intense travel experiences.
You Can Find Your Own Rhythm
Perhaps the most striking thing about traveling alone is that your schedule is entirely yours to decide. Our everyday lives can be a tyrannical grind of accommodating other people’s schedules, and this can easily carry over to leisure time as we try to pace our vacation days to adapt to the preferences of the group.
Traveling Alone Builds Confidence
SmarterTravel Senior Editor Sarah Schlichter notes that her first solo trip, originally a source of trepidation, ultimately offered a wellspring of confidence.
“I remember how scared I was the first time I traveled by myself—and sometimes I still am,” she says. “It can be lonely and unsettling not to have anyone else around for backup. But being able to get yourself out of a jam or figure out where you are when you’re lost can give you a new sense of confidence and faith in your own resourcefulness. For me this carried into not only other trips but also into my life at home.