Solo travel has transformed my life, giving me the freedom to travel on my own terms, and thirty years of stories from more than 70 countries. But it isn’t without its downsides.
Here are the real disadvantages of travelling alone, and how I’ve learned to work around each one.
1. It’s more expensive
Travelling alone means no economies of scale.
Accommodation is the biggest culprit, with the dreaded solo supplement pushing up the cost of a trip before you’ve even left home. Those responding to solo travel surveys report that this prevents them from taking their first solo trip.
You can dodge some of this by sharing a room on a small group tour, though it pays to research the operator first. Look at group size and the typical age of other guests before booking.
Hotels are worth shopping around for, and booking direct sometimes beats a third-party site. Off- and shoulder-season rates are lower too, and you may trade a little adverse weather for fewer crowds.
Cruises are the worst offender. Single occupancy supplements are steep, even though one person eats and drinks less than two. Single cabins are becoming more common, but check what you’re getting before you book.
With no one to share the cost, private tours and taxis can be prohibitively expensive. Teaming up with another solo traveller, or switching to a group tour for that leg, keeps the bill down.
2. Safety needs more thought
Personal safety is one of the biggest worries for solo travellers, especially women. Solo travel isn’t inherently unsafe, but any travel carries some risk, and travelling alone means there’s no one to share the load of managing it.
Start by choosing your solo travel destination carefully. Some places are simply safer than others.
As a solo traveller, there’s no one to watch your back. No one to walk with late at night, and no one to keep an eye on your bag while you’re distracted.
Take reasonable precautions to keep yourself safe when travelling alone. Stick to well-lit streets and keep valuables close. Do your homework on which parts of a city to avoid, and pick a hotel within easy reach of restaurants and transport.
3. You’ll feel lonely at some point
I’ve never met a solo traveller who hasn’t. Oddly, the loneliest I’ve ever felt was on a two-week trip through Central America with the wrong travel companion. By the end, I was longing to be on my own again.
When it hits, remind yourself it will pass. Having even a loose plan for the day helps more than you’d think, and so does making the effort to talk to people.
Day tours are a good way to meet others whilst keeping your independence. On a trip to Cuba, I ended up spending several days with a group of women I’d met on one tour, long after it had officially ended.
Hostels are the obvious social option. If you’re a midlife solo traveller like me, and your hostelling days are behind you, smaller boutique hotels and B&Bs tend to be friendlier than big chains.
Coffee shops and bars work too. Sit at the bar rather than a table if you want to strike up a conversation.
I’ve written these guides on tackling solo travel loneliness and meeting people when you travel.
4. Every decision is yours to make
There’s no one to bounce the itinerary off, and no one to talk you out of a bad idea. Where to stay and what to see: it all comes down to you.
This gets easier with practice. I now build in deliberately unplanned days so I’m not making decisions constantly, and I lean on reviews and other travellers’ blogs rather than agonising over every choice myself.
5. The practical stuff falls on one person
Watching your own luggage while you order coffee, or getting from an airport to a city with no direct transport link: these are minor irritations with a travel companion and small logistical headaches alone.
A lightweight day bag you can keep on you helps, as does building extra time into transfers so nothing feels like a scramble. In places without decent public transport, splitting a taxi with another solo traveller from your hostel or hotel is often the easiest fix.
6. You can’t always share the moment
This is, for me, the biggest one. You’re standing in front of a perfect view or a spectacular sunset, and there’s no one beside you to say “look at that”. You take a few photos, then move on.
Sharing it later on social media or with friends closes the gap a little, but it isn’t the same as turning to someone in the moment. It’s also harder to get a decent photo of yourself.
I’m not big on selfies or selfie sticks, though I did once have a memorable afternoon doing a selfie-stick tour of Rome with two friends.
My usual approach is to ask someone else to take the photo. It’s a reciprocal thing: you take one of them, they take one of you. For solo shots without relying on a stranger, I use a JOBY GorillaPod clipped to my phone.
Striking up a conversation with other visitors at a viewpoint works surprisingly often too, particularly if they’re also travelling alone.
7. Eating alone takes some getting used to
Who fears the dreaded table for one? Yep. Solo dining is something that I am not crazy about either.
Firstly, there’s your slightly apologetic request for a table for one. Then, as you sit down, the waiter theatrically removes the place settings for your invisible dining companion.
Eating out alone does get easier the more you do it. Bringing a book to read or writing your journal notes at the table, accompanied by a good glass of local wine, makes the experience far more palatable (pun intended).
8. Other people’s reactions
Even after decades of solo travel, I’m still surprised by how strongly people react to it. Most of that comes from fear, usually stoked by the media rather than by anything you’ve experienced yourself.
I’ve travelled extensively around the Middle East, and when I visited Syria in 2008, my parents believed I was in Turkey.
When I last visited Jerusalem, I told my father I was in Greece. Thankfully, he didn’t ask to see photos of the Acropolis.
There was no point arguing the safety case with them. They’d have worried regardless, so a small white lie felt kinder than the truth.
Where you can be honest, keeping in touch and sharing your itinerary in advance goes a long way towards easing that worry, and it keeps loved ones part of the trip rather than shut out of it.
The Disadvantages of Solo Travel: Final Thoughts
The disadvantages of travelling alone are real, but they’re far outweighed by what you gain.
If you’re on the fence about a first solo trip, start small. Eat alone in your own town. Take a short trip somewhere close to home. Talk to a stranger. Take a photo of yourself and don’t cringe at it.
I’ll leave you with one of my all-time inspirational travel quotes
A journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step
Laozi
About Bridget
Bridget Coleman has been a passionate traveller for more than 30 years. She has visited 70+ countries, most as a solo traveller.
Articles on this site reflect her first-hand experiences.
To get in touch, email her at hello@theflashpacker.net or follow her on social media.
Hi Bridget. I agree with you that the advantages of solo travel outweigh the disadvantages, but it does depend what country I’m in because the safety issues would be my biggest concern. When I travel in Japan I really do prefer to travel on my own because I feel very safe there, but in India I prefer to have someone with me otherwise you are constantly bothered by people on the street “wanting to help” (but in many cases they are scam artists). I don’t get lonely when travelling on my own, but there are times when I enjoy having someone with me to share experiences with.
Hello David. I couldn’t agree more. Each country has its own safety profile – and sometimes within that country – and I’ve also found Japan to be very safe. For me, not being able to share the moment is one of the major drawbacks of travelling alone.
Thanks for sharing that Bridget it makes me think I might be able to take the plunge and do some solo travelling myself x
Thanks Geraldine! This makes writing it so worthwhile. Go for it! x