Need a new focus - where is safe to travel alone as a single woman in thirties?!

[2018poster]

I've not been anywhere much outside Europe. I need to get away and have something to focus on for next year.

Where would you go? I don't know where to start. Maximum time off in one go would be 14 nights.

Also, any good travel agencies for single people my age? xx

Hi OP,

I've been travelling alone for years (I'm 63).

The world is your oyster.

Go for whichever country/continent/culture interests you.

There's quite a few solo female travel pages on Facebook. Check them out. Very inspiring.

amazed to see solo women travelling in Pakistan for instance

I've been solo to South America, Caribbean, Asia and Africa.

You just keep your wits about you, nothing foolish like you would not do at home, etc.

Thank God there are more kind people in the world than not. You will have amazing experiences.

Have a great time!

Oh, and P.S.

Travel agencies are a bit old-school.

You can find it all on the internet. Flights, Airbnb, booking.com as well as info for bus and train journeys. Seat61 is a world-wide train site.

Lonely Planet is also good. They have a forum for each country in the world.

Gawd, should have written DOT COM.

Didn't think it would give the link. I don't work for them, honest! :-)

Thanks so much! I'm not sure where to begin...one moment i think just book it then the next i start second guessing and worrying and back to europe again!

Take your time to really decide where you want to go, what country appeals to you. There's no hurry. Really read up about different places that interest you.

Anyway, Europe is also great. Personally, I prefer it in the summer. I live here anyway. :-)

I prefer to book kind of last minute type of thing when the urge takes me
Because how do I know what will be happening in the next 3/6/9 months from now? (SP, even if he is an adult now).

At the moment I know 5 people travelling in Colombia. 3 solo, of which one is having his parents over to travel with him for a week.
Fabulous!

anywhere really I think.

There's a facebook group The Solo Female Traveller which is really helpful for tips about safety etc. (and also for inspiration on where to go).

I'd probably avoid India to start with - lots of hassle. And muslim countries can be tricky -e.g. Marrakech was hard.

And think about the group travel. I went with Intrepid and loved it. Lots of single people in their 30s. You can ask who else is booked on the group you're thinking of so that you don't get stuck with a load of e.g 60 somethings. But in my group it was a mix and really good.

I was also going to suggest a group tour to get you started.

I went on a group tour recently with Flashpack. I would reccommend it. I’ve done lots of travelling by myself and have never had any problems or issues.
Bon voyage!

I did a sailing course with sunsail in the Caribbean, and had a couple of days either side on my own in nice hotels. Loved it. Couldn’t have cared less about learning to sail but was happy to pitch in of course and it was a great way to sunbathe and see a bit of the place.

Quite a few years ago I went to Thailand with exodus. It was great.

13 people on the trip half and half single couples but couples weren't 'coupley' if that makes sense.

So not quite on your own but a great experience.

I've not travelled alone, but I've been to Botswana several times, travelled about a lot, a couple of times with my mum and always felt really safe. Locals are nothing but friendly in my experience. And it's a beautiful country with so much to offer. I'd highly recommend it!

Where do you want to go? Almost anywhere is safe to travel, with some obvious exceptions, like I’d give major conflict zones a miss.

If I could go anywhere, I’d go to Sri Lanka. It’s wonderful, safe and friendly. Even during the Civil War, most of the country was perfectly safe and welcoming. I lived in India in my 20s so also travelled quite a bit there on my own. It’s less easy as a woman on your own though and you’re more likely to deal with harassment. If I had loads of money, I’d go to Japan, but it’s obviously more expensive.

The trips with Intrepid travel are pretty good for single travellers. Small group sizes and then to cater for the 30 something age group. I went with them to Peru a few years ago for 2 weeks - city break, amazon stay and Inca trail - was amazing!

I agree with what’s already been posted. Some places I’ve personally been to outside Europe where I felt comfortable and safe as a solo woman include: Oman (highly recommended and not too far from the UK), Thailand, Malaysia (very beautiful and IMHO underrated), China, Australia/South Pacific (but hard to get to and not cheap). Good luck!

I’m in my 30s and did intrepid for my first “solo” holiday. I then went to a European city completely alone, loved it!

If you don’t want to do a tour, I could recommend Vietnam. It’s auoposed to be one of the safest countries for solo female travellers so might be a good place to start! I personally loved it there and did feel quite safe.

Australia!! A good starting point if you've not travelled before. YHA's are safe & friendly. Expensive though....

Maybe you could tag on the Far East once you've got your confidence?

I went to South America on my 30's & it tends to attract older travellers (compared to Oz).

I've just booked a trip for July with medsailors - a week sailing round Greece 😊 I'm 29, they are ages 20-35

Trans-Mongolian railway from Moscow to Beijing.
Not done this but thinking about the trans-siberian next year
Or the Canadian Pacific railway from Toronto to Vancouver.

As an experienced female traveller. Personally I would recommend you avoid the more Muslim Countries (Morocco, Middle East). South America - crime rates can be high and you would have to be in before dark. I have always found the Asian countries easiest to travel in. How about Cambodia, Laos, India, Borneo? A lot of it is about sensible travel advice. Not walking alone late at night esp along beaches, not flashing then cash, not accepting food or drink with strangers, watching how much you drink etc. Good luck with your travels.
Sounds very exciting!

Would also agree with booking your own flights and buying the Lonely Planet. Always book atleast your first night and get the hotel or hostel to pick you up at the airport.

Hong Kong, China and Japan are very safe. Plus, the food is amazing.

I've travelled a lot on my own. Love it and will happily go out at night for a wander. I'd avoid India. It's not safe at all for solo female travellers. I got harassed a lot and I heard stories of worse things happening to other female travellers.

I found China very safe as a woman. Also Nicaragua but that has since become very unsafe

What about Iceland as a Europe but further compromise?

I’ve done a lot of travelling as a single woman and the world is your oyster. You can travel safely almost anywhere. It is just that in some countries you will need to be more careful of drawing attention. With that in mind, I would suggest that you take your first solo trip wherever you fancy but if that is North Africa/Middle East, do more research and plan accordingly.

Europe, the Americas and Australia - no problem. Most of Far East Asia - no problem. Most of the Middle East - no problem. Africa - proceed but with caution as you will get much more hassle there although it can still be done safely.

Paris is probably my favorite city to visit alone...so much for the city of lovers! I’ve been there many times alone and with two different boyfriends. Much better on my own!

Cities are probably easier when you are on your own in terms of keeping yourself occupied. I was looking at some solo ‘adventure travel’ with Intrepid before I met DH. I wanted to do their climbing and kayaking tours - things for which you should have a buddy for safety reasons. DH is now my buddy so we do that without tour groups but if I were still single, I would probably book with them. I’m sure there are other similar companies too.

Travel agents may be old school but I got a great deal through them recently despite Pooh-poohing the idea of using them before hand. They were approximately 40% cheaper than I was able to find online so don’t rule them out. Remember you can talk to them to get information and ideas and not be obligated to book with them. Trailfinders are pretty good at that.

I think it was David Thoroux who said The man who goes himself can go today. Happy travels!

I’d also avoid India - the worst country I’ve ever been to for sexual harassment (closely followed by the North African countries, Egypt and some parts of central and South America). My female friends and I were all repeatedly sexually assaulted in India; men used to just come up to us and grope us in broad daylight. I have met a few women who liked visiting India but they’re very much in the minority.