How To Practice Being Solo Before Your First Solo Trip
You’ve decided to take your first solo holiday in a foreign land but don’t ordinarily do things alone. Most of us don’t set out on our own often. Typically we explore our surroundings and plan vacations with family or friends. Often, we don’t attend large events and venues on our own unless we are meeting people. You may find that you wish to travel and can’t find someone who can get the time off or you just want to set out on your own and push your limits. Now that you’ve decided to take a solo trip, if you’ve never spent a lot of time alone, you may find being on your own in another country intimidating. So before embarking on that journey, you can do some things to increase your comfort level and confidence around striking out on your own.
Sit at a coffee shop alone.
Walk into any Starbucks or other coffee shop around the globe and you’ll typically find at least a handful of chairs occupied by someone flying solo. Entrepreneurs and nomads use these places to get connected while getting their caffeine fixes. You likely will be in good company when flying solo because people typically get their caffeine on during the day, and the added element of daylight is a bit less intimidating.
Eat alone in any restaurant or cafe.
Many cities, especially European cities, are filled with cafes where people often dine alone. To get some comfort around this, you don’t have to start in a fancy restaurant on a Saturday night (unless you want to). Go to a diner or cafe and have breakfast. If you’re really uncomfortable, start in a Denny’s, which usually has booths so you can feel like you’re in your own little world. If you want to be a little more adventurous, eat lunch at a restaurant in the middle of the week or have dinner at the bar of a restaurant. Suppose you are entirely new to eating alone. Work your way up to sitting at a restaurant table during a busy time. I have pretty much done all of these things and mainly in the order listed to increase my comfort level for dining alone. The gradual increase worked for me and I even worked my way up to sitting in a fancy restaurant during popular dinner times on Santorini.
Visit a local museum or historical site.
Visiting sites and museums near home will help you feel safe because you’re in your own territory and increase your comfort level for visiting facilities by yourself. I love learning about history by visiting historical sites while on vacation and I have become comfortable exploring museums close to home. When it came time to travel, this practice helped me feel less intimidated taking in all the history of the area.
Meet friends at a concert or festival and intentionally get there early.
Attending an event where most people are paired off or in groups can be very intimidating, yet it may happen when you explore the world solo. Before you set out, plan to attend a local event, such as a festival, with some friends. Plan on arriving at least 30-60 minutes before your meeting time to give you some experience exploring your environment alone. Knowing you are meeting someone soon will reduce the pressure you might feel being on your own. Practice this a few times before you leave and increase your alone time each time.
Explore a nearby city using public transportation AND by walking around.
Many cities around the globe use walking and public transportation much more than many cities in the USA. Using this to explore a city close to you gets you thinking about following directions, using GPS for walking, and how to navigate bus or train maps and schedules. The more you explore close to home, the more you increase your comfort level when you do get lost and how to get yourself back on track. I’ve frequently gotten lost when walking or navigating public transportation during my travels. Dealing with this closer to home and knowing things turned out just fine helped reduce my panic while in a foreign place.
Spend the night in a hotel (or hostel or B&B) alone.
It may sound kind of weird but think about how many times you have been in a hotel and consider whether those times involved staying the night alone. Think about spending your first solo night in a hotel (or hostel or B&B) in or near your home state. It helps increase comfort levels dealing with the check-in process, navigating the hotel, and finding food and other necessities. You may not wish to deal with these things for the first time when you’re jet-lagged and in a place where people may not speak the same language. Not to mention possibly feeling crazy tired.
Practice the adventures you’re planning for your trip either at home or on a trip with friends if possible.
Think of the adventures you want on your trip and do some version at home and with family or friends if possible. For example, I’m a SCUBA diver and during a solo trip to Puerto Rico, I dove with a dive shop near my hotel. If I hadn’t already been diving with friends on several occasions and known the routine, I likely would never have thought about approaching the shop alone. Additionally, I love live music and before I took a trip to Europe where a favorite singer was in concert, I decided to get some practice by attending first a local band and then a show close to home. What do you want to do on your next trip and what can you do close to home to increase your confidence for that particular activity?
Take a tour or class in or near your town.
Take a haunted walking tour around Halloween. Do a group tour of a public building. Go on a tour of a local winery or brewery. Take a bus tour to a casino or other historical site. During many trips, I’ve taken walking or bus tours. Being the only solo during the tour was a bit intimidating when I first started. Exploring your backyard with a tour or taking a class are great ways to practice being single in a large group of people. And the more you do it, the less overwhelming it will feel. What’s great is even if nobody talks to you, which typically doesn’t happen, the guide or instructor will likely be extra friendly to you. Practicing being around groups of people in a structured environment will help you become familiar with being solo in groups you may encounter while completing tours in your destination.
There are so many things you can do to increase your comfort around doing things solo. The items above are a small collection of ideas. What activities do you love to do with others that you would feel relatively comfortable doing on your own? You don’t have to start big unless you’re up to it. Start small and work your way up to a level of comfort that relieves some of your jitters around solo travel. You’ll be so glad you got some of the stress out of the way before being in a foreign land.