What Distance Defines a Solo Traveler?
Recently a woman posted in one of my Facebook groups she was taking her first solo trip to Boston from New York for a day. Immediately I thought, “good for her!” and shared her experience with a friend who is considering solo travel as a lifestyle. My friend’s reaction was, “that doesn’t count! It’s too close and only for the day?” So what does count? Is it only domestic travel? Is it only foreign? Do day trips count?
I can’t remember the first time I traveled alone, but I remember the first time I set off to stay in another state solo. I had just finished a long and challenging journey to get my bachelor’s degree and definitely needed a break from life. I didn’t have a lot of money and graduated in December, so I wanted someplace a little warmer than my home in Upstate New York that wouldn’t break the bank. I chose a beachside motel in coastal Delaware for a long weekend. Honestly, I was nervous about being alone and spent most of my time in my hotel room. To be fair, it did rain a lot during that trip, and I’m not much of a shopper, so watching TV (a luxury I indulged in very infrequently while in college), reading girlie books, and walking on the beach were terrific activities for me during those few days.
Several years later, after becoming a Speech Language Pathologist (SLP), I made traveling a full-time decision and became an SLP traveler, completing several temporary contracts in locations around the United States. During this time, I drove across the country four times by myself. Many times I was in a new city alone for several weeks or at the very least for several days. Some of the traveler friends I met along the way and I attempted to get contracts near each other, so I wasn’t always alone. I loved exploring new areas while driving across the country and while in my new temporary home. During this time I considered myself a solo traveler and learned self-sufficiency, organization, navigation (I traveled before smartphones were a thing), and how to open my mind in ways I didn’t know possible. For instance, I backpacked for the first time in my life, hiking more than 5 miles to a camping spot and drinking water from a lake. Growing up in a family that wasn’t so adventurous, this was huge for me.
Of course, to some, I still wouldn’t be considered a solo traveler because all of my solitary travel was within the USA. However, my longest trip to date and my first long-distance plane ride of any sort was technically domestic. After graduate school, I treated myself to a graduation gift and visited a friend in Guam. Twenty-one hours and two days awake, I arrived very sleepily to dogs sniffing luggage for drugs. One dog took an interest in one of my bags but fortunately moved away before the officer also took an interest!!! I have no idea what I had that attracted the dog, but I was happy to avoid emptying my luggage in my sleepy state. Since this was my first trip with significant mileage, and I hadn’t yet flown anywhere foreign, the luggage sniffing dogs were a bit disconcerting. Although I flew to and arrived in Guam alone, I was greeted by my friend and stayed with her and her family during the two weeks I was there, so other than the flight, this was not a solo trip. However, since my visit to Guam, many people have commented that I was brave and there is no way they’d get on a plane alone for so many hours.
When I was young, my family traveled to Canada multiple times since I grew up only a few hours from the border; however, until I was in my 30s, this was the only foreign country I had been in. As a traveling SLP, I was able to take time off between contracts and went to foreign places only with friends. That is until I wanted to fulfill a dream nobody else was interested in and therefore ventured out on my first solo trip out of the country. For a week, I was on Bimini Island in the Bahamas, swimming with wild dolphins with a company called #Wildquest. During my time there, I was with the same small group of 15 people, which made my first solo trip a bit less scary. I still keep in contact with one of the people I met several years after the trip.
Photo Credit: Atmo from Wildquest
After traveling around the USA for about five years, I decided to stick to one city. My wanderlust never went away, and I continued to visit places, domestic and foreign, including returning to Bimini for another dolphin adventure. While living in the Washington, DC metro area, I was invited to a wedding in Greece. The bride and groom and all of the attendees met in Athens for a few days of exploration. Most attendees were couples, except two women and myself, so we decided to share a room and do a little side travel between Athens and the wedding destination. The three of us explored Athens one more day before taking an overnight ferry to an island called Anafi for a couple of days before traveling to Santorini. Although I was rooming with these two girls, we mostly did everything as individuals, and I marveled at how much the girls wanted to go off and do their own thing since this was a new concept for me. During other trips with friends, we mostly hung out and explored together. This was my first time being in a foreign place and doing my own thing. After the wedding, the two ladies left to explore Italy. Unfortunately, due to finances and time constraints, I couldn’t go with them, and for the first time in my life, I was alone in a foreign country. After the initial fear and hiding in my room for a day, I searched the market areas for souvenirs, sampled the outstanding cuisine while eating alone in restaurants overlooking the azure water, and navigated the other side of the island for some history and wine tasting. It was exhilarating!
During the last few years, my travel has slowed a bit due to global circumstances and financial constraints; however, I still try to get out and complete local trips as often as possible. Solo travel has taken on many different versions for me and is more intoxicating every time I book a trip. So to answer the question of how far do you have to go to be considered a solo traveler: it depends on the traveler. But, like any exploration of a new locale, where and how you explore are individual to your desires, and only you can decide what works best for you. The only important thing is to get out there and explore, whether with others or alone! Life’s too short to stick to one place forever.