There are many ways you can prepare for your first solo adventure, but the most important things you need to remember may not be what you think. Here are 14 things every girl should know before travelling solo:
1. Travelling alone is the best thing you can do because you discover new things…mostly about yourself.
2. You are not only making memories, you are building character. You are earning your own trust and it’s the most important kind you’ll ever have.
“Never did the world make a queen of a girl who hides in houses and dreams without travelling.” – Roman Payne
3. Let yourself feel everything. Fear. Confusion. Joy. Awe. Take a photo and then use your own lenses to actually take it in.
4. Do not feel guilty. This is your trip. Don’t feel disappointed in yourself for screwing something up; feel proud of yourself for being brave enough to try. Don’t go see something just because a book says you should. Don’t feel bad if you miss something and don’t worry about how worldly other people are; at one point in their lives they had all been nowhere.
5. Embrace being lost. If you’re in your twenties, you should be able to handle lost; it’s how you spend most of your time anyway.
6. No one knows your history; they have not learned of your insecurities or been witness to your fear. You are as confident and funny and awesome as you choose to be, so be those things.
7. Leave embarrassment behind, it has no place in travel.
8. Don’t just be approachable, approach people.
9. Don’t expect anything. Nothing. Stop picturing the Eiffel Tower or the guy you might meet in Monaco or what the food will taste like in Italy. You can’t feel anything about any of it until you experience it so stop planning how to feel and you’ll never be disappointed.
10. Try not to look like a tourist, and when people make fun of your accent, just embrace it, eh.
11. Your journal is your best friend; your memories will fade faster than the ink.
12. Don’t panic.
13. Trust your gut. Intuition has no geographical boundaries. Listen to it.
14. At the end of this incredible journey, when you’ve mastered all of these things and the world becomes bigger than you could’ve ever imagined and your problems smaller than you ever thought possible, you’ll understand why we travel. And then you’ll do it again.