Why You Should Solo Backpack

After numerous all-inclusive’s, girl-trips and staycations. I finally jumped the broom and decided that I should solo backpack. Now, this wasn’t easy to over come because; 1 I was a female and 2 I was Black. It was hard to imagine that this could be the leisure travel I dreamed of. Anyway, I watched my good-friend Alexis backpack most of Asia and I was so inspired, I couldn’t believe the amount of places she was going and SOLO! So, I decided that in 2019 it would be the year for me. There was A LOT of prep work however, I’ll save that for another post! Below are my top 10 reasons why you should travel Solo.

1. Convenience, Baby !

Heres the truth! None other than yourself knows exactly what is going to make you happy and make you smile. Also, you set your own budget and know the exact amount of time and money you want to spend. Imagine how much easier it is to decide if you didn’t like a certain place you didn’t have to go!

2. You Learn to Trust Yourself

I remember the first day I landed in Taiwan, I was so nervous! I didn’t know what I was going to do miles away from family and friends. I learned very quickly that I had to trust myself, that everything was going to be okay.

3. Facing your fears

Things can seem impossible until you just DO IT! Honestly: backpacking especially for a young Black female seemed impossible for me! But, the moment I booked that first flight, the first hostel. I faced my first fear and golly, did it ever make me feel more alive than ever before. No matter what happens, trust yourself, take chances, and make memories to last a lifetime!

3. You Make Memories to Last a Lifetime!

This has to be the best part, you make memories to last a life-time!. From the things you see, to the activities you do, to the food you eat, to the people you never forget and to the hosts you’ll always love. You truly make memories to last a life-time.

4. Safety and Common Sense

Okay, the elephant in the room here. Safety is the number one concern and given it is COVID-19 safety is even more important. I found using proper common sense (e.g., researching culture/crime/safety) goes a long way. Most places, are safe and genuinely people are kind to help a lost traveller however, always trust your instinct. If you think it’s a bad idea DONT DO IT. But, do remember too have fun!

5. Walking to the Beat of your own Drum!

You’re really on your own time when solo travelling and this way you get to see all the things that interest you. You also, tend to realize new things about yourself that you never knew before. Its truly eye-opening!

6. Budget Honey

I remember money being a BIG thing, when thinking of solo travelling. Until I realized, I can budget honeyyyy! Even while on the trip, i stuck to my budget i created and i didn’t have to worry about luxury because I knew exactly what my budget was going to cover. Luckily, so many hostels these days resemble high-end hotels. Honestly, sometimes I couldn’t even tell the difference.

7. You can be Spontaneous !

I am not kidding, you can literally do anything you put your mind to! and try new things. I swam with elephants, rode through the rain forest, and ate poo coffee! Yeeeeeep poo coffee haha formerly known as Kopi Luwak coffee.

8. You meet such awesome people !

The amount of people I’ve met and stories I’ve heard have truly shaped me into the person I am today. I love learning through social interaction, because honestly we’ll never understand people until we listen to them first.

9. You learn to value life differently.

This is something so hard to explain, unless you experience it. While, any travel can make you appreciate life more. Backpacking does something exceptionally different. You learn to view life through an alternative lens, you become less materialistic and more holistic. You learn that life, is truly measure by moments.

10. CULTURES!!!

Do I really need to say more? The amount of cultures and history you learn while back-packing is something different!

Thank you so much for reading and I’ll see you in my next post.

• Somewhere in the World