7 Solo Travel Stories

by Janice Waugh /
Janice Waugh's picture
Aug 21, 2011 / 0 comments

A blog, by its very nature, buries stories. Every time I write a new post about traveling alone, others get pushed further from view.
With 455 posts now on Solo Traveler, it is likely that there are many that you have not seen. With this in mind, Trip Base launched a #MY7Links challenge. The goal is to pull forward 7 posts that hold particular relevance but may have received little attention of late. I hope you enjoy.

My Most beautiful post

I'm not certain that this post is beautiful in the traditional sense - but I think it is. I think it's beautiful because, with the assistance of Paulo Coelho, I dig into the human psyche with the purpose of inspiring solo travel. I hope you'll read: Solo Travel and Four Obstacles to Your Personal Legend.

My Most Popular Post

Who doesn't like Free. It's been no different for my Free eBook called "Glad You're Not Here: a solo traveler's manifesto". It's a bit tongue in cheek and a bit serious. Most importantly, it covers many reasons why you should travel solo at every stage of life. I hope you'll share it with other solo travelers and those who don't understand why you would travel alone.

My most controversial post

Most controversial? Men traveling alone. This was a surprise to me. I recruited a man to write the post because a couple of men complained that there is always information for women travelers but never men. Then, when i published it, guys complained - well you can see why in the comments. I have avoided the gender split ever since.

My most helpful post

People who venture out solo are first concerned about safety and then, surprisingly, about eating alone. Of course, I address both those issues. But I also think it important to go out at night. Some solo travelers, even seasoned ones, stay in their room at night and read a book. Well, in my experience, you can go out. And I like my posts that encourage that including 10 Tips on Clubbing and Pubbing Solo.

A post whose success surprised me

I wrote this post because I did it! I have always loved camping but it took a long time before I camped by myself so I wrote Camping Alone: Protected by a Code of Ethics. This has been a very popular post through Google. Apparently, many people wonder whether you can camp alone.

A post I feel didn’t get the attention it deserved

Safety always gets some attention but the reason I am so geared towards safety is summed up in one story in one post. This can never get enough play. I hope you will read Solo Travel Danger Part II: Caught in a Con Game.

The post that I am most proud.

I'm proud of this post because I think it has lit a fire under a few people. It encourages people to follow their travel dreams. The post is Should I Stay or Should I Go. It's very personal, very serious but, hopefully hits only hard enough to make it's point. 

I'll leave you with my favorite photo. I woke up in my tent in Patagonia, unzipped the door at my head, looked up and saw this beautiful blue sky and snapped.

View from my tent - Patagonia 2011[/caption]