Pros and Cons of Solo Travel: Is Travelling Solo Worth It?

Is travelling solo worth it? I’ve been travelling solo for over 17 years, so to convince you to take the plunge into an adventure of a lifetime, I’ve rounded up the pros and cons of solo travel.

Spoiler alert: it’s ALWAYS worth it!

Is Travelling Solo Worth It?

Why should you miss out on a well-deserved holiday or travelling somewhere you’ve always dreamed of going because you haven’t got anyone to go with?

So what you don’t have a partner to go to Paris with, and your mates are too busy holidaying with their partners to lie on the beach in Thailand with you. No one else can afford to go on that city break you’ve been daydreaming about, so you’re just not going to go? People, life is too damn short.

Go and see the places that spark your imagination whilst you can. Go and eat pasta in Tuscany and marvel at that New York City skyline from an overpriced rooftop bar. Sure, you may have wanted to share that experience with somebody, I understand that – but don’t let not having someone to go with stop you from doing something you’ve always wanted to.

Even if you do have someone to go with, I still advocate for people to give solo travel a go! It’s such a rewarding adventure, and hopefully I can convince you to try it out for yourself.

So, I’m going to talk about the pros and cons of solo travel, but before I harp on I’d like you to bear in mind that there are also highs and lows of travelling with people, too. Going away by yourself and with people both have their advantages and disadvantages.

Pros and Cons of Solo Travel

PRO: The Freedom To Do Whatever You Damn Well Please

The best part of it all. Want to lie in? No problem. Want to eat three desserts for lunch? Go for it, there’s no one to argue they want pizza. Actually don’t really fancy that museum you’re ‘supposed’ to visit? Great, don’t go! You can do whatever you want to, because it’s just you. 

Rise when you want, eat as often as you want, do what you want, start drinking whenever you God damn please. (The correct time is at the airport, I don’t care if it’s 7am, you’re on holiday and airports are timezone free. This is a scientific fact.)

CON: Loneliness Can Sometimes Creep In

Look, there’s no point sugar coating it – sometimes you do get lonely when you travel alone. And I’m not just talking months on end backpacking when you haven’t met anyone you click with in a couple of weeks; it can happen on a city break too. I’ve been there.

I have no shame in talking to my friends back home whilst I’m away. A group chat can save your afternoon if you’re feeling down or keenly alone. You don’t have to go off the grid just because you’re away, as long as you’re not losing touch with why you’ve gone in the first place.

PRO: It Will Build Your Confidence

This is one of the best parts of solo travel – not much will build your confidence like a trip away by yourself. Solo travel forces you out of your comfort zone, makes you feel capable, leads you to be braver.

You’ll get talking to people around you whether you want to or not – more often than not other friendly tourists and locals will strike up a conversation with you. I’ve found people are often curious about you if you’re by yourself, especially as a woman. You kind of walk around with an air of glamorous mystery – at least that’s what I tell myself.

Even getting to the airport alone and navigating the journey from flight to hotel alone can make you feel more confident. These are basic things but they can be intimidating, and you should be proud of tackling and achieving them by yourself!

CON: Lack of photos with you in them

The photos question is one I get a lot. Most of us want photos of ourselves in the places you’ve visited, right? You can’t fit the whole of the Golden Gate Bridge in a selfie, trust me – I’ve tried.

There are of course ways around it: selfie stick, self timer with tripod (includes panic over someone stealing your camera), asking a random to take a snap and hope to God they know what they’re doing with a camera.

If the photo thing is a genuine reason not to take the trip, I don’t think this blog is going to help you.

PRO: Immersing Yourself Fully Without Distraction

I really enjoy immersing myself fully in a new place and I do find that easier to do when I travel solo. Other people are a distraction.

I enjoy having the time to spend on photography without being distracted by someone else hovering, waiting for me to get a move on whilst I try different angles to get an interesting shot. I can spend extra time on a particular piece of art in a museum – or skip something. I can people watch in peace. It’s easier to get a feel for somewhere when it’s just you taking it all in.

CON: Accommodation Can Get Expensive

Obviously, sharing the cost of accommodation with someone is a bonus. Accommodation isn’t something that gets subsidised for being occupied by just one person, so this is usually the biggest cost on a solo trip.

That said, AirBnB does make things cheaper than it used to be, and you can still find some reasonable deals, though it isn’t ideal. But at least you don’t have to share a bed or a bathroom!

PRO: You Can Usually Get Into Popular Restaurants and Bars

With just one of you, there’s almost always room for you to squeeze into a cool bar or restaurant at the bar or in the corner, skipping what can be a lengthy wait for a spot. I often get ushered past couples and groups of friends waiting to be seated and I won’t lie, that VIP feeling is something I’m not entirely adverse to.

Same goes for spots on tours or the like where they only have one space left. It can be handy and time saving!

CON: You Don’t Get To Try As Much Food

My biggest gripe when it comes to solo travel – I can’t order as much food as I would like try. It’s such a joy to share dishes when away so you can try a bit of everything! The amount of times I’ve wanted to try half the menu in Italy but can barely fit two courses in? It’s tragic, honestly. I mean, sure, I could over order but wasting food is a dick move.

PRO: It Tends To Be Less Stressful

I’m not saying I don’t stress myself out. That happens from time to time; I can be pretty highly strung and although I will maintain that I have chilled out a LOT over the last decade, it does take me a while at times.

However, the thing that has taught me how to chill out the most over the years has been travelling. There are so many things that happen on the road that cannot be helped: broken down buses, delayed connecting flights, 32 hour journeys that were supposed to take 20. It is what it is.

I find it easier to shake things off if I’m by myself, as I don’t have to deal with anyone else being stressed and getting wound up in turn. I allow myself some time to be pissed off and then let it go. If I travel with someone, it’s likely that them being annoyed will irritate me, stress me out, and end up in someone snapping.

Removing others from the equation means your trip is likely to be less stressful; either when things go wrong or you disagree on how to spend your time away. Petty arguments born of long travel days, begone!

To be honest, I find travelling with people a finer art than travelling solo. You can’t travel in harmony with everyone you love.

CON: You Don’t Have Anyone To Share The Organisation With

This one probably depends on what you’re like as a person, but there can be admin overload on a solo trip.

As much as there is joy in doing whatever you and you alone wants to do, there is also the flipside of everything being down to you to organize. No delegating, no shared responsibility – it’s all on you. I’m a control freak and love organisation, so I don’t mind, but I know it’s overwhelming for many.

PRO: Your Frequent Flier Points Go Further

One huge advantage of solo travel is not sharing your frequent flier points and moreover, BA Amex’s companion voucher!

More often than not I use my Avios points to buy my flights, and with a companion voucher I can benefit from the solo traveller discount, only needing half the number of Avios points to travel.

No need to feel any guilt or pressure to share when it’s just you! And it’s much easier to save enough points to fly business class if there’s one of you…

CON: Being More Aware Of Your Safety

I know that a big concern for women is their safety whilst travelling solo, and that is absolutely understandable. It’s bad enough at home: we walk with our keys in between our fingers and we ask each other to text when we get in, so of course being somewhere you don’t know can be more intimidating.

My advice to tackle this is to ensure someone knows where you’re staying, check in with friends, share your location and most of all, be vigilant. Trust your instincts.

Yes, you have to be more aware of your safety whilst you are travelling solo, but bad things unfortunately happen everywhere, all the time, whether you’re alone or not. Keep your wits about you, but don’t let it stop you living your life.

PRO: Feeling Like You Can Do Anything

In 2016 I went to California on a 2.5 week roadtrip by myself. I went to meet a friend who lived in LA for a few days before driving up the coast to San Francisco. I won’t lie; I was nervous.

It wasn’t the first solo long haul holiday I’d done but the previous had been in Thailand and there are backpackers everywhere; I’d travelled there previously and I knew it wouldn’t be too hard to meet people if I really wanted to.

California is very different to Asia, and I was aware I would be alone for much of the time I was away. I had also always envisioned that I’d be able to delegate the nerve-racking task of driving on the other side of the road to somebody else. But I wasn’t going to let that fear stop me, and after about twenty minutes (in which yes I did scrape someone’s wing mirror), I was fine! Me and the Californian sunshine, driving the 101.

I genuinely felt unstoppable. I’ll never forget driving up into the Santa Ynez hills, covered in orange poppies and standing out looking on the vista before me, blasting out Florence’s Shake It Out from my phone, feeling like I could do anything.

The truth is that would have been a very different experience had I not been travelling solo. So is travelling solo worth it? Oh yes, always.

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