Solo travel tips are easier to talk about than to act on. Most people who want to head out alone already know they should just go. What stops them is a short list of fears that feel bigger than they are. Here are five of the most common ones and what to actually do about them.
Five Solo Travel Tips for Getting Past the Fears That Hold You Back
1. Wildlife: Lions, Tigers, and Bears
Everyone has heard the horror stories. What does not get talked about as much is that most people who encounter bears, mountain lions, and other wildlife in the backcountry do not have dangerous encounters. The animal wants nothing to do with you. Your presence is the problem and noise is the solution.
Talk or sing on the trail when you are moving through dense vegetation or low visibility terrain. Animals hear you coming and move away. Carry bear spray in areas where bears are active and know how to use it before you need it. Keep food out of your tent and store it properly using a bear canister or hang system. Talk to the ranger at the trailhead about recent sightings and current recommendations for that specific area.
Dangerous wildlife encounters make the news precisely because they are rare. Letting the rare case stop you from going is letting fear of the exception override the reality of the rule. Prepare appropriately, stay aware of your surroundings, and go.
2. Being Alone
Some of my best adventures have been solo. That said, heading out alone for the first time is genuinely harder than going with people. The unknown factors feel bigger when there is no one to share them with. That feeling does not go away completely, but it does shrink with experience.
A few solo travel tips that make a real difference: tell someone your plan before you leave, including the route, the trailhead location, your vehicle description, and when to expect you back. Keep a backup plan in your back pocket and be willing to use it. Stay flexible when conditions change. Talk to people you meet on the trail or at camp. Some of the best conversations happen when you are traveling alone because you are more open to them.
Your imagination is both your best companion and your worst enemy on a solo trip. Not every sound in the dark is something to worry about. Stay curious and cautious in equal measure and you will be fine. The pros and cons of hiking solo post goes deeper on what to expect from time alone on the trail.
3. Trying New Things
When you travel with other people, someone else usually goes first. On a solo trip, that person is you. That changes the calculus on trying new things in a way that is worth thinking about before you go.
Know your limits and respect them. Getting in over your head on a solo trip does not have the same safety net as getting in over your head with a group. It is completely fine to say no to something that does not feel right. At the same time, the best solo travel tip for trying new things is to approach them with skeptical optimism rather than reflexive caution. Go outside your comfort zone in measured ways. The experiences that come from saying yes when you almost said no are usually the ones worth talking about later.
4. Going to New Places
Familiar spots are comfortable for a reason. They are known quantities. The campsite you have been to a dozen times holds no surprises. That comfort is also a ceiling on what you experience.
One of the best solo travel tips is also the simplest: pick a location on a map that you have never been to and start planning toward it. Drive a little further than usual. Find the next trail over from your usual one. The research process for a new place is genuinely enjoyable and teaches you things about an area before you arrive. Talk to people who have been there. Check recent trip reports. Build a list of what you need to know and work through it.
The pre-adventure checklist covers what to sort out before any new destination, and the Places section on this site has firsthand reports on locations worth adding to your list.
5. Keep Your Skills Sharp
Skills decay when they are not used. First aid knowledge you learned years ago is still in there somewhere but it gets rusty without practice. Navigation skills you picked up in Scouts or on a course fade if you only use your phone for directions. On a solo trip, your skills are your safety net. There is no one else to fill the gap.
Make a habit of revisiting the fundamentals regularly. Watch a video on wilderness first aid. Take a refresher course. Practice using a compass and reading a topographic map on a familiar trail before you need those skills somewhere unfamiliar. The backpacking survival skills post covers the eight most useful ones with resources for going deeper on each.
None of these solo travel tips require a dramatic shift in who you are or how you travel. They require a little preparation, a willingness to go before conditions are perfect, and the acceptance that the unknown is part of what makes a solo trip worth taking in the first place. Start small if you need to. The first solo trip does not have to be an expedition. It just has to happen.
For more on getting outside and doing it well, browse the Adventure Tips archive or check out the post on essential items to always carry when traveling.
