Things They Don’t Tell You About When You Book Your First Solo Trip

There is a truth out there. It might be different for everyone but through my travels and my time speaking with people all over the world these are the common denominators I have found, and I want to refute them. Embrace your wanderlust and get out there! You'll never regret accumulating experience.

Its easier than people make it seem; but harder than Instagram makes it.
There will be backlash from people around you
Despite being “proud Americans” when traveling abroad sometimes we don’t flaunt it, and sometimes we hide it.
If you're taking an extended trip you will have bad days, and that is normal.
You will get hit on. It might be 2017 but when you travel remember as a female traveler you have to travel different.
Experience only comes with time and adversity.
You will lose stuff.
Coming home will feel like culture shock.

1) What no one around you, aside from your current wanderlusting group, will tell you is that it is so much easier than people make it seem. My biggest tip, use this four step system: 1. Research, 2. Budget, 3. Book, 4. Go. (Look for my article on Booking Your First Solo Trip). You can do it! You might need some help and thats ok. If you want to go make it happen. However, if you're gramming your inspiration remember many of those travel shots are planned and executed by instaprofessionals. Traveling on a budget isn’t always glamorous and Instagram is full of mostly travel highlights not the grit in between. Those wanderlust beauties work hard for those shots. So keep that in the back of your mind too.

2) Unfortunately there will be people even unexpectedly who will be jealous or actually upset with you for traveling. Mainly this is because they don’t understand. When I started making changes in my life to prioritize travel people raised their eyebrows. I had backlash from my parents, my friends, and found myself justifying my decisions even to strangers. People had questions, criticisms, and many opinions. Its up to you how deal with and with whom to pick your battles with but in my experience I found it best to be educated about where I was going and found solace in understanding within myself why I was traveling and being able to communicate that with others.

3) I am very proud to be me. What I discovered when I was traveling was that not everyone else is proud of where I come from. As Americans outside the US we have a stigma, and while I try not to live up to them there are many places where there were times when I chose to with hold that information from fellow travelers or hosts unless necessary. It is easier to allow someone to get to know you first before you receive the judgments of stereotypes from where you were born. I felt there was a lot of resentment and judgment from travelers and locals about Americans when I was traveling through the Mediterranean and SE Asia. As a conscious traveler I don’t think anyone should engage in degrading in people but it happens and there are times when unfortunately I found it easier to walk away than to stick up for country. Stay humble and stay conscious and be aware of the impact you as an American have on the countries you are visiting. Our politics impact the world, and our leaders decisions whether we agree with them or not do as well.

4) This was the hardest thing for me to grasp on my first solo trip. Normally in the States we take a “vacation”. It is supposed to be pure bliss and Instagram gold everyday. But when you're traveling for an extended amount of time, moving from place to place you have to remember not everyday is going to be golden.

Having a bad day or days is normal. Traveling is not a way to run away from your life. If your struggling buying a ticket won’t make it better on its own. You still have to do the work. Traveling helped me face myself. I had to learn about myself and face my fears. Fears that at home in my routine I was easily able to avoid. The bad days keep us cherishing the good ones, we can’t have one without the other. Learn from them. And cherish them the same.

5) Its unfortunate but its true. While some places are making positive strides toward equal rights between men and women others are not. As a solo female traveler we still have to travel with more awareness than most male presenting persons. I haven’t been afraid anywhere I have been. I’ll admit taking my first few steps off my first flight I was nervous but I wasn’t scared for my safety. Remember the basics, don’t travel at night alone, walk with confidence, don’t be afraid to carry protection, keep your purse with you and out of site, be conscious of your surroundings, and at the end of the day – trust your gut.

6) Everyone learns this with time, (Ugh I sound like my mother…) we only realize certain things after certain experiences. We can only prepare so much for the future. It is not until other times that we can look back in hindsight and realize all of the mistake we made along the way, with or without consequences. Hold onto the notion that we all took our first trip at some point and have made mistakes along the way. We live, we learn, we travel on. Utilize the resources you have to get prepared but eventually you will understand that no amount of research or such can prepare you for what you just need to experience.

7) Personally one of the most frustrating things for me is losing things. Honestly I have a terrible memory and I lose my shit every day.

Every day. What I have learned is how to do a very thorough room check. This is an essential skill if you're like me. But no matter how thorough you are you will lose things. Leave the expensive things at home and take with only things that you would be willing to part with in some fashion.

8) Every time I come home from a trip I have a minor freak out. Adjusting to your previous life is hard. My anxiety hits about the time I hit my homeward bound domestic flight. I have running to do lists, everything is in English, I turn my phone back on, I worry about rent, and a job and seeing everyone I haven’t seen in months. It’s a little overwhelming. You realize that you haven’t been home in months or weeks and that despite you not being in it, it didn’t end. Oh the egocentrism of American life. By the time you get off the plane and you roll in the comfort of being connected 24/7 and hot water in your showers and your old bed with your pillow you begin to appreciate everything you have just a little bit more. Coming home from Bangkok I remember just how quiet home seemed and come back from the suburbs of Sweden I remember just how loud it was in my little big city. Each morning you’ll wake up in a different time zone and as the jet lag wears off you adjust. But it’s never the same, because you can’t unlearn the things you’ve seen ad the experiences you felt.

“Truly being authentic is knowing what matters to you, on the deepest level of who you are, and committing always to act from that authentic center.”

-Richie Norton