Getting started in solo travel
And the last bit of this little series
Hello Readers!
I hope that you had a wonderful and relaxing end of summer into the long Labour Day weekend if you’re in Canada or the United States, as most of my readers are. I also hope that the start of September has been great for you, especially if you have children who went back to school. I know that returning to routine can be a good thing as well as difficult.
How are you? Where did the end of August take you or what do you have coming up this fall? It has been a minute, I took a little breather and now I am back.
This is my final instalment about solo travel and I am closing out this chapter by sharing some ideas and places to get you started with solo travel. I know I have readers scattered across the world but most of them are in the same hemisphere as me. So, if you’ve never been on a trip alone and you’re ready to take the plunge somewhere, I have some suggestions on where to start: Mexico, the USA, Canada, or the Caribbean. In a future edition, I’ll suggest some other destinations.
I think most people might be more comfortable starting close to home with a solo trip because one can test the waters with a short trip. If you’re not having a great time, you know it is just a short flight or drive home. I also think it is a lot easier to venture into something new to you if you start in a country (or continent) where the language is your native language. Or, if you’re headed to the Caribbean or Mexico from the US or Canada, you might remember the Spanish or French that you learned in school. I fully support extending your comfort zone but I understand that you can’t expand it in all directions at once. Take baby steps if you know your feathers are easily ruffled by change and the unfamiliar.
Finally, why is it good to start close to home with a solo trip? You probably know someone personally or have someone in your orbit who has been where you’re going and you can ask for recommendations. Getting that personal connection to your chosen destination is quite important to planning a successful first-time solo excursion since it creates a bit of familiarity pre-trip. You can ask for recommendations about neighbourhoods to visit, restaurants, and attractions and plan accordingly. If you’re doing exactly what others have recommended, that does not matter, you’re doing it on your own and you can thank your friends for their help in empowering you to do this solo trip!
For a solo trip close to home, you can go somewhere totally new to you or a place you’ve been before with your family, with friends, or for a bachelor/ette part, etc. Why not see something with fresh eyes and do only what you want to do? I know that some people don’t like to repeat destinations but there is something more comfortable about the familiar.
Some of those tips might seem obvious but if you have any questions or want to ask me something, feel free to comment or email. There are no silly questions. I’ve traveled solo quite a bit in many places where I don’t speak the language and my experiences have been overwhelmingly positive.
Links to get you started
Visiting St. John’s, Newfoundland
So many different things to do in the great outdoors in Canada!
Visiting the Yukon in winter.
Street art in Bushwick (Brooklyn). It looks fantastic.
I’ve written in a previous issue about travelling with physical disabilities and included a lot of articles about the experiences of people. This article about a deaf women travelling to Martha’s Vineyard, which was a deaf haven, was an interesting read and includes some history about the deaf community there. I always like to be reminded that as an able-bodied person with no disabilities, travel isn’t so seamless for everyone.
New archeological site opening this month in Mexico.
Foods you need to try in Mexico.
If you’re a US passport holder and you’re waiting for your passport to be renewed or it currently expired, there are still some places you can go in the Caribbean without your passport.
Where to sit on the plane if you hate turbulence!
Consuming
Reading
Banyan Moon - I finished this family story about several generations from Vietnam but it was a slow start for me. Once I got to page 60 or 70, I was fully engrossed in the story
Currently reading all of these: Anita de Monte Laughs Last, Lampedusa, You Need a Better Vacation, and What I Talk About When I Talk About Running.
Watching
I don’t care about motorcycles at all! But there’s something about this adventure documentary and it’s earlier versions Long Way Down and Long Way Round that really holds my attention. It certainly doesn’t hurt that Ewan McGregor is one of the adventurers and I’m a big fan.
3%
A Brazilian post-apocalyptic 4 season show that I really can’t describe so just go read it and don’t spoil it for yourself by reading anything revealing if it sounds like your thing. I was hooked from the beginning!
Emily in Paris
Finished this silly show in record time and not ashamed at all. I like it, I will not be answering questions. I also didn’t link it because I’m sure you’ve heard of it and avoided it or watched it as well.
That is all for this issue!
-Sonya
“I like it, I will not be answering questions.” 😂😂 you make me laugh.
Oh my imagination is going wild thinking about a trip to Canada now after seeing the photos from Nat Geo and the Yukon. Whenever I think of the Yukon, I remember playing the Oregon Trail spinoff computer game (The Yukon Trail, obviously). Look out Canada, I'm coming your way. Thanks for writing this series. I really enjoyed reading it!