How to Travel Solo with Confidence: A Beginner’s Guide

Thinking about traveling solo but feeling unsure? You’re not alone! Before 2019, my solo adventures were limited to short weekend trips within Australia—nothing too wild or intimidating. But when I moved to the UK, I decided to push myself out of my comfort zone. My first big solo trip, a 2.5-week adventure through Spain, completely changed my perspective. The freedom, the challenge, and the self-reliance were exhilarating.

Since then, I’ve embraced solo travel and learned how to navigate new destinations with confidence. In this guide, I’ve pulled together my top tips on how to become a confident, safe share everything you need to know—from planning your first solo trip to staying safe, making connections, and fully enjoying the experience. Let’s dive in!

So on that note, here are my top tips on how to travel solo with confidence…

Get used to your own company – this is by far the most important part of enjoying solo trips in my opinion. If you can’t spend time with yourself, then chances are you’re not going to love this style of travel. It can be a bit weird and uncomfortable at first, but once you get into the groove of totally doing your own thing, you’ll be addicted, trust me! To help ease into travelling solo, why not take yourself out for a coffee or go on a solo day trip before tackling a longer adventure.

Budget smartly for solo travel – now one of the biggest down sides to solo travel is not having friends or a partner to split costs with! Never fear, there are other ways for you to keep the budget in check while travelling alone. For example, eating lunch instead of dinner at fancy restaurants (cheaper menus!), using hostel dorms or house-sitting for accommodation, and taking advantage of free walking tours (make sure you tip though)! You can check out my Ultimate Guide to Pet & House Sitting if that’s something you’re interested in.

Don’t be shy, make some new friends – as much as it’s important to enjoy spending time by yourself, making friends while travelling is arguably the second best thing about solo travel. You can become travel-besties by lunchtime with someone you meet at breakfast and then spend the next week travelling together! It’s one of the most special kinds of friendship and you’ll create memories that will truly last forever. Consider staying in social hostels, joining group tours, using apps like Bumble BFF or Meetup, or even sitting at communal tables in cafés.

Embrace the unknown – this is kind of a tip for travel in general, but I feel like it’s even more relevant when you’re roaming solo. When you don’t have the comfortable safety net of another person, trying new things can be daunting and a bit scary and that’s totally ok. It’s alright to feel unsure when you’re by yourself in a foreign country (or even at home to be honest), but if you let fear of the unknown hold you back, who knows what amazing experiences you’ll be missing out on! Embrace spontaneous adventure by saying yes to a last-minute invite, trying an activity you’d never usually do, or exploring without Google Maps.

Stay safe & trust your gut – While solo travel is amazing, there can be times when you feel uneasy or unsafe. Safety is key and something you do have to be extra aware of at times. Doing basic things like using local SIM cards or apps like Google Maps offline for navigation, researching safe neighborhoods to stay in, and keeping friends/family updated on your location, will help you feel safer when travelling solo. If you’re ever in a situation that doesn’t feel quite right, trust your gut and (safely) get out of there as soon as you can.

Have a bit of a plan (but not too much) – hear me out here. I love planning and I LOVE researching all the best things to do, see and (most importantly) eat in a new destination. However, I’ve personally found I enjoy myself so much more on a trip if I know what all my options are but I’m not stuck in a set plan each day. Leaving space for spontaneity is a must for me! In saying that, there are a few things that are worth pre-planning, like booking your first night’s accommodation and researching transport options. Some solo travelers prefer a bit more structure, so a balance is key!

Take a good book and a diary – a more practical tip but having a book to read while travelling to the next destination or having lunch alone really helped me ease into travelling solo. I also really loved keeping a diary – not necessarily as a travel diary, more as a way to remember how I was I felt and grew by spending time with myself.

Learn to be ok with eating dinner alone – to be completely honest, eating dinner alone was (and kinda still is) what I struggled with the most when travelling by myself. Sitting down to breakfast and lunch by myself, no worries. But come dinner time I would start to feel the anxiety creeping in! I’m still working on being a confident solo-diner but until then, I’m embracing the old saying ‘fake it till you make it’. Some practical ways to make eating out solo more enjoyable include sitting at the bar or counter, bringing a book or journal, choosing restaurants with a lively atmosphere, and aating at food markets or casual spots if restaurants feel intimidating.

Capture your solo adventures – now maybe this is just me, but I love taking photos of my adventures! Yes, for this blog…but also for myself so that I can remember all the incredible adventures I’ve had. I’d also recommend getting comfortable asking strangers to take a photo of you! Looking back on all the places you’ve been solo is a sure fire way to remind yourself that you can do anything you put your mind to.

If you’ve been toying with the idea of embarking on a solo adventure, I hope these tips help you feel confident that you can do it! You truly will not regret it.