5 Things That Will Happen on Your First Solo Trip

1. You’ll get scared

For sure, you will have at least a couple of freak out moments, where you wonder, “How the hell did I get myself into this?” You might wander down a wrong alley, accidently say the wrong thing to a surly immigration officer, or see your luggage being whisked away by a bus you are not on. Or you might find yourself lost in the jungle of an undeveloped island in Southeast Asia, with a mysterious burning rash spreading all over your body and your tongue swelling up. (Ya, THAT happened….) But whatever happens, you will survive and you will be stronger because of it.

2. You’ll meet a ton of people

The thing about solo travel is, well, you’re not actually solo most of the time. One of the greatest parts of travelling alone, is opening yourself up to meeting other people. You’ll see how incredibly easy it is to make instant friends, and in some cases, lifelong friendships. While you’re free to go with the crowd when you please, you also learn the joy of saying no, and going your own way when you feel it’s the right time.

3. You’ll spend more money than you planned on

If you haven’t travelled much before, it’s easy to blow your budget, thinking “What the hell, when’s the next time I’m gonna be in X?” And some experiences truly are once in a lifetime and you have to shell out some money. But it’s OK, don’t stress about it. (Unless you blew $50 on a souvenir handpainted dick-shaped bottle opener. You make horrible decisions!) As time goes on, you’ll learn to be more savvy. Learning where to save and where to splurge, how to bargain, how to find cheaper airfare and accommodation, and how to spot a scam.

4. You WILL have misadventures.

Try as you might to plan and organize things, something will go wrong. Some things are just out of your control and you’ll have to get flexible and get creative. It could be as minor as an uncomfortable hotel bed. Or it could be tiptoeing your motorbike a mile through muddy roads in the Cambodian countryside after an extremely inconvenient downpour. Either way, you will learn to laugh about it… eventually.

5. You won’t come back the same person

No, you don’t just spend 2 weeks in Spain sharing hostel bathrooms and stuffing your face with Iberian ham and cheap beer, then suddenly you come home enlightened. But you may come home with more confidence, a better understanding of yourself; you catch a glimpse of yourself in some of your highest and lowest moments. Maybe through all the crazy experiences you went through just getting from point A to point B, you start to understand the world a little bit better. Or maybe you’re like me, and just have a hell of a lot more questions.